Don?t Add AGEs?to Your Food! - Food and Health Communications

Just in case you needed one more reason to adopt a more healthful diet based on fruits, vegetables, legumes and whole grains, you have it. AGEs (short for advanced glycation end products) are derived mostly from animal products and fatty foods subjected to high temperatures. These potentially harmful chemicals may increase the risk and/or speed the progression of a wide variety of diseases including cancer, diabetes and heart disease.
Take a look at the chart on this page. Note how many animal foods are higher in AGEs and especially the ones that were prepared with high-temperature cooking methods like grilling, broiling and frying.
   AGEs kU/100 calories
Protein:
Broiled beef   2609
Boiled beef   57
Broiled tuna   2833
Roasted tuna   333
Chicken breast raw   636
Chicken breast boiled   688
Chicken breast microwaved   938
Chicken breast pan fried   2773
Chicken breast broiled   3625
Chicken breast roasted   3750
Bacon microwave   1579
Broiled hot dog   7467
Roasted trout   1313
Broiled salmon   700
Fats:
Butter   3732
Cream cheese   3086
Margarine   2434
Olive oil   1364
Mayonnaise   1343
Peanut butter    1252
Roasted almonds   1119
Carbohydrates:
French fries, fast food   486
Beans   143
Pasta   143
Apple   26
Carrots   25
Sweet potato   9
Rice   8
Bread   7
Oatmeal   2
Banana   1
Corn   1
Boiled potato   1

5 Easy Ways to Avoid AGEs:
1) Eat more fruits and vegetables
2) Eat more whole grains
3) Cut back on fatty foods and fatty meats, especially ones prepared with high temperatures from cooking methods like broiling, grilling and deep-frying.
4) Use a moist-heat cooking method like steaming, baking/braising with liquid or poaching.
5) Cook with less fat.

These are all tips you would use to follow a more healthful diet, too!
Who should beware of AGEs?
Everyone who wants to be more healthy and avoid heart disease, diabetes, diabetes-related complications and certain cancers.
If you have any of these diseases already, it is mportant to cut down the amount of potentially harmful chemicals from cooking meat and animal fats with very high temperatures.
In most cases these are the same foods you already need to limit to lower body weight and improve cardiovascular disease risk factors.

Judy Doherty

Judy’s passion for cooking began with helping her grandmother make raisin oatmeal for breakfast. From there she earned her first food service job at 15, was accepted to the world famous Culinary Institute of America at 18 (where she graduated second in her class), and went on to the Fachschule Richemont in Switzerland where she focused on pastry arts and baking. But after learning that the quality of a croissant directly varies with how much butter it has, Judy sought to challenge herself by coming up with recipes that were as healthy as they were tasty.

Judy received The Culinary Institute of America’s Pro Chef II certification, the American Culinary Federation Bronze Medal, Gold Medal, and ACF Chef of the Year. Her enthusiasm for eating nutritiously and deliciously leads her to constantly innovate and use the latest in nutritional science to guide her creativity, from putting new twists on fajitas to adapting Italian brownies to include ingredients like toasted nuts and cooked honey. Judy’s publishing company, Food and Health Communications, is dedicated to her vision that everyone can make food that tastes as good as it is for you.

Become a premium member today and get access to hundreds of articles and handouts plus our premium tools!