Exposé - Hot n Spicy Instant Noodles

I'll be honest - I am a HUGE fan of the instant noodle! A couple (in my case, three) of packets, some hot water, and accompanying flavour sachet(s), and you have an easy to prepare meal, ready to eat at your leisure. These usually go well with a good movie, too.

Over the years, I have consumed quite a large quantity of these particular noodles. They are my pet favourite, and perhaps they are yours as well. They are spicy enough without the spice taking away from the flavour or the enjoyment of eating them (ever eaten food so spiced that you just couldn't taste anything?)

But I have to ask myself - what exactly am I putting in my body? What exactly is inside that innocent-looking packet of pasta goodness?

If you too are an avid eater of the instant noodle, no matter what brand, then please read on, because the instant noodle isn't as innocent as the packet makes out. There are, in fact, some nasty surprises within the list of ingredients that I wish to make known.

Please note that no two noodle brands are created necessarily equal. Some have one flavour sachet; some have two sachets; some have a chili paste; some even have freezed-dried vegetables. Nevertheless, while I am using the above instant noodles as the basis for this post, there are some ingredients that are uniform for all brands - namely, the flavouring sachet itself.

The Ingredients
For the Hot n Spicy Thai variety, I get three flavour sachets: A Thai Powder sachet (the main flavouring), a Chili Paste (think of it like an oil sachet, just not containing oil), and a small packet of ground chili. The latter I tend not to add, as the noodles are spicy enough for my palate. The chili sachet is hence ignored.

Main Ingredients: This is the contents of the actual noodle product. While for the most part the ingredients seem to check out, I am told that there is a Thickener (412) contained within the noodle makeup. Thickener-412 (can also be rendered as Emulsifier-412) is the number name for a product known as Guar Gum, which apparently is known to have some interesting side effects. 412 is known to cause Nausea, Cramps, and even Flatulence. That doesn't sound too good...

Flavour Sachet: If reading about 412 infiltrating my noodles was reason enough to drop them, then the sachet itself is going to be worse. It should be noted that the flavour sachet in any packet of noodles is going to contain the bulk of various chemicals. Even 'normal' noodle flavours, like Chicken for example, use a vegetable or flavour stock as the sachet, and the chemical compound of stock powder is bad news already (probably to be written about in a later post).

In the case of my spicy noodles, my flavour sachet has a small raft of numbers in it, much more than the noodles themselves. Of special interest is 621, which I will leave for last. But for now, let's explore the others that show up in my sachet.

635 - Known as "Di/Sodium 5'-ribonucleotide", which is actually the composition of two other ingredients, 627 and 631. This also can crop up as E635, and is known to cause itchy skin rashes, which can last up to 30 hours. Amazingly, this additive has been banned in Australia, so there must be something that the Aussies know about that New Zealand hasn't quite gotten hold of yet. Bottom Line: If a country needs to ban a substance from being mass produced, then that cannot be a good thing.

330 - The sachet also contains an acidity regulator, E330. This is the number equivalent of Citric Acid, a common ingredient in citrus fruits, such as lemons. For the most part, this seems OK, but most foods containing E330 have so by being produced from corn. The significance of this is because, via manufacturing, the protein is not always removed, and once combined with water (and the human body being ~70% water), breaks down into 621. This manufactured varient of citric acid can also erode tooth enamel.

621 - This particular chemical is known as Monosodium L-glutamate, or more commonly known as MSG. This mainly appears as a salt substitute, and as such exists in a wide variety of foods, and can exist in most canned goods as well (check your labels). The side effects of MSG are quite horrific, ranging from attacking nerve cells, to diseases such as Parkinson's, Huntington's, and even Alzheimer's! 621 also has the potential to damage the nervous system, particularly if fed to young children or even infants. So damaging is 621, that it can also cause: Headaches, migraines, stomach upset, nausea and vomiting, diarrhoea, irritable bowel syndrome, asthma attacks, shortness of breath, anxiety or panic attacks, heart palpitations, partial paralysis, "heart attack-like symptoms," balance difficulties, mental confusion, mood swings, neurological disorders, behavioural disorders (especially In children and teens), allergy-type symptoms, skin rashes, runny nose, bags under the eyes, flushing, mouth lesions, depression, and perhaps even more. Satirically, if anyone tells you they are suffering from "Chinese Food Syndrome", they are suffering reactions due to the consumption of MSG.

In other words, avoid any and all products containing E621 like the black plague!

Conclusion and Analysis
In summing up the ingredients of my favourite noodles, it seems I have been, to put it bluntly, slowly poisoning myself over time. Interestingly, as I sit here and write this, I have got an obvious presence of rashes on my upper thighs. But thigh rashes notwithstanding, I'm not cool with the idea of ingesting harsh chemicals and getting any of the side effects that these additives are known to cause.

If you are an instant noodle eater, you have a choice. For my part, I am choosing to chuck in the noodle game once and for all. The cons far outweigh the one and only pro; namely, the convenience of making a basic meal with little effort. Health-wise, there is nothing in noodles that my body needs.

Final Outcome of Instant Noodles: FAIL!