Is American food really unhealthy? How pasta sauce, peanut butter and even Big Macs stack up to their British counterparts

So much for happy meals.

The quality of ultra-processed American fare — especially President-elect Donald Trump’s beloved Big Macs — is getting new scrutiny thanks to Trump’s nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to run the Department of Health and Human Services.

Kennedy has made headlines by calling legal food additives “poison” and criticizing the ingredients in Froot Loops, but long before he was campaigning for president, sites like Food Babe were highlighting the alarming differences in America’s ultra-processed foods versus their counterparts. them abroad.

The Post took its own look at the nutrition labels of three US food products – baked beans, ketchup and peanut butter – comparing their ingredients, calories, fat and salt content with similar products in the UK to see if we are being deceived.

We also put the nutritional information for McDonald’s Big Mac and Pret A Manger’s egg sandwich side by side—and surprisingly, even the seemingly identical products weren’t quite the same.

Darin Detwiler, an assistant professor of food policy at Northeastern University, told The Post that he is unable to eat certain American foods like bread because of the processing it undergoes. But he has no problem feeding the bread in Amsterdam and other parts of Europe.

Travelers have reported on social media that they’ve lost weight while visiting Europe, even while eating seemingly “unhealthy” foods like bread and cheese. And while it could be that they are walking more on their holidays – or eating smaller portions – many have speculated that the difference is down to the quality of the food they are served.

So is the American diet really that bad compared to other countries? Detwiler calls it “different.”

“American companies tend to make food that is suitable for the average healthy American adult, while we have many vulnerable populations — the very young, the elderly, those with compromised immune systems and those who are pregnant,” Detwiler said. .

“When it comes to why you don’t see certain ingredients in foods when they’re in Canada or Europe, it’s because [the companies there are] basing that on the most vulnerable victim,” added Detwiler, who has advised the US Food and Drug Administration. “And if you’re responsible for all the people, then look at the idea that your baseline is the one that should be … the biggest consideration.”

Europe is said to take a more cautious approach to food safety than the US, which has a federal “loophole” that allows food companies to determine which substances are “generally recognized as safe.”

More than 10,000 chemicals and additives are allowed in American food, while the European Union only allows over 300 food additives.

For example, the EU banned titanium dioxide in food due to concerns that it could damage DNA. In response to the 2022 move, US candy company Mars reformulated its Skittles recipe to remove the coloring agent for sale in Europe. Titanium dioxide is still an ingredient in American cans as it has been approved by the FDA.

“What I don’t understand is, why are American companies okay with making and distributing healthier versions of their cereal box or whatever in Canada and the EU, but not here in the States? ” Detwiler wondered. “That, to me, is problematic and I think there will have to be some questions that are raised and addressed about, why are we allowing companies to do this?”

These questions come as more than 40% of US adults and nearly 20% of American children suffer from obesity. Not coincidentally, ultra-processed foods—which tend to be packed with calories, sugar, salt, and fat—make up nearly 60% of the typical US adult’s diet.

Even in the midst of the obesity epidemic, Detwiler and other experts say that RFK Jr. faces an uphill battle within the industry and among consumers in making sweeping changes to the ingredients in American food.

“It will be challenging, for sure. I mean, we’ve definitely created a monster with the sugary and processed food options that we have,” Jamie Maitland, certified holistic nutritionist, author of The 21 Day Reset Cookbook and founder of The Office Health, told The Post. .

Maitland attributes resistance to change to cultural traditions, preferences and convenience, noting that “American foods are often designed to have a longer shelf life for mass production, lower costs, which leads to more complex menus of ingredients that are unfortunately filled with preservatives, artificial flavorings.”

Sotiria Everett, assistant clinical professor at Stony Brook University School of Renaissance Medicine, hopes the new discussion about American diets will increase awareness of the foods we eat.

“Most people don’t read labels. They just eat something because something on the front of the package might make a statement or a claim that interests them, [like] ‘vitamin C’ or ‘grain source,’ Everett said. “But when you actually turn that package over and see that while it has whole grains, it also has 40 grams of sugar, it’s not the best option.”

Here’s a look at the nutritional value of five popular American foods and their UK counterparts.

Baked beans

A 100-gram serving of Bush’s Original Baked Beans has about three dozen more calories; about twice as many carbohydrates, sodium and sugar; and almost four times more fat than Heinz UK baked beans.

One major difference between the two products is that Bush’s beans are in a bacon and brown sugar mixture, while Heinz beans are in tomato sauce.

Tomato sauce

The traditional Old World-style Ragu sauce in the US and the original Dolmio Bolognese sauce in the UK are made with largely similar ingredients, including tomatoes, salt, sugar, onions, garlic and other spices.

But American dressing has more calories, fat, carbohydrates and sugar for the same amount of serving. Ragu sauce has Dolmio sauce for sodium, however, with just over half as much.

McDonald’s Big Mac

All Big Macs are not created equal. The American version contains more calories, fat, carbohydrates and sugar than the UK version, which has more salt and protein.

Although the ingredients are similar—sesame seed buns, two beef patties, shredded lettuce, Big Mac sauce, cheese, pickle slices, and onions—the pickles in the American version contain the emulsifier polysorbate 80, which can contribute to inflammation. of the intestines and in increasing the risk of Crohn’s disease.

Pret A Manger’s Egg Salad Sandwich

Pret’s Egg Salad & Arugula Sandwich in the US has more calories, twice as much fat, slightly more carbohydrates, nearly twice as much sugar and far less fiber than the Pret-Range Egg Mayo in the UK.

A Pret spokesperson notes that the US version is about 25% larger.

“We offer a thin (half) version for customers who want to enjoy this recipe but are looking for a lighter bite,” the spokesperson told The Post. “We also source ingredients from different suppliers, which would also have an impact on the nutritional changes.”

The UK edition has a lot more salt.

Skippy Peanut Butter

It’s not all bad news in America: the Yanks’ peanut butter compares favorably with the British version.

US Skippy Creamy Peanut Butter has less sugar and salt and slightly fewer calories than Skippy Creamy Peanut Butter in the UK – but more fat and carbs.

The main difference is that the American version contains soybean oil, which has been shown to lower cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of heart disease, but consuming large amounts has been linked to obesity and diabetes.