Many people turn to home-cooked meals to eat healthier, but choosing the wrong ingredients can actually harm your health. Nutritionist Fang Cisheng shared the case of a 30-year-old office worker who, despite cooking at home for six months, saw his waistline increase by 5 cm. A closer look at his meals revealed the problem: he frequently used heavily seasoned frozen foods like fried rice, braised pork ribs, and hotpot soup bases, which were extremely high in sodium.
The male office worker, who has a family history of hypertension, decided to cook his own meals to maintain his health. However, due to time constraints after work, he often relied on frozen fried rice (such as shrimp or salmon fried rice) and frozen hotpot soup bases, supplementing them with vegetables.
Regarding protein, he frequently ate frozen fish fillets, braised pork ribs, and honey-glazed chicken thighs—all heavily seasoned. One meal alone could contain nearly 2,000 mg of sodium, which already exceeds the recommended daily limit for adults. On the other hand, his frozen vegetables were a better choice.
Fang explained that the sterilization and blanching processes used for frozen vegetables can reduce vitamins B and C. However, vitamin B can be obtained from brown rice, oats, and lean meats, while vitamin C can be supplemented with fresh fruit. Frozen vegetables still provide dietary fiber, vitamin E, and beta-carotene. When buying frozen vegetables, it’s important to check that packaging is intact, the produce feels firm, and there aren’t large ice crystals, which may indicate prior thawing and reduced freshness.
The case highlights that while home-cooking is generally healthier than eating out, careful ingredient selection is crucial to avoid unintentionally increasing sodium intake or reducing nutrient quality.
