Health and Fitness Tip #81 - Salad Dressings: Are they Good For you?

Salad Dressings: Are They Good For You?

They're horrible for you, and for the most part the "all natural" versions are as well.

Here are just some of the reasons why:

1. Pick up any salad dressing bottle and you'll likely see canola oil, soybean oil, and/or vegetable oil as the main ingredients.  These oils are extremely processed, rich in inflammation-promoting Omega-6 fatty acids, and often times contain trans fats that aren't disclosed on the label due to how processed they are.

"All-natural" salad dressing found in the refrigerated section aren't much different.  You'll still see these oils as the base of nearly all of those brands as well.  Why?  They're cheap!

Also, don't be fooled by labels that claim "Made with Extra Virgin Olive Oil".  Sure, they'll point that out on the front of the label because it sounds good and leads you to believe that it's an extra virgin olive oil based dressing.  Instead, that only means that there is at least a drop of extra virgin olive oil in the bottle, and often times that's all it has.  Flip the label over and you'll see the same vegetable oils listed first and extra virgin olive oil way down on the list of ingredients.  Unethical? Yes.  Healthy? No.

4. More often than not, in addition to cheap, potentially harmful oils, store bought salad dressing is also loaded with sugar to boot.  Even worse, it often comes in the form of high fructose corn syrup (the absolute worst form of sugar available).  Just check the label.

5.  To round of the trifecta of horrid ingredients contained in traditional salad dressings there's the long list of artificial additives and preservatives that often plague these products.  If you're looking to avoid artificial chemicals in your food, simply put, you won't have much luck with store bought salad dressing.