Nutrition expert Mario Ortiz: "These are the five ingredients most harmful to your health, and you should avoid them."

Following a balanced diet doesn't just mean incorporating fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, or whole grains. It's also key to know which ingredients to avoid , or at least minimize. Often, it's these additives or invisible components that can sabotage our efforts to eat better.

The food industry has filled the shelves with ultra-processed products that, while convenient and tasty, hide substances that can harm your health in the long run. And this isn't about giving in to fearmongering: eating healthy doesn't mean being obsessed, but rather learning to read labels and making more conscious choices.

For many people, the solution lies in minimizing the presence of certain ingredients. It's not about banning them altogether, but rather understanding their impact and making better choices in our daily lives . A popular nutritionist recently spoke out on this topic on social media, warning about five common additives we should be on the lookout for.

The five most harmful ingredients for health

In a recent Instagram video, nutrition expert Mario Ortiz detailed the five ingredients he considers most harmful and, in his words, should be kept out of our pantry. All of them are found in common supermarket products, and repeated consumption can have adverse effects . They are:

• Trans fats : “We can find them especially in pastries . There are three ways to label them: partially hydrogenated vegetable oil, vegetable fat, or fully hydrogenated vegetable oil ,” says Ortiz, adding that they should be avoided because “they are linked to increased cholesterol and cardiovascular disease.”
• Added sugars and derivatives : Sugars "come in a thousand forms, and that's the real problem. Glucose, fructose, sugar, corn syrup , etc. So it's true that it's harder to identify because of the number of names it has," says the nutritionist. "They are directly related to obesity , diabetes, and food addiction."
• Monosodium glutamate (E-621) : “It is a flavor enhancer found mainly in soups or snacks , which makes you hungrier, more appetitive, and possibly causes you to not control your food intake,” says Mario, who adds that “it can cause headaches and water retention.”
• Nitrites and nitrates (E-250, E-251) : “They are compounds that can produce nitrosamines, which are related to cancer ” and are found in sausages, for example.
• Artificial colors (E-102, E-110, E-129) : All of these can cause hyperactivity and allergic reactions . "You can find them especially in candy, soft drinks , and things that come in many colors, like bright blue and bright yellow," says Ortiz.

For Ortiz, the first step is to identify these ingredients and minimize their daily consumption. Reading labels, choosing fresh foods, and limiting ultra-processed foods to occasional consumption can be the key to a healthy diet.