Health. Is it dangerous to eat ramen too often? A Japanese study sows doubt
Data from a large Japanese dietary study shows that eating this typical noodle dish too often increases the risk of premature mortality. But many other factors come into play.
Subjects who ate ramen more often had a higher mortality rate. But other factors also came into play... Photo Sipa/Yuri Kageyama
Participants in a large study who consumed the most ramen had a 50% higher mortality rate than the reference group, according to a team of nutrition researchers from Yonezawa University (Yamagata Prefecture) .
Ramen is a classic Japanese dish: this noodle soup, made with broth and seasoned with a wide variety of ingredients and flavorings, is very popular in the archipelago. This northern prefecture has the largest number of ramen consumers in the world.
Many other factors studiedSo much so that researchers at Yonezawa University have been looking into it, using a huge cohort, studied over several years (2009-2023). This long-term monitoring allowed the team to obtain solid results - while taking into account many other factors.
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Published last month, the study involved 6,725 people in the region, aged 40 and over, who underwent regular health checkups. The subjects were divided into four groups based on their ramen consumption frequency: "less than once a month," "one to three times a month," "one to two times a week," and "three or more times a week."
52% higher mortality, but...And the result seems clear: among the biggest consumers of ramen - the "three times or more per week" group - mortality is 52% higher (x1.52) than those in the "one to two times per week" group - considered the "reference group".
However, from a statistical point of view, the study indicates that this result does not allow us to classify ramen consumption - even very frequent consumption - as dangerous in the general population. Subjects who consumed larger portions of this very salty dish certainly suffered higher mortality. But the increase in mortality is also "significant in several subgroups: men, people under 70, and alcohol consumers."
...results to be qualifiedExcessive salt consumption leads to the development of cardiovascular diseases, such as strokes, and gastric cancer, the researchers point out. Since ramen generally contains a high amount of salt, its frequent consumption may be associated with mortality through the development of these diseases.
Other interactions between ramen consumption frequency and each contextual factor (age, sex, smoking, alcohol consumption, quantity consumed, diabetes, hypertension and dyslipidemia) did not appear to be "statistically significant".
“I hope people will enjoy ramen by refraining from excessive soup consumption to reduce their salt intake and by considering nutritional balance with vegetables and other toppings,” commented Miho Suzuki, a senior lecturer at Yonezawa University of Nutritional Sciences and a member of the research team. “These results suggest that appropriate ramen noodle consumption could be recommended based on individual characteristics,” the study concludes.
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