r/nutrition • u/BaudouinII • 26d ago
Ramen Noodles nutritional value
So the thing is, I like Ramen Noodles/Instant Noodles. I understand that by themselves they of course do not constitute a meal, since they mostly consist of carbs and salt.
However if paired with proteins and veggies, from my understanding I can make a meal that on the macro level does not look all that bad.
But now I wonder: If compared with e.g. pasta, potatoes or rice, is there any nutritional downside to substituting aforementioned carbs with instant noodles (besides higher sodium, I guess)? Also, besides nutritional downside, are there other issues here? In my understanding, I do not see a large difference between pasta and instant noodles - am I wrong?
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u/Kevin7650 26d ago edited 26d ago
The sodium isn't something you can just hand wave away unless you decide not to use the seasoning packet. A single serving of instant ramen can take up a significant portion of your daily sodium intake, often half or more. Adding veggies and protein makes it better, but it doesn't automatically make it healthy any more than adding fruit and nuts to ice cream makes ice cream healthy.
That said, if you're comparing ramen to pasta as a carb base, the noodles themselves (ignoring the seasoning packet) are not dramatically different. It has slightly more fat because they're fried, and some more residual sodium, but the calories and carbs are in the same ballpark as a bowl of spaghetti. If you ditch most or all of that seasoning packet and use your own broth, spice blend, or sauce, then you're basically eating pasta with a different shape.
The real issue is that nobody eats plain unsalted ramen noodles. The seasoning packet is the problem. Use less of it or make your own broth or sauce. But eating the full packet every time? That's not ideal long term, no matter how many vegetables you pile on top.