Recipe for disaster: Startling comparison of ingredients in everyday groceries in the US vs UK will stun you

A DailyMail.com analysis has exposed how American grocery staples contain several times more additives than the same items in Britain.

Whole grain bread in the US, for example, contains nearly three times the amount of ingredients as a similar equivalent in Britain. 

Meanwhile, condiments made by the exact same brand vary vastly between the two countries, with the American version having more additives, sugar and other harmful substances. 

European and British food laws are generally more strict, banning several toxic additives that are allowed to remain in products sold in the US.

The more ingredients something has, the more processed that food is. 

Mountains of studies show eating too much ultra-processed food dramatically raises the risk of an early death, dementia, and heart disease. 

Experts say a good rule of thumb is to aim to eat for foods with no more than five ingredients. 

DailyMail.com chose six common grocery items and popular food products Brits and Americans shop for and consume on a regular basis. 

We analyzed the ingredients in the same products – or similar equivalents when the same brand was not available in both countries – from common grocery stores in each country, including Target and Walmart in the US and Tesco and Sainsbury’s in the UK. 

Below, DailyMail.com reveals six common foods in the US and UK that, despite being the same products, drastically differ in what they contain:

Bread 

It’s crucial for some of your favorite meals: avocado toast, peanut butter and jelly and grilled cheese.

But in America, you are consuming nearly three times the amount of ingredients in one of the most common brands of whole wheat bread compared to a common bread brand in the UK.

Nature’s Own 100 percent Whole Grain Sliced Sandwich Bread contains 33 ingredients, compared to the 13 ingredients in Warburtons’ Wholemeal Medium Bread. 

While they both contain the typical ingredients of flour, water and yeast, Nature’s Own also has additives to improve the look of the products, like monocalcium phosphate, a man-made compound used to achieve a uniform grain in baked goods.

Nutritionists have told DailyMail.com a short ingredient list indicates something is natural, contains few additives and has been through very little processing.

Another hack, according to Jessica Cording, a registered dietician in New Jersey, is to avoid items with ingredients that are hard to pronounce.

Chips/Crisps

Something to crunch on with friends, Doritos is a household name in the snack food world. 

They are full of flavor, but also full of additives if you buy a bag in the US. Doritos Flamin’ Hot Nachos has 41 ingredients listed on its packaging, including Red 40, Yellow 6 and Yellow 5 food dyes.

These food colorings have been theorized to exacerbate attention problems in children.

In the similar UK product Doritos Chilli Heatwave, there is no Red 40, Yellow 6 or Yellow 5 food dyes listed in its ingredients – and it only has 19 ingredients. 

Ketchup 

You top your burger with it and dip your French fries – or chips if you’re across the pond – in it, but the popular condiment is not created equally around the globe. 

In the UK, there are seven ingredients in a Heinz tomato ketchup bottle and in the US there are eight. While the number of ingredients may be similar, their make up is not.

Not included in the UK’s version, but present in the US is high fructose corn syrup and corn syrup. These are sweetening agents from corn starch, with high fructose corn syrup containing more sugar than its regular counterpart. 

While neither are harmful substances, added sugar and high fructose syrup are considered the primary causes of obesity in America. 

Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show 40 percent of Americans are currently obese, compared to the 26 percent of people in the UK who are obese. 

Shredded Cheese

Melt it over nachos or top your chili with it, shredded cheese has numerous uses.

And it also has numerous ingredients – if you live in the US. 

In the average generic shopping brand of mild cheddar shredded cheese, there are three times the amount of ingredients than in the UK, including coloring and a mold inhibitor. 

In the UK’s version of generic cheese, there are generally only two ingredients: milk and potato starch. 

Deli Meat 

Deli meat has been classified as level 1 cancer-causing substance by the World Health Organization because it contains dangerous ingredients. 

In both the US and UK, generic turkey breast deli meat contains a harmful substance.

But in the US, there are more than twice the number of ingredients – 10 compared to the UK’s four. 

Pizza

A classic favorite, it’s available in thin crust and deep dish and can come with almost any topping you can think of – including the controversial pineapple. 

However, if you pick up pizza from the popular chain Dominos in the US you’ll be getting a lot more than those enjoying a slice in the UK.

The buffalo chicken pizza in the US has 27 ingredients in the grilled chicken topper alone, compared to six ingredients in the UK version.  

While consuming a large pizza is definitely not diet-friendly, the US version has 700 more calories than in the UK, with 2,720 calories compared to the UK’s 2,028.