The real reason you should avoid eating on a plane – even if it’s free

Whether it’s complimentary snacks, a hot meal or even just a simple sandwich, airline passengers are being urged to avoid eating on planes.

Influencer Kashif Khan, @kashkhanofficial, shared his thoughts on tucking into a meal mid-flight to his 873,000 followers.

He claims airplane food contains artificial flavours and additives, to compensate for the lack of sensitivity passengers experience in their taste buds when thousands of feet high.

The reduction in sensitivity is thought to be caused by the lack of moisture on planes as well as the lower air pressure.

Kashif explains in a video: ‘Don’t eat on an airplane, even if it’s free. I’m going to tell you why. 

‘Here’s something most people don’t know, at 30,000 feet, your taste buds lose about 30% of their sensitivity. And this 2010 study proves it.’

The influencer went on to share his thoughts on what airlines add to in-flight food.

He adds, ‘So airlines compensate by loading your food with artificial flavours, salt, and additives. Just so it doesn’t taste like cardboard.

‘We’re talking MSG, sodium nitrite, carrageenan in nearly every meal.’

Kashif explains how the added ingredients make travellers think the food tastes better, but can actually end up causing them to feel worse health-wise. 

‘It’s tricking your brain into thinking it tastes good,’ he continues.

‘And because of the dry cabin air and low oxygen, your digestion slows way down.’

He went on to reveal the impact such food can have on the gut and overall body. 

Kashif says: ‘That food just sits in your gut, ferments… and gets you bloated.

‘That’s one of the reasons people feel so awful during and even after a flight.’

However, some disagreed with Kashif in the comments, and one penned: ‘Never once felt like this after eating in business class.’ 

Another added: ‘Unless you are flying [a] few times a week and eating every time, I think it’s okay to eat there.

‘We just flew from LA to Tokyo and then back from Singapore and we were fed twice on those flights. How do you even survive long flights without eating on a plane.’

Though others agreed with the message, one said: ‘I’ll eat before and after then, that sucks, I never thought of this! Wish they had smoothies, or natural organic juice.’