What everyone should know about food additives

What everyone should know about food additives

Every day we are bombarded with information about foods that are healthy, natural, no artificial ingredients, no preservatives, low fat, no fat, no cholesterol, sugar free, vitamin fortified and meet 100% of your daily vitamin needs. Are these foods as healthy as advertising would have us believe?

Let's look at the facts. There are more than 3,000 different chemicals added to our food. The company that wants to manufacture the chemicals or use the chemicals in the foods they produce usually performs the safety testing. Safety testing was only conducted for individual additives, not for combinations of additives. No one knows the effects of the many different additives used in thousands of different combinations. To make matters worse, due to political pressure, the FDA allows manufacturers to add small amounts of cancer-causing substances to our foods. So many of our foods are not only not healthy, but also unsafe.

The FDA has even approved additives deemed safe that are known to be unsafe. Take, for example, Olestra, the fat substitute approved by the FDA over the objections of many leading food scientists. Olestra can cause diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and can even lead to cancer, heart disease, and blindness. Foods containing olestra must have a warning label on the packaging.

Then there is the artificial sweetener aspartame, also known as Nutrasweet. Aspartame was approved and deemed safe by a specially appointed FDA commissioner after its own review board that studied aspartame deemed it unsafe. Aspartame can cause birth defects, central nervous system disorders, menstrual problems, brain damage from phenylketonurics, seizures, death, and a long list of other reactions too numerous to mention. It can cause long-term irreversible health damage.

Fats are a different story. A certain amount of the right kind of fat is required for your nervous system, immune system, cell membrane formation, and absorption of fat-soluble vitamins. The problem is that over 90% of the food produced today contains hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oil, which contributes to heart disease, elevated cholesterol and triglycerides, non-insulin dependent diabetes and cancer. Research even shows a connection between attention deficit disorder and hydrogenated oils.

Next time you go shopping, look at the label of each item before purchasing. Unless you already buy all organic and natural foods, almost every item you pick up contains hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils. Instead, choose products that do not contain hydrogenated oils. Use raw, organic butter instead of margarine and extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil, or flaxseed oil (flaxseed oil should never be heated).

If you're eating more chicken, turkey, and fish because it's healthier, you might be surprised to learn that sliced ​​chicken and turkey from the deli contains nitrites. And nitrites cause cancer. Nitrites are found in almost all processed meats, including lunch meats, hot dogs, sausages and bacon. Then there's tuna, a healthy choice if it contains only tuna and water and is only eaten occasionally. However, most tuna contains broth or hydrolyzed vegetable protein that contains MSG. And MSG doesn't need to be listed on the label because it's an ingredient in the broth that isn't added directly to the tuna. This is how food manufacturers hide MSG in the foods they produce. And hidden MSG can be a very serious problem for those who are sensitive to it. MSG can cause a variety of symptoms including migraines, numbness and tingling, asthma, seizures, diarrhea, panic attacks and heart problems.

Other sources of hidden MSG include autolyzed yeast, bouillon, broth, malt extract, malt flavoring, barley malt, maltodextrin, natural flavors, pectin, spices, carrageenan, soy sauce, soy protein, whey protein, anything enzyme modified, fermented, protein enriched or ultrapasteurized Fast foods, fries, condiments, salad dressings, lunch meat, sausages and soups. In fact, most processed foods contain MSG, according to Kathleen Schwartz of the nonprofit group NoMSG.

So, buyer beware! Even if the label states “all natural ingredients” and “no preservatives,” the product may contain harmful additives. So how do you know which foods are truly safe to eat? You must read the labels and know how to interpret the information on the label.

Here are some tips on what to eat and what to avoid: Eat fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, high-quality protein and healthy fats. Avoid these additives:

Aspartame or Nutrasweet

Saccharin

MSG and free glutamates

Artificial dyes

Nitrites and nitrates

caffeine

BHA and BHT

Brominated vegetable oil or BVO

Olestra or Olean

Sulfites

Here's a general rule of thumb: If the ingredient list is long, the product probably contains a lot of chemical additives and you're putting your health at risk if you eat it. If the ingredients list is short, it may or may not contain harmful additives. Therefore, you must read the label carefully before purchasing.

Dr. Christine Farlow has made it easy for you to identify which additives are harmful and which are not. In her handy, pocket-sized book, FOOD ADDITIVES: A Shopper's Guide to What's Safe and What's Not, she classifies 800 commonly used food additives according to their safety, whether they can cause allergic reactions, and whether they are generally recognized as safe (GRAS) by the FDA. In just a few seconds you can find out if an additive in the food you buy is harmful to your health. It's clear, concise and easy to use. Make this book your constant shopping companion and you will never again be surprised about the safety of the ingredients listed on the packaging. You will know.

Inspired by Christine Farlow