Someone asked me recently if food additives were bad for you. I wish there was a simple answer to that—an answer that you or I could take to the grocery store and use to make better decisions about our food choices. Unfortunately it’s a very complicated question.
Why do we use additives?
Additives become important when food isn’t fresh. If you buy processed food that was killed or harvested last year, a little chemistry is necessary if you expect it to look appetizing. Something has to preserve the color, smell and taste. That’s where additives come in.
There are hundreds of food additives; some are totally benign, some even healthy. For instance, lecithin is used in some products to keep mixtures from separating back out. It is actually a very healthy food for the human brain and has been shown to improve memory slightly. I use it every day, sprinkling a tablespoon over whatever I’m having for breakfast.
On the other end of the spectrum are known carcinogens, like sodium nitrite which is reported to produce a 6700% increase in pancreatic cancer if you eat enough hot dogs and bacon. Why would a company add such a dangerous chemical to human food? Because it keeps old meat looking red and fresh instead of grey and diseased.
According to a report in Business Week, due to budget constraints the American Food and Drug Administration, who is charged with protecting American consumers, has been limited in its ability to investigate the concerns about food safety.
Some Specific Additives to Avoid
Please avoid MSG, monosodium glutamate. “This stuff would make dirt taste good,” as one doctor put it. It’s a flavor enhancer that will make food taste fresh even when it is past its prime.
Don’t use Aspartame. It isn’t a carcinogen by itself but as it is metabolized it turns into formaldehyde. One can of diet soda produces more than the legal daily limit set by the FDA for ingesting the carcinogen, formaldehyde. Carcinogen means “cancer-causing.”
Artificial colorings are never good. They are reported to contribute to hyperactivity and other nervous conditions in children. Some are thought to be carcinogenic.
Brominated vegetable oil (BVO) is used in fruit drinks to keep citrus in suspension. It is known to cause nervous system damage but the FDA has so far only limited the amounts that can be used in drinks.
Partially hydrogenated vegetable oils cause many problems including allergies, heart disease and cancer.
Potassium bromate is used to bleach flour. The FDA recognizes the danger and limits the amounts that can be used. It damages the nervous system, the digestive system and the kidneys.
Sulfites are prohibited in foods that contain vitamin B1. Some people have severe reactions to these chemicals—even death.
What is a Grocery Shopper to do?
Buy primarily fresh, organic foods whether animal, fruit or vegetable. Almost anything that is in a box, bottle or can is suspect. If you must buy something that’s in a container, read the label. If you see something you don’t understand, put it back on the shelf. You may have noticed that the fresh foods are usually around the edges of a supermarket, not in the aisles. So make a big circle through the produce, meat and dairy areas, pick up your paper towels, tea and toothpaste from the aisles and checkout.
When you can, shop at a farmer’s market instead of a grocery store. Get to know your local growers. You’ll probably find that their food tastes better!
