Dr. Mercola June 24 2008 261,451 views
Including something new in a food isn’t always a good idea, especially when it comes to your health. Here are 12 additives to subtract from your diet:(Please understand these are not my assessments, but those by MSN Health and Fitness. My comments and recommendations are in my comment below.)1. Sodium Nitrate (also called Sodium Nitrite)This is a preservative, coloring, and flavoring commonly added to bacon, ham, hot dogs, luncheon meats, smoked fish, and corned beef. Studies have linked eating it to various types of cancer.
2. BHA and BHT
Butylated hydroxyanisole and butylated hydrozyttoluene are used to preserve common household foods. They are found in cereals, chewing gum, potato chips, and vegetable oils. They are oxidants, which form potentially cancer-causing reactive compounds in your body.
3. Propyl Gallate
Another preservative, often used in conjunction with BHA and BHT. It is sometimes found in meat products, chicken soup base, and chewing gum. Animals studies have suggested that it could be linked to cancer.
4. Monosodium Glutamate (MSG)
MSG is an amino acid used as a flavor enhancer in soups, salad dressings, chips, frozen entrees, and restaurant food. It can cause headaches and nausea, and animal studies link it to damaged nerve cells in the brains of infant mice.
5. Trans Fats
Trans fats are proven to cause heart disease. Restaurant food, especially fast food chains, often serve foods laden with trans fats.
6. Aspartame
Aspartame, also known by the brand names Nutrasweet and Equal, is a sweetener found in so-called diet foods such as low-calorie desserts, gelatins, drink mixes, and soft drinks. It may cause cancer or neurological problems, such as dizziness or hallucinations.
7. Acesulfame-K
This is a relatively new artificial sweetener found in baked goods, chewing gum, and gelatin desserts. There is a general concern that testing on this product has been scant, and some studies show the additive may cause cancer in rats.
8. Food Colorings: Blue 1, 2; Red 3; Green 3; Yellow 6
Five food colorings still on the market are linked with cancer in animal testing. Blue 1 and 2, found in beverages, candy, baked goods and pet food, have been linked to cancer in mice. Red 3, used to dye cherries, fruit cocktail, candy, and baked goods, has been shown to cause thyroid tumors in rats. Green 3, added to candy and beverages, has been linked to bladder cancer. The widely used yellow 6, added to beverages, sausage, gelatin, baked goods, and candy, has been linked to tumors of the adrenal gland and kidney.
9. Olestra
Olestra, a synthetic fat found in some potato chip brands, can cause severe diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and gas. Olestra also inhibits healthy vitamin absorption from fat-soluble carotenoids that are found in fruits and vegetables.
10. Potassium Bromate
Potassium bromate is used as an additive to increase volume in some white flour, breads, and rolls. It is known to cause cancer in animals, and even small amounts in bread can create a risk for humans.
11. White Sugar
Watch out for foods with added sugars, such as baked goods, cereals, crackers, sauces and many other processed foods. It is unsafe for your health, and promotes bad nutrition.
12. Sodium Chloride
A dash of sodium chloride, more commonly known as salt, can bring flavor to your meal. But too much salt can be dangerous for your health, leading to high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, and kidney failure.
Americans spend about 90 percent of their food budget on processed foods, which contain a staggering number of artificial food additives, preservatives, colors and flavor enhancers. That your health suffers as a consequence of this assault should come as no surprise.
To review each of the mere dozen mentioned here could fill several books, and would still only be the tip of the iceberg. As you may already know, I wrote an entire book just on artificial sweeteners, called Sweet Deception. The book is currently out of print as we sold out of the last edition, but we hope to have it back in print by the fall.
However, when it comes to food additives, perhaps one of the most important aspects is the health ramifications they have on your children.
New Study Confirms What Astute Parents Have Known for Years
The issue of whether or not food additives such as artificial colors contribute to behavioral problems in children has been disputed for many years. Fortunately, this may soon change.
A carefully designed randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study published in the journal The Lancet last year may have finally shifted the tide (for a free PDF of the full study see this link).
It concluded that a variety of common food dyes, and the preservative sodium benzoate – found in many soft drinks, fruit juices and salad dressings – do cause some children to become measurably more hyperactive and distractible.
The seven ingredients tested in the study included:
The results of this study have already prompted the British Food Standards Agency (FSA) to issue an immediate advisory to parents, warning them to limit their children's intake of additives if they notice an effect on behavior.
Unfortunately, but not surprisingly, the U.S. has not issued any similar warnings.
The worst behavioral responses from the additives were seen in the three-year-olds, compared to the older children in the study. But even within each age group, some children responded very strongly, and others not at all, indicating there are individual differences in how well your body can tolerate the assault of artificial additives. One theory is that the additives may trigger a release of histamines in certain sensitive kids.
Still, I believe that food additives such as preservatives, sweeteners and colorings should be avoided as much as possible, regardless of whether they have a marked effect or not as they clearly have no redeeming nutritional value, and can carry major long-term health risks.
Food Colors May be as Damaging as Lead in Gasoline on Children’s Brains
Another recent article, published in the British magazine The Independent on April 5 2008, reported that artificial food colors (but not the preservative sodium benzoate) are now set to be removed from hundreds of products in the UK because the results of the study mentioned above also indicate that the E-numbers do as much damage to children's brains as lead in gasoline, resulting in a significant reduction in IQ.
The lead author, Professor Stevenson, and his three colleagues have stated:
"The position in relation to AFCs [Artificial Food Colors] is analogous to the state of knowledge about lead and IQ that was being evaluated in the early 1980s ... Needleman [a researcher] found the difference in IQ between high and low lead groups was 5.5 IQ points ... This is very close to the sizes obtained in our study of food additives."
Officials at the British FSA are advising the food industry to voluntarily remove the six food dyes named in the study by the end of 2009, and replace them with natural alternatives if possible.
True to form, the food industry claims the additives are used in a mere “handful” of products, but the website ActionOnAdditives.com has already identified more than 1,000 food products that contain them – most of which are targeted at children.
BEWARE -- Already Banned Food Additives Still Found in Children’s Medicines
Another thing you need to be aware of, as a parent, is that when an ingredient is banned for use in food, it is not automatically banned for use in other areas such as medicine.
According to an expose’ by the British Food Commission last year, food additives that have already been banned for use in food and beverages are still used in a majority of pediatric over-the-counter medicines.
Their survey found that ALL BUT ONE medicine out of 41 contained an additive that had been banned.
The additives found in these drugs included:
The justification for using these toxic compounds is what you'd typically expect from an over-the-counter pharmaceutical trade group: Unlike foods, additives in medicines are used in small quantities and are only taken for a short time.
Does that make you feel any better?
This is just one more reason why it’s so important to question what your doctor or any other health professional may prescribe or recommend for your child, no matter what side of the counter it comes from, as many pediatric drugs can certainly be harmful, if not downright toxic to your child’s health.
Sugar and Salt
White sugar is named in the list above but I would have to disagree and identify high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) as far more problematic than white cane sugar. HFCS is the number one source of calories in the U.S. and causes far more damage than white sugar.
Salt is another challenge, as it can and is a health food for many, but it needs to be the right type of salt. Nearly all commercial salt is highly processed and heated to very high temperatures and has many additives added, which are also potentially toxic. So it would be wise to avoid processed foods with conventional salt added.
However, unprocessed salts, like unrefined sea salts and Himalayan salt can be an important part of a healthy diet. Personally, it is uncommon for a day to go by in which I don’t use Himalayan salt. I am a protein nutritional type and tend to do better with high quality salt.
For more information about the hazards of other food additives mentioned in the article above, please see my list of Related Articles.
What am I?
Enriched Flour, Wheat Flour, Niacinamide , Reduced Iron , Thiamin Mononitrate - Vitamin B1 , Riboflavin - Vitamin B2 , Folic Acid , Corn Syrup , High Fructose Corn Syrup , Dextrose , Vegetable Oil , Soybean Oil , Soybean Oil , Hydrogenated Cottonseed Oil - with TBHQ and Citric Acid for Freshness - Less than 0.5 g Trans Fat per Serving , Sugar , Cracker Meal , Wheat Starch, Salt, Dried Strawberries, Dried Apples, Dried Pears, Cornstarch , Leavening, Baking Soda, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate, Monocalcium Phosphate, Citric Acid, Milled Corn, Modified Wheat Starch, Gelatin, Caramel Color, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean and/or Cottonseed O - Less than 0.5 g Trans Fat per Serving, Modified Corn Starch, Xanthan Gum, Soy Lecithin, Color Added, Niacinamide, Reduced Iron, Red No. 40, Vitamin A Palmitate, Yellow No. 6 Pyridoxine Hydrochloride - Vitamin B6, Riboflavin - Vitamin B2, Thiamin Hydrochloride - Vitamin B1, Folic Acid, Turmeric Color, Blue No. 1
I vote this the worst food on the planet – Kellog’s Pop Tarts – oh yes, with the Heart Foundation Tick of approval. Nom, nom, NOT.
My stupid room mate eats those for breakfast.
We decided a long time that poptarts were evil. Now we know since we learned abut ingredients.
I agree with you about corn syrup. Every parent I've counseled who said sugar made her child hyper didn't know the difference between sugar and HFCS. I am shocked that red #40 got off without a mention. In terms of what I've seen makes kids hyper Blue #1 is worst and Red #40 is second worst.
(blue 1 makes my ears red and red 40 makes my face itch and break out.)
Dr Mom, who raised 5 ADHD boys.
I especially like Cotton seed oil! When cotton is defoliated to harvest the cotton balls and seed which holds the oil. Guess what the defoliant is?
Does defoliant enter the seed before the seed is plucked from the withered plant? What do you think a plant would do when being killed? Send the last of its resources to the seed, correct? If analogues of agent orange are used,,,,
Another thing to add to the do not ever eat list in my opinion is added citric acid which lowers the oxalic acid levels in the blood. This might be one of the keys that unlock the door to cancer getting a foot hold in the body. See the Hart dietary plan, which is similar to Dr. Lorain Day's advice. coljoe.net and coljoe.com which are related sites, but not the same content. By changing his diet in his 80s he beat cancer, He is mid 90s today. I'd say his immune system must be in good shape.
My youngest saw spots all of the time. We went to three eye doctors and finally had an MRI and EEG. They said she had inflammation of the brain. They did blood work to test for menigitis and west nile but both were negative. I started doing the feingold diet and also eliminating msg and anything with corn syrup. In twenty-five days she was down to one spot. She was seeing so many and they never went away. I know that the Lord is restoring her. Her headaches are less frequent also. If she gets hold of something that she shouldn't she starts seeing more spots or shapes and gets bad headaches. I use peppermint and lavender oil at her temples for the headaches. Diet really does make a difference and we have been amazed at the garbage in our food now that we know better.
I want everyone to know that a mouth wash given to my husband by a oral surgeon cause the tissues of his mouth to literally fall out. Which mean that he had to under go plastic surgery to rebuild the floor of his mouth! They too use this mouth wash on him in the operating theater … so their surgeries always failed - all seven of them! They of course blamed him. They wouldn’t hear me when I said, and even after I showed them this document from the FDA that said that the ingredient in this mouth wash, blue 1, was the cause of the problem in the first place, nor would they read the label on the bottle which also said this would happen.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) would like you to be aware of several reports of toxicity, including death, temporally associated with the use of FD&C Blue No. 1 (Blue 1) … www.cfsan.fda.gov/.../col-ltr2.html
Can someone please explain to me how you can have a “temporarily” death? The death of his tissues have been quite permanent – they have been “missing” for over four yeas now.
www.cmaj.ca/.../43
After reporting this to all my friends, several of them who were also given this mouth wash by their dentist, also reported symptoms which occurred prior to his losing the floor of his mouth. … So they too stopped using it, before it was too late and they too lost the tissues in their mouths.
www.cnn.com/.../dyes.adhd.ap
EW!
Not that I'd ever touch them, but that's truly disgusting.
You could almost make a game of this - "Guess the 'food' from the ingredients list".
I've found that if Ihave to buy something 'off the shelf'....3 ingredients or less works best. The more ingredients, the worse the 'product'
I would guess you were a big stomachache?
Why don't you all just use honey?
So how many people have written letters to these companies? Posting comments on this site is great but maybe if all 265,000 readers wrote just one letter, some change might happen; at least it's a start, tell them now that you know what harm their ingredients are actually doing to your body you will never buy their product again and that all your friends and family are doing the same... change does not happen through silence...
Gate Lion:
I was given a mouth rinse (don't know if it's the same as your dentist gave) by my dental surgeon a few years ago when I had a tooth replaced with an implant. They said I needed to swish with this for two weeks after I had the implant placed. It tasted so bad the first time I used it (like metal) that I threw it out! I drink this acai drink blend (I won't mention what brand here as I know that is not allowed) and instead of the mouth rinse, I swished with the acai blend before drinking each day. When I returned to the surgeon for my follow-up weeks later, he was amazed at the healing. I hadn't even told him yet that I didn't use the mouth rinse. I refuse to even use mouthwash or regular toothpaste -- I buy a brand of toothpaste with no fluoride at the natural store.
Agave is actually worse than sugar. It is more concentrated and will raise your blood sugar even more. While it is not as dangerous as artificial sweeteners, I would not use or recommend it.
Dr. Mercola, thank you so much for this information about agave syrup! If we're to believe the advertising, it's so much healthier than sugar, and doesn't cause blood sugar to rise and fall the way sugar does. We have to question everything we hear and read these days regarding nutrition. So glad to have your website to turn to for unbiased information.
Agave is being considered for ethanol production in desert environs. It is too sweet to eat!
Xylitol was good - now isn't. And now I'm totally confused about Organic Raw Blue Agave Sweetener! Just spoke with representative from Trader Joe's and she confirmed that their product is organic and completely derived from Mexican agave cactus. So are you saying that the distillation of this Agave renders it not low GI, as it is touted to be, and unhealthy? Trader Joe's is waiting for my response and looking into this concern. Thank you for truth.
Just because something is "natural" and "organic" doesn't mean that its Wholesome. We really need an independent agency that evaluates food and food supplies and has a copyrighted label.
Ogre
Oh crap -- agave is bad?!?!? I don't use it currently, but am off all sugar & figured if I did sweeten with ANYTHING, it would be agave..... maybe not?!?
What's the stance on Stevia? I use maybe 10 drops in my morning gluten-free cereal... with one banana, some almond slices & raw butter mixed in. YUM.
Is Stevia considered safe?
THANKS!
What about Madhava's Raw Agave Nectar? Says it's produced at temps below 113 degrees F.
Stevia tastes like artificial sweeteners-don't like it.
I don't use very much sweeteners - just occasionally on cereal and tea.
joaniefran, how can xylitol be formerly good, and now bad? People seem to be sinking the boot into it, but nowhere ever have I ever seen any evidence that it's dangerous. It's a bowel irritant to some people, but that's about it.
ginghart, stevia is absolutely fine. It's the best, most natural sweetener there is. Don't listen to anyone who tells you it's unsafe (usually that's only the FDA, anyway).
Why were all of Russ Bianchi's responses pulled from this blog? They were exceedingly informative. In it he said: "Agave is a criminally affirmed false and deceptive label, per United States Code of Federal Regulations, in writing, as of May, 2000, by FDA, for "70 to 90 dextrose equivalency chemically refined high fructose hydrolyzed inulin syrup".
Agave does not, as represented, come from blue agave. In point of fact, when this FRAUD was uncovered, so call organic certified crops of blue agave did not exist (from a major national organic certifier) because there was not even enough blue agave for traditional tequila or mescal distilling at record high prices. let alone low cost syrups."
I had already garnered the information from Russ before he was pulled and are already using it to educate myself, Trader Joe's and friends. Hoping the information was not pulled because it was incorrect! So many of us try our best to be healthy and those of you gifted with skill and occupations that allow you to do research are so important to those of us that can not do that. Thank you greatly!
Dr Mercola, if it's more concentrated, doesn't it mean you will use less of it?
joaniefran, Madhava is also a product of Mexico, packed and distributed by (and certified organic by)Colorado. They carry a regular line that is distilled, and a raw version that uses temperatures less than 115 degrees.
Help me, I just want to use a sweetener that is safe!
Joaniefran - I didn't see Russ Bianchi's responses referring to the blue agave fraud, however I did notice something at my health food store - for a while there were at least 4 different companies selling agave nectar, then one day I noticed only 1 - Madhava!
Could that mean they ARE ligit?
Dc David Servan Shreiber is himself a cancer survivor and wrote a very interesting book: Anticancer (in French, but most likely is or will be translated) about different ways to fight and prevent cancer: nutrition, exercise and emotional health. In the book is recommend Agave syrop to replace sugar. So who should I trust ?
So, Agave is more concentrated. That is why it is soooo sweet. BUT, if we use LESS of it, is it ok to use ? Sometimes, we just need to have a sweeetner....Everything, it seems, is bad or dangerous, anymore.
My wife took a lot of this crap and then she left me. So that just shows how crazy it can really make you.
Hey Wizdum, my wife left me too and she eats lots of this junk too. I'm sure there is a connection.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! You're a riot Wizdum! You too baddad! I needed a good laugh!
You guys need intensive therapy. lol. Thanks for the laughs. I'm a wife. ((((giggle))))
LOL
XD
Best amusing post in a while.
When my son was a young child, I noticed signs of (what we called then) hyperactivity whenever he ate things with red food coloring. Every single weekend he'd spend the day with his dad and come home vomiting and with a horrible headache. When I found out his dad was feeding him donuts, coke, hot dogs, chips, pizza and ice cream—all in one day—I talked to his dad. "Being a kid is about having fun and not worrying about the consequences!" he'd say. "Being a parent is about doing what's right even if it's unpopular!" I'd say. The doctor swore the food was having no effect on the child. I knew better. But, it was the 1980's and doctors were probably being instructed to deliberately ignore diet as a cause of illness. When the American Academy of Pediatrics published that sugar does not cause behavioral issues, I just rolled my eyes. I learned through that and many other experiences that you have to take care of yourself and monitor your own health. The "system" can't, the doctors won't and the government shouldn't.
We have been on 100% raw for 2 1/4 years now, and we do not need ANY kind of sweetener. No stevia, no maple syrup. no honey. None. Fruits are totally satisfying. As for birthday cake, we use rehydrated dates and figs, apples, bananas, strawberries and some pecan nuts. Yummy.
Life feels great with fruits and vegetables. No need to worry about additives, because we never buy anything processed.
What websites do you like best for information on raw diets? I've had friends tell me they tried being raw for 90 days and the improvements they saw etc, but they live out of state and rarely check email. I'm curious how that works for the various meals... What books etc. do you recommend?
Thanks
Do you eat your meat rare or raw or no meat at all?