| How often do you actually check the labels of | | | | nutrient. |
| foods you buy, including all the little extra | | | | |
| words you cannot pronounce? The reality is, | | | | Misleading ingredient claims. |
| shopping would take hours if we did. | | | | |
| | | | Sometimes foods that claim to include healthy |
| What is in our food that we unknowingly | | | | ingredients actually do not have them, or |
| "indulge in" everyday? | | | | only have them in small amounts. Take, for |
| | | | example, the strawberry yogurt with no |
| To be honest with you, you might not want to | | | | strawberries. The Center for Science in the |
| read this. This stuff always makes me | | | | Public Interest (CSPI) recently asked the FDA |
| depressed and then angry. Why can't we just | | | | to immediately stop misleading food labels. |
| have "clean" food on our plate? Basic, great, | | | | Another misguidance are so-called wholegrain |
| healthy good-tasting food. Why is that so | | | | products that are mostly made from regular |
| hard? | | | | white flour with only very little wholegrain. |
| | | | They often contain high-fructose corn syrup |
| Well the good news is, we can. But it does | | | | as well, which makes them rather unhealthy |
| mean staying away from packaged food, and | | | | instead of healthy. |
| maybe even learning how to cook. And you do | | | | |
| need to keep up the job of mindful attention | | | | "Food manufacturers are shamelessly tricking |
| when choosing your food. | | | | consumers who are trying to eat more fruits, |
| | | | vegetables, and whole grains," said CSPI |
| To help you with that, please read on. | | | | Director of Legal Affairs, Bruce Silverglade. |
| | | | "Too many processed foods contain only token |
| Food additives are legal, but do you want | | | | amounts of the healthful ingredients |
| them? | | | | highlighted on labels and are typically |
| | | | loaded with fats, refined sugars, refined |
| In the U.S., about 3000 additives can be used | | | | flour, and salt, in various combinations." |
| legally in our foods. They are used for food | | | | |
| preservation, coloring, texture, increasing | | | | Which are the toxins? |
| taste, and so on. | | | | |
| | | | The food colorings that make candy pretty |
| Avoiding processed and packaged food is of | | | | colors have been linked to cancer and tumors |
| course the easiest way to omit these unwanted | | | | of the brain, thyroid, adrenal gland, and |
| "extras". That not only means choosing whole | | | | kidneys in animal studies. |
| foods, but also staying mindful of the | | | | |
| pesticides and fertilizers used in | | | | Blue 1, used to color candy, beverages, and |
| non-organic foods. And yes, it is a bother to | | | | baked goods, may cause cancer. Blue 2, found |
| have to pay attention to all of this, I | | | | in pet food, candy, and beverages, has caused |
| agree. Unfortunately, with our | | | | brain tumors in mice. |
| overconsumption comes production, and with | | | | |
| that comes all the extras to keep yield up | | | | Red 3 is a food coloring used in cherries |
| for the food manufacturers. That's also why | | | | (fruit cocktails), baked goods, and candy. It |
| supporting local farmers is a really good | | | | causes thyroid tumors in rats, which means it |
| idea, as is insisting on organic produce as | | | | may do so in humans as well. |
| much as possible. | | | | |
| | | | Yellow 6 is the third most often used food |
| One of the most important things to know | | | | coloring, and is found in many products, |
| first is how to read the nutrition label. Be | | | | including backed goods, candy, gelatin, and |
| mindful of serving sizes. Most packaged food | | | | sausages. It has been found to cause adrenal |
| contains more than one serving size but the | | | | gland and kidney tumors, and contains small |
| label only gives you the nutritional | | | | amounts of many carcinogens. M&Ms anyone? |
| information for one serving. Often we think | | | | |
| one muffin or one bagel is one serving. This | | | | Food preservatives and additives. |
| isn't always the case. A regular sized muffin | | | | |
| is actually two servings and most bagels are | | | | Propyl gallate is used to prevent fats and |
| more than two servings. (And that's without | | | | oils from spoiling and might cause cancer. It |
| the topping.) | | | | is used in vegetable oil, meat products, |
| | | | potato sticks, chicken soup base, chewing |
| The ingredients. | | | | gum, and is often used with BHA and BHT. |
| | | | |
| Ingredients are listed in descending order, | | | | BHA and BHT - butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) |
| so what there is most of comes first. Often | | | | and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), are also |
| that also means that all the little additions | | | | used to keep fats and oils from going rancid. |
| come toward the end of the label. Many people | | | | It's often used in cereals, chewing gum, |
| will have stopped reading by then and miss | | | | vegetable oil, and potato chips, and can also |
| them. Ingredients that make up less than 2 | | | | be found in some food packaging to preserve |
| percent can be listed in any order after the | | | | freshness. |
| heading "contains less than 2 percent of the | | | | |
| following." | | | | Potassium bromate is used in breads and rolls |
| | | | to increase the volume and produce the fine |
| Other ingredients called incidental additives | | | | crumb structure. Although most bromate breaks |
| don't even have to be listed on labels. | | | | down into bromide, which is harmless, the |
| They're the substances that come into the | | | | bromate that does remain causes cancer in |
| food from the packaging and ingredients of | | | | animal studies. Bromate has been banned |
| other ingredients that are present at | | | | throughout the world, except for in the |
| "insignificant levels and have no technical | | | | United States and Japan. In California, a |
| or functional effect". Yes, it's scary. | | | | cancer warning would likely be required if it |
| | | | were used, which is why it rarely is in that |
| Natural and artificial flavors are also often | | | | state. |
| grouped together under one name. The | | | | |
| manufacturers do not have to disclose what | | | | Aspartame is in Equal and NutraSweet and the |
| "artificial flavors" really means unless it's | | | | products that contain them, such as diet |
| a food containing a major food allergen. | | | | sodas and other low-cal and diet foods. It's |
| These would include milk, eggs, peanuts, tree | | | | been found to cause brain tumors in rats as |
| nuts, fish, shellfish, soy and wheat, and the | | | | far back as the 1970s. A study in 2005 found |
| food ingredients containing the proteins | | | | that even small doses increase the incidence |
| derived from these. | | | | of lymphomas and leukemia in rats, along with |
| | | | brain tumors. People who are sensitive to |
| Even worse, the statement "all natural" has | | | | aspartame may also suffer from headaches, |
| no nutritional meaning. They can indeed | | | | dizziness, and hallucinations after consuming |
| include unnatural ingredients. It's actually | | | | it. Why is this still in our food, I wonder? |
| not required by law to have unnatural | | | | |
| ingredients and still be called all natural. | | | | Olestra is a fat substitute used in crackers |
| How messed up is that? | | | | and potato chips, marketed under the brand |
| | | | name Olean. This synthetic fat is not |
| What does "free from" really mean? | | | | absorbed by the body (instead it goes right |
| | | | through it), so it can cause diarrhea, loose |
| It actually might just mean that there's less | | | | stools, abdominal cramps, and flatulence, |
| than 0.5 grams per serving because the food | | | | among other symptoms. Furthermore, olestra |
| manufacturer may round down to zero. Not to | | | | reduces the body's ability to absorb |
| mention that you might eat more than one | | | | beneficial fat-soluble nutrients, including |
| serving of something, as well as the fact | | | | lycopene, lutein, and beta-carotene. |
| that it is adding up over time too. | | | | |
| | | | Sodium nitrite (or sodium nitrate) is used as |
| This is the same issue with transfat and | | | | a preservative, coloring, and flavoring in |
| partially hydrogenated oil. If it is less | | | | bacon, ham, hot dogs, cold cuts, corned beef, |
| than 0.5 in one serving it is still listed as | | | | smoked fish, and other processed meats. These |
| having no transfat. Yes, they are deceiving | | | | additives can lead to the formation of |
| us. | | | | cancer-causing chemicals called nitrosamines. |
| | | | Some studies have found a link between |
| What's in a name? | | | | consuming cured meats and nitrite with cancer |
| | | | in humans. |
| Food manufacturers can use other names on a | | | | |
| label so that we cannot recognize what's | | | | There is one easy thing you can do about it |
| really in there. For example, if you're | | | | is: avoid packaged and processed food and |
| trying to avoid MSG, you need to look for all | | | | consider if it is the quality of food we |
| of the following terms, as they all contain | | | | really want and need or is it just out of |
| MSG: autolyzed yeast, calcium caseinate, | | | | convenience. |
| gelatin, glutamate, glutamic acid, hydrolyzed | | | | |
| protein, monopotassium glutamate, monosodium | | | | "There are probably things in our lives from |
| glutamate, modium caseinate, textured | | | | which we could unburden ourselves. |
| protein, yeast extract, yeast food, and yeast | | | | |