How the Food We Eat Is Killing us: Part 2: Preservatives and Additives
Read Part 1 of this series 1st!
What Are Preservatives for Food
Preservatives in general, aren’t all bad. They typically help to keep our food fresh, or increase it’s shelf life. Seems like a good thing right? Growing up, we had a huge garden and canned so much every summer. Before sealing, we always through a little salt over the top, to help preserve whatever was in the jar.
That said, food preservatives as we know them now, are far from “throwing a little salt over the top.” Many of them are synthetic, or chemically manufactured, and implicated in serious illnesses, including cancer, heart disease and Alzheimher’s.
While I’m not here to tell you with certainty this or that ingredient causes this or that problem, I do believe a few things: 1) no one will ever convince me that synthetic ingredients are better than fresh, 2) no one will ever convince me that without a doubt these synthetic preservatives don’t contribute to serious illnesses, and 3) I have very little trust or faith in the governing bodies approving these things (see Part 1).
I am also WELL aware that if you turn to Google trying to find information on the topic, you’ll generally be greeted by a million sites saying something to the effect of:
The FDA says it’s ok, so it must be ok.
“Studies say…” that such-and-such ingredient is safe, so it must be safe. Of course, those articles very rarely reference the actual study, or when you start researching you find that the sponsor of the study was a brand profiting from the ingredient determined as “safe.”
Maybe some of the studies are 100% accurate. And maybe you believe that synthetic ingredients are just as good as natural. I’m a little more speculative. If you’re curious as to some of the ingredients I’m talking about, and how prevalent they are in your life, keep reading.
Aspartame
Aspartame is a synthetic sweetener, seen most frequently in things like diet pop, fat-free yogurt and other snacks and low-cal drinks. You might also know it as NutraSweet or Equal.
According to the FDA aspartame is safe, saying, “Food safety experts generally agree there is no convincing evidence of a cause and effect relationship between these sweeteners and negative health effects in humans. The FDA has monitored consumer complaints of possible adverse reactions for more than 15 years.”
Personally speaking, I know that aspartame does indeed trigger migraines. And no, the FDA saying that’s not true, doesn’t change my mind.
While most concur that these ailments will only occur when consuming large amounts of aspartame (more than achieved by daily consumption), my migraines were triggered after eating several fat-free yogurts a week. That was it. Not even everyday. I don’t drink diet pop, so it wasn’t as if I was consuming it more than a daily serving.
Aspartame actually accounted for more than 75% of the adverse reactions to food additives reported to the FDA’s Adverse Reaction Monitoring System (ARMS). That was, until the FDA stopped allowing people to report it. That’s one way to fix a problem - if you can’t report it, it doesn’t exist. Here are just a sampling of what was being reported:
Headaches/Migraines
Dizziness
Seizures
Nausea
There’s also speculation that aspartame can trigger or worsen the following (among others):
Brain Tumors
Multiple Schlerosis
Epilepsy
Alzheimer’s
Thank Your Body has chronicled the dirty-little-history of aspartame. It was accidentally created in the 1960’s and eventually gained approval by the FDA. Not long after the approval however, the dangers of the sweetener became evident and in 1977 aspartame triggered the first criminal investigation into a manufacturer put into place by the FDA.
By 1980, it was banned by the FDA after independent research indicated it could cause brain tumors.
In January of 1981 however, Donald Rumsfeld, who was the CEO of Searle, the manufacturer of aspartame, became a part of the Reagan presidential transition team. Rumsfeld selected Dr. Arthur Hull Hayes Jr. to be the new FDA Commissioner.
Within months, aspartame was back, seeking approval from the FDA. By a 3-2 decision it still remained banned.
However, Hayes wasn’t finished with Aspartame yet. He installed a 6th member to the panel, who voted in favor of its approval. With a deadlocked vote, Hayes broke the tie in aspartame’s favor.
I’m sure these two things aren’t related, but in 1983, Hayes left his post at the FDA as evidence came forward that he was accepting corporate gifts for political favors. Probably not from Searle and aspartame though. That’s likely pure coincidence. 🤦♀️ And just for fun, you should know in 1985 Searle was absorbed by Monsanto and Mr. Rumsfeld received a $12 million bonus.
Aspartame is bad news - you can’t convince me otherwise.
Sodium Nitrite/Nitrate
If you thought aspartame had a checkered past, wait ‘til you learn about Nitrites/ates.
Sodium nitrite, similar to salt, is added to cured meats such as hot dogs, sausage, bacon, lunch meat, etc. It’s use, in addition to flavoring, is to prevent the growth of disease carrying bacteria, such as botulism.
Sounds helpful, right? BUT, would it still sound so great if it’s consumption led to an increased risk of cancer or Alzheimer’s? That’s why nitrites are a hot topic right now, the link they have to those diseases.
This fact is relatively important and will come into play later: the FDA only allows 2.75 ounces of this synthetically produced substance per 100 pounds of meat (trace amounts, right?).
Now, if you go to your local grocery store and pick up your bacon or sausage, the package will tell you it’s cured or uncured. If it’s marked as cured, you’ll know, this food has nitrates. You might get excited and start thinking the uncured is free from nitrates. And according to the label, it is.
BUT, those uncured meats do contain something else: most likely celery powder. Celery powder sounds healthy enough, it’s made by dehydrating, concentrating then grinding down the stalk.
Celery, like many vegetables, has naturally occurring nitrites, ones that won’t harm you when you go to the refrigerator and have a piece of celery. BUT, in extremely high heat, or when binding with protein, nitrites convert to nitrosamines, compounds linked to some of the above mentioned diseases. So if you’re eating uncured meats made with celery powder, they aren’t really free from the harm caused by nitrites. They’re there, and potentially at higher doses than the synthetic kind.
Why is that? Because of how that pesky little FDA chooses to have these “uncured” meats regulated. Unlike cured meats, uncured meats have no requirements as to how many “naturally occurring nitrates,” they can contain.
And if that doesn’t make you think WTF, how about this: it’s required by USDA law to label uncured meats as “nitrate-free,” (you read that right, required by law), although they do also say, in much finer print, “except those occurring naturally in celery powder." Super annoying right?! You think you’re choosing wisely, but not really.
You might find this information interesting as well: The World Health Organization (WHO) has defined all processed meat as known carcinogens. And while the FDA has considered banning nitrites, surprise, surprise, they haven’t.
A few months ago, I was super excited to find meat from Teton Waters Ranch. Their package lets consumers know their animals are treated humanely and 100% grass fed, two things I can definitely stand behind. And, just like I explained above, it’s also labeled as “No Nitrates or Nitrates Added.” And in finer print, “Except those naturally occurring in sea salt and celery powder.”
I contacted them in regards to their label, asking if they felt it was misleading. They did respond, noting that they are labeling their products exactly as they’re required to do so by the USDA. They also directed me to this blog post, where they share their thoughts on nitrates.
In it, they share that including natural preservatives, such as sea salt and celery powder eliminates the need for synthetic preservatives. Which, on the surface seems great. What they don’t mention is that under high temperatures and when bonded with protein, those natural nitrates become regular old nitrosamines. The exact same ones linked to cancer.
Potassium Bromate
Would it surprise you to know that potassium bromate, or enriched flour as we more commonly know it, has been banned in China, the European Union, Canada, Brazil and other countries, but not in the USA, due to it’s believed carcinogenic quality?
This oxidizing agent chemically ages flour, faster than does the open air. It bleaches dough and enhances its elasticity.
The FDA has said it can remain in our foods because it’s so trace, less than 20 parts per billion. Most manufacturers say they are well below that quantity.
That said, if bromated flour isn’t baked long enough, or at a high enough temperature, it can be found in much greater quantities.
Quite a few brands have given the boot to enriched flour, Pepperidge Farm, Best Foods (Arnold, Entenmenn’s), Orowheat and Pilsbury. Some supermarket chains (Giant, Jewel, Ralph’s and Von’s) also do not use bromated flour.
On the flip side, Wonder Bread, Home Pride and Sunbeam, along with Burger King, Arby’s and Wendy’s do.
Food with potassium bromate includes bread, flour, pizza dough, flours, buns, etc. Basically anything that would contain flour.
BHA/BHT
What is BHA? Again, more preservatives with such seemingly good intentions. Butylated hydroxyanisole and butylated hydroxytoluene help fats from becoming rancid. BHA foods and BHT foods are items such as butter, lard, meats, cereals, baked goods and more.
While the FDA considers them “safe in small amounts,” they have links to the following: cancer, developmental and reproductive toxicity, endocrine disruption, lung and skin irritation and organ toxicity.
It seems like anytime a study pops up in regards to the preservative BHT, negative or positive, a different one appears soon after negating it.
High Fructose Corn Syrup
We should all know about this beauty - found in things like pop, candy, breads and even some dairy products. It’s a processed sweetener, meaning, it’s chemically manufactured.
Although the Corn Refiners Associations (CRA) call it a natural product, healthy when used in moderation, experts disagree. They claim that even in moderation, high fructose corn syrup in foods (HFCS), is a contributor to heart disease, obesity, cancer, dementia, liver failure, tooth decay and more.
From Dr. Mark Hyman, there are 5 reasons why high fructose corn syrup is bad:
Obesity (as can any sugar)
HFCS is are NOT biochemically identical as the CRA likes to tell consumers, nor is it processed the same way in our body. HFCS is actually extracted through corn stalks in a top secret way.
HFCS can contain mercury and other contaminants not regulated or measured by the FDA.
Independent medical and nutrition experts do not support the use of HFCS in our diet, despite the assertions of the corn industry.
HFCS is typically a marker of poor quality, nutrient-poor, disease-creating industrial food products or “food-like” substances.
Dr. Hyman (likely because of his very public stance against HFCS), has even received personal mail from the CRA, putting him “on notice,” for disagreeing with them.
Trans Fats and Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil
The title of the very worst kind of fat we can eat belongs to Trans Fats and Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil. What an honor. These two things manage to both increase the bad kind of cholesterol in your body AND decrease the good ones. Excess trans fats and HVO cause an increased risk of heart attacks, stroke and Type 2 diabetes.
Unfortunately, they’re found in a variety of everyday staples. Trans fats examples include baked goods, shortening, microwave popcorn, frozen pizza, refrigerated dough, fried foods such as doughnuts and fried chicken, nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarine.
More detailed information in trans fats can be found on this article from the Mayo Clinic.
How Safe Are Preservatives?
My entire problem with all of these preservatives is the amount at which we consume them, and without most consumers having an understanding about their potential dangers. While it’s true that the risk of any serious disease is small when we consume small amounts, what happens when all of the above are part of our daily diets?
I also can’t help but notice that many of these are linked to the same diseases: cancer, heart disease and Alzheimer’s. According to the CDC, each of those three rank in the top 10 leading causes of death in the USA each year, with heart disease and cancer ranking number one and two.
Make of that what you will, or call me a conspiracy theorist, but that doesn’t seem coincidental. It actually seems very rational to believe that our increased intake of ingredients causing those diseases would lead to those diseases.
I sense a part 3 coming up, but until then, be sure to read all of the above articles I referenced. Most importantly, eat fresh! There is nothing better for your body than REAL ingredients.
