There are numerous food additives still in use today that are known to be dangerous and which, given the choice, most of us would choose not to consume or feed to our families.
With help from this great book by Julie Eady I have been making changes to the brands and or types of food that I buy. I will regularly feature on this blog page some simple changes she has recommended. You can also find out more on her website www.additivealert.com.au
I regularly used one of the well known brands of mayonnaise, little did I know, it was packed full of harmful additives. I now buy the Thomy Delikatess Mayonnaise, which according to the ingredients listed on the jar, has no additives or preservatives (You can pick this one up at IGA).
I have also cut out peanut butter. As mentioned in Julie's book, many brands of peanut butter in Australia contain a particularly nasty chemical known as butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA). This chemical is known to cause stomach cancer in rats and mice and is strongly thought to be a human carcinogen. Usually there is no mention of this additive on the label due to a loophole in the labelling laws in this country. Other equally effective, non-toxic additives exsist that can do the same job, but BHA is cheaper and so is more widely used.
Food Additives: Are they making us sick?; A current Affair factsheet 17 January 2002; www.ninemsn.com.au .
Hope this information helps. Wishing you all good health and happiness.
I don't know if you can help me, or if you want to, but the last couple of years I've noticed that Cadbury's milk chocolate gives me hangover type headaches the next day. Do you know if the recipe has changed, or if there is something bad in it? Other chocolates have no effect on me.
ReplyDeleteI would love to help you, if I can. I will check the chocolate label and get back to you with my thoughts.
ReplyDeleteI am not an expert on this subject so I have sent your query to Julie Eady's website and I will post her response if/when I receive it. But from what I have researched I have come up with the following info...
ReplyDeleteDue to the 5% loophole in the labelling laws, some additives arn't listed on the labels but are present in the product. The most common example of this is antioxidants in vegetable oil. Antioxidants can be found in any products with ingredient lists that include fats such as animal oil, animal fat, butter, fat, copha, lard, milk solids (which are in chocolate), palm oil, shortening, tallow, vegetable oil and margarine. Unfortunately the use of antioxidants are so wide spread that small percentages of hidden antioxidants do add up. For many people, this can cause serious adverse health effects.
Additive 476 is mentioned on the label, that is Polyglycerol esters of interesterified ricinoleic acid but this has no known adverse reactions according to Julie's book.
If you were eating any chocolate with nuts or fruits added then most dried fruit is preserved by the use of sulphar dioxide (220) or potassium sorbate (202). Sultanas are often coated in vegetable oil as a preservative, and the oil often contains an unlabelled antioxidant, which many people, especially asthmatics, may wish to avoid. Fresh fruit and Nuts are often coated with the additive propylene glycol (1520). This helps to retain moisture. 1520 is extremely toxic. It is a neurotoxin and is linked to central nervous system depression.
I'm sorry I couldn't answer your query completely but I hope the info above helps and as I said I will post any reply I receive from Additive Alert website.
Lulu
ReplyDeleteI received an e-mail from Julie Eady she says...
HI Kirsteen
No way of knowing really – I would suspect that they are using a flavour which does not agree with her so perhaps check the label for flavour
She should do an experiment with various brands – I would suggest trying an organic one such as Green and Blacks
Chocolate should be good quality, pref dark and only have a little bit!!
Regards
Julie Eady