That muffin you are eating looks delicious. Is it homemade? No? Do you know what is in it? There may be a lot more stuff in that muffin than you thought! Do you know how many chemical additives food companies add to affect store-bought foods’ flavor or preserve them? Chemical additives have other uses that you probably don’t even realize. These additives may cause cancer can or can negatively affect your health in other ways. So, it’s essential to pay attention to them. You might be able to find a different tasty muffin without those additives. Let’s explore how to avoid common chemicals found in your food.
You never know what might be in a food product these days, so it is essential to your overall health and wellbeing to read the ingredient list before you buy.
Here is a list of common food additives that may cause cancer and adversely affect your health:
Titanium dioxide
Titanium dioxide is a common ingredient in sunscreen and as a food additive. You may find it in salad dressings, powdered sugars, or baked goods. I don’t know how you feel about it, but I think that something in sunscreen should not be in my food.
- Titanium dioxide is considered by The International Agency for Research on Cancer as a dangerous food additive and recommends that consumers avoid eating it. The agency labels it as a class 2 carcinogen.
- The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) labels it as a GRAS product. GRAS stands for “generally recognized as safe,” but titanium dioxide is a controversial
Sodium benzoate
Sodium benzoate is a preservative in multiple foods and drink products such as salad dressings, jams, sodas, and pickles. Salad dressings have a lot of additives, so you might want to make tehm yourself.
- sodium benzoate can cause allergic reactions in some
One of the main concerns with sodium benzoate is the product formed if it’s mixed with ascorbic acid. Some food and drink items contain both sodium benzoate and ascorbic acid so that Benzene can form. And you guessed it, Benzene it’s linked to cancer.
Brominated vegetable oil
Often found in soda brominated vegetable oil is linked to several health concerns.
- The Food and Drug Administration doesn’t consider brominated vegetable oil a GRAS (generally recognized as safe) product.
- The European Union banned brominated Vegetable Oil. The good news is that several companies in the U.S.no longer use it.
- One of the concerns is that bromine can accumulate in your body and reach unsafe levels and may cause cancer thyroid issues, nerve damage, and other health concerns.
Potassium bromate
Potassium bromate may sound similar to brominated vegetable oil, but potassium bromate is an entirely different food. In the United States, it is used to improve flour. It acts to strengthen dough in baked goods and to allow for higher rising.
- Bread, flour, crackers, and other baked goods often have potassium bromate added to them. Several countries have banned it, and health experts recommend that consumers avoid it because of the link to cancer.
Interesterified fat
As a preservative, interesterified fat helps food last on the store shelves. However, it’s a controversial additive linked to different health issues.
- You’ll find Interesterifiedfat in, you guessed it, baked goods, canned soups, and other food.
- Experts are concerned that interesterified fat may be just as dangerous as trans-fat and may cause heart disease, high cholesterol, liver issues and, elevated blood sugar levels.
BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole).
You may have noticed this common food additive in your cereal, butter, beer, crackers, gum, or potato chips. And yet again in baked goods.
- The National Institutes of Health and the Department of Health and Human Services consider it a carcinogen.
- It’s a controversial item that continues to be the focus of multiple food safety issues.
- BHA can negatively affect the body in several ways. It can disturb your sleep patterns, affect your appetite, damage your kidneys, and cause cancer.
You can spot these common chemical additives listed on the ingredients list on many packaged foods when you know what to look for. Learn more about their features, uses, and side effects, so you can make the healthiest choices when it comes to what you put into your body.
Let’s go back to the muffin you were eating at the beginning of this article. Consider making it from scratch or purchasing from your local bakery; one that bakes them from scratch.
Your best option is always to Eat Real Food, just as nature intended, grown on a vine, stalk, on a tree, or plant.
Real food doesn’t need ingredients. They are the ingredients- Jamie Oliver
