This afternoon, i went to McD for lunch with my friends. I ordered a fish burger, french fries and a cup of coke. I kept thinking of what am i going to write for my blog and an idea suddenly came out from my mind. haha...i decided to let everyone gain some knowledges about food additives. Hmm...Have you all ever thought about the effects of food additives?? Well..maybe not, but if u read this post, you may find out something that could save you or your loved ones. Life is so busy and hectic in this new era that most of us don't have time to cook a nutritious meal at home. This is the reason why most of us prefer fast-food, can-food, or food that can be pack and reheat at home. Fast-food restaurant such as McDonalds, KFC, and Pizza Hut become a priority location for students to take their meals.
Besides that, food additives are everywhere on the supermarket shelf too. Consumers need to learn how to read labels for the sake of their health. Dangerous or threatenng additives include the colourings, preservatives, flavors, flavor enhances, sweeteners, texture agents and processing agents.
COMMON PRESERVATIVES ADDED TO FOOD
Sulphur: It keeps dried food soft and fresh.
Sulphites: Used to control microbial growth in fermented beverages. Widely used in wines, beers and fruit products. Sulphites may trigger asthma charaterised by breathing difficulties, shortness of breath and coughing so they are hazardous for asthmatic patients.
Sodium Nitrates: They can be found in luncheon meats, ham,hot dogs and bacon. Sodium nitrates are converted to nitrous acid in the stomach which may cause stomach cancer.
Monosodium glutamate (MSG) and aspartame: MSG is an amino acid used as a flavor enhancer in soups, chips, frozen food, and restaurant food. It can cause headaches and nausea. Aspartame is a sweetener found in desserts, drink mixes, and soft drinks. It may cause cancer or neurological problems such as dizziness and hallucinations.
BHA and BHT: Preservatives such as BHT and BHA are found in small quantities in cereals, chewing gums, potato chips, and vegetable oils. They are oxidants which form potentially cancer-causing reactive compounds in your body. They are also toxic to livers and kidneys.
Olestra: A synthetic fat found in some potato chips brands which can cause severe diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and gas. It also inhibits healthy witamin absorption that are found in fruits and vegetables.
Sugar: Sugar and high fructose corn syrup are a frequent additives and its overuse can lead to numerous health issues. Watch out for foods with added sugars such as baked goods, cereals, crackers, sauces and many other processed foods.
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.
FOOD COLOURING
A colour additive is any dye, pigment or substance which when added or applied to a food, drug or cosmetic. Colour additives are used in foods for many reasons:
1) to offset colour loss due to exposure to light, air, temperature extremes,moisture and storage conditions.
2) to correct natural variations in colour.
3) to enhance colours that occur naturally.
4) to provide colour to colourless and " fun" foods.
Without colour additives, cokes won't be brown, margarine won't be yellow and mint ice cream won't be green. Colour additives are now considered as an important part of practically all processed foods we eat.
Colour additives consists of Blue 1,2 ; Red 3; Green 3; Yellow 6. Blue 1 and 2 are found in beverages, candy, ice creams, baked goods and pet food. Red 3, used to dye cherries, fruit cocktail, candy, and baked goods. Green 3 is added to candy and beverages, has been linked to bladder cancer. The widely used Yellow 6, added to beverages, sausage, gelatin, ice creams, desserts, baked goods and candy.
In conclusion, food additives have been used for many years to preserve, flavor, blend, thicken and colour foods, and play an important role in reducing serious nutritional deficiencies among consumers. The threat of all these additives cannot be minimized. Hence, we must be inteligent in choosing healthy products and foods to lead a healthy life.
References:
1. http://www.richardhackworth.com/article4.php
2. http://www.naturalpath.com/healthy_eating/harmful_food_additives_side_effects_of_food_additives
3. http://www.eufic.org/article/en/page/BARCHIVE/expid/basics-food-additives/
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