Processed foods contain a lot of different, unnatural ingredients & the easiest way to no longer crave them is to understand exactly what they are and the possible side effects of eating such things.
These are just a few of some harmful chemicals you'll find in some common foods. Fooducate is a great place to scan some of the foods you buy to find out how they're ranked based on their ingredients, what the company isn't telling you about their product & some healthier alternatives you can chose from at the store.
"Sodium Nitrite/Nitrate
-Preservative, coloring, flavoring: Bacon, ham, lunch meats, smoked fish, corned beef.
Sodium Nitrite stabilized the red color in cured meat (otherwise your meat would look gray) & give it the characteristic "meat" flavor. Several studied have linked consumption of nitrite to cancer.
Artificial Colorings
-Found mostly in candy, baked goods, beverages, gelatin desserts & pet food.
Artificial colorings are synthetic chemicals that are not found in nature. Some colorings (mostly the reds) are known to cause hyperactivity & aggression in children. Many are also linked to brain, kidney, bladder, & thyroid cancer. If there's one additive I'd tell parents to keep away from their children, it's artificial colorings. Red 40 & Yellow 5 should be avoided completely as they've been completely banned in Europe for years.
Aspartame
-Artificial sweetener in diet foods, soft drinks, gelatin desserts, low-calorie frozen desserts.
Aspartame (also known as Equal or NutraSweet) has been found to cause brain tumors, leukemias/lymphomas & breast cancer in rats. Using Aspartame over a long period of time will absolutely increase your risk of cancer. Children, especially, should not consume beverages sweetened with aspartame. THIS MEANS NO SODA!
Partially Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (Trans Fat)
-Fat, oil, shortening: Stick margarine, crackers, fried restaurant food, baked goods, icing, microwave popcorn.
In 2004, the FDA found that on a gram-for-gram basis, trans fat is even MORE harmful than saturated fat. In Denmark, the government has completely banned hydrogenated oil. There's something to say about an ingredient that has been banned by an entire country.
Hydrogenated vegetable oil is a manufactured product produced by taking a normal vegetable oil and adding metal as a catalyst. The mixture is heated and hydrogen is forced through it. The hydrogen attaches to the unsaturated vegetable oil. If there’s enough hydrogen, you end up with saturated fat. But if the hydrogen is restricted, you end up with partially hydrogenated vegetable oil (after you remove the catalyst). What is HVO & Why Is It Bad?
Potassium Bromate
-Flour improver; White flour, bread, rolls
Potassium bromate has been used to increase the volume of bread. Bromate has been banned virtually worldwide except in Japan & the United States. Bromate itself causes cancer in animals."
All information from Center For Science in the Public Interest. Go here to get more details on all the specific chemicals & additives found in the chart below.
This is a great chart to print out & keep on your refrigerator. I would say that any chemicals in the "cut back", "caution", & "avoid" categories should be completely avoided. It's not worth the risk. The most important action you can take to eat well is to become knowledgeable. Don't let advertising & the companies themselves educate you about their own food. They have their best interest in mind, not yours.
Summary of the Safety of All Additives
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