It's time for us to become conscious of what we put into our mouths. The American public has been slowly exposed to a host of toxic chemicals that are banned in Europe as unsafe for human consumption. Because of legal loopholes, the FDA allows all kinds of things to be eaten from breakfast to dinner that are never allowed in European food chains. We're talking about at least 1,000 chemicals. The good ol' FDA!
These chemicals parade as names we've become accustomed to but few know what they do to your bodies or what is used in the construction of these toxic substances that lace our phony food.
So, lets look at some of their names: emulsifiers, stabilizers, modified food starches, processing aids, anti-cake agents, artificial food dyes, flavor enhancers, and texturizers.
Emulsifier. Polysorbate 80 may be added to ice cream to keep it from quickly melting. It can weaken your gut lining and trigger chronic inflammation throughout your body. Emulsifers are found in at least 12,000 processed foods. Sadly, it's also in some organic brands.
Maltodextrin is in many frozen desserts. It destroys the cells in your gut that produce mucous. Mucous helps protect the lining of your GI (gastro-intestinal) tract. If the cells are not producing, it leaves the walls vulnerable to leaky gut syndrome and many allergic reactions.
Researchers show that some of the resulting problems may become lifelong. Children are especially vulnerable.
Some other emulsifiers are carboxymethyl cellulose, xanthum gum, guar gum, and carrageenan (from seaweeds). They can change the mixture of bacteria in the gut which is called the microbiome. They wipe out the good one and increase the development of the bad ones. One site suggested that they are like acid poured on a wall which thins it.
Lifelong use of them can lead to a number of inflammatory bowel disorders, metabolic problems and even make a person more vulerable to cancer formation.
Why are emulsifiers used? Technically, they thicken, stabilize and extend the shelf life or length of time a product can sit on a shelf without deteriorating to the point wher'you would not want to eat it. This does not benefit you, but it does profit the company that makes the product.
Emulsifiers keep oil and water from condensing into droplets. In other words, emulsifiers create a smooth textures substance such as salad dressings or mayonnaise.
Slushies are a summer "treat" that does not treat your body well. They have another substance that often makes children sick. Glycerol is an additive that keeps slushy drinks from freezing solid without loading them up with sugar. It is approved in the US and Europe.
However, some children showed negative symptoms within one hour after sipping the drink. It causes a buildup of acid in the blood and can lower the potassium which messes with their tender nerves and muscles. One child actually had a seizurel The children tested had dangerously low blood sugar which can create an emergency.
Many slushies also contain artificial colors and flavors, plus high-fructose corn syrup. Each of these creates their own toxic challenges in a child's developing body. The younger the child, and the more it takes at one time yields increased vulnerability.
Dr. Joseph Mercola recommended eliminating these products for a month and notice any differences in health as a result.
It was interesting to hear a friend tell us that he had stopped all processed sweeteners for two weeks. He reported that the chronic back-ache he had dealt with had eased completely. He had more energy and less arthritic symptoms. You might consider giving it a try.
You can try homemade ice cream, as an alternative. When our children were young, we often made fruit pops using slightly diluted fruit juice and freezing them with a popsicle stick. The kids thought they were a real treat. Also fermented veggies, and bone broth help keep your GI track working well.
While I can't address in one post the problems with each food additive, I'll point to stabilizers next.
Realize, that companies add these things for their own profit and not your health. Food stabilizers are additives that help extend the shelf life of something they're selling as "food." It may help make a product look fresh when it's been on the shelf for weeks. Some things have a date written some place that may not be too noticeable in a print color that may not be catchy stating when the shelf life expires. It may be weeks or more before it would likely be pulled from the shelf.
The additive may prevent mold from growing on the product and hopefully you can't really taste the substance amid the other "natural", or artificial added to the product.
Stabilizers may be either thickeners or emulsifiers (about which I just shared.) Some other food stabilizers may be gelatine, locust bean gum, starches and pectin along with other gums. A starch may be potato starch, cornstarch or arrowroot. They lessen crystallization of the product, slow settlement in the product of non fluid soluble items. Case in point. Chocolate milk may have little or no settlementt at the bottom of the container. Store-bought ice cream will be creamy without ice crystal formation.
One site differentiated food stabilizers in a different way. Hydrocolloids are a large group of polysaccharides and proteins that dissolve in water to create a gel.
Gum arabic is another gum, along with guar, xanthan, and locust bean gum. They give sauces, dressings, dairy products and baked goods a smooth consistency.
Modified starches thicken sauces, gravy and pie fillings.
Cellulose derivatives such as methyl cellulose and carboxymethyl cellulose are used in baked goods, ice cream and sauces.
Pectins are in gel jams, jellies and marmelades.
Some minerals are added to food products to act as a stabilizer. They affeect protein structure and enzyme activity For instance, calcium chloride is often added to canned veggies to keep them firm. Sodium citrate is in processed cheese to prevent it from separating. Phosphates in processed meats hld moisture and prevent oxidation.
One can mix calcium oxide with hydrochloric acid to make calcium chloride. (I burned a hole in a skirt in chemistry class with this acid (Hcl) so it's not something I recommend. It produced a form of salt and water. https://curdcreation.com/how-to-make-calcium-chloride/
Sodium chloride can have potential side effects like diarrhea and nausea. https://www.webmd.com/drugs/sodium-citrate-citric-acid-bicitra
Phosphates added to meat quickly polarize people's viewpoints. Some tout their ability to keep the meat viable from shelf to table. Here are some of the ones used: Sodium tripolyphosphate helps meat retain water and protein structure, sodium pyrophosphate breaks muscle bonds of meat, trisodium phosphate is a strong alkaline phosphate. (I've seen it listed in some strong commercial cleaners.) Some other phosphates buffer the meat. One wonders why it needs to be buffered. https://ingreland.com/insights/phosphates-in-meat-processing-functions-benefits-best-applications/
Sodium citrate is perhaps the best of the stabilizers. It's formed from citric acid, often associated with vitamin C. It buffers the taste of sour substances, balances flavor, prevents color degradation and inhibits growth of microbes. (Extends shelf life.)
It also removes stray ions of iron or copper from the food. This retards food spoilage. It also enhances flavor of the beverage, meat, soup or other food. It can give a slight salty taste which may lessen the need for overloading a product with sodium chloride (salt).
It will be found in certaini processed cheese, giving it a smooth, creamy texture. It's added to soft drinks and energy drinks.making the taste more pleasant. It's in jams, jelly and gelatins. It gives a perfect gel structure. It's in ice cream and dairy desserts where it stabilizes the protein system and prevents globs of fat from forming. In processed meat and sausage, it helps emulsify fats, stabilizes the product and improves moisture retention. It's also in some ready to drink tea and coffee. It buffers the acidity of the product and gives a smoother taste. https://www.xitrical.com/food-additive-sodium-citrate/
So you can see from just this list that learning about what is in the food you put into your body can be very helpful. While most of these sites promote the use of these products, every chemical has multiple actions in your body. So, if something appeals to your taste buds, what is it doing to the chemistry of your glands, hormones, nerves, and organs?
Think about it. Consider giving it a try to eliminate a particular food substance and note if it makes a difference in how your body responds.
It really takes work in this industrialized, chemicalized, AI world in which we live to give our bodies a safety net to enhance or even produce a healthy life.
Nancy L. Pidutti, PhD, NHH, nurse, hospital Chaplain, 5 x author.
