Do you know which Food Preservatives Destroy yourself

We have to eat  for living  and Food Preservatives   are essential for preserving foods. we are busy in our daily work and we have no  enough time to prepare our food. So, we have to depend on processed /fast food. There are various kinds of food  Food additives/ Food Preservatives  that are added in our foods to make it tasty or for prolonging self life, change colors and taste.  Do you know which Food Preservatives  are used  in your food? Do you know the Health effects of these Food Preservatives  . Most of the non communicable like Diabetes , Heart Diaease, cancer are caused by these Food Preservatives  .  Do you know its E-number  of Food Preservatives  and how you will know which Food Preservatives  are used in your foods? Each Food Preservatives  has a world recognized  E – number. Do you  know which Food Preservatives  are used in your Food.Food  preparing/ processing companies  used this E -numbers on its food packed . if you want to  know the  E - number and its bad effect on our health,   keep continue reading .

Food Additives : 

Any substances added to the food affecting the characteristics of natural food

•          Direct:  Are those which are intentionally added to food for specific purpose

Direct Food Additives

•          Food Preservatives 

•          Food Flavors

•          Anti-caking Agent

•          Antifoaming agent

•          Food Colors

•          Bulking Agents

•          Thickners

•          Anti-oxidants

•          Sweetners

•          Stabilizers

•          Acidulants

•          Humectants

•          Emulsifiers

•          Caffeine

•          Tracer gas

•          Glazing agent

•          Indirect : Are those to which the food is exposed to during processing, packaging and storing

Types of additives

Additives may be:           Natural – found naturally, such as extracts from beetroot juice (E162), used as a colouring agent;

                Manmade versions – synthetic identical copies of substances found naturally, such as benzoic acid (E210), used as a Food Preservatives  ;

                Artificial – produced synthetically and not found naturally, such as nisin (E234), used as a Food Preservatives  in some dairy products and in semolina & tapioca puddings.

Direct/Intentional Vs Indirect/Unintentional Food Additives

Direct/Intentional Additives

q  Enrichment – restore lost nutrients to food

q  Fortification – increase nutrition value of food

Indirect/Unintentional Additives

q  Environmental contamination (surface water runoff, industrial spills);

q  Insecticides, Fungicides, Herbicides;

q  Plant Growth Regulators/Hormones and Antibiotics;

q  Detergents used in washing Foods; and/of

q  Detergents & Sanitizers used in utensils:

q  Equipment are likely to carry over into foods.

Why not keep to natural additives?

• Some artificial colours have almost disappeared from foods as companies realised that many consumers prefer food products to contain natural colours.
• At present there is not the variety of natural Food Preservatives  required to perform all the functions of additives necessary.
• Manmade Food Preservatives  may prove more efficient at preserving, and some natural colours fade in some products.

Functions  of Additives

• Prolong Shelf life
• Change/preserve color
• Enhance Flavor
• Compensate for vitamin and mineral deficiencies
• Maintain freshness/Nutrient quality
• Prevent/ Reduce Food spoiling
• Facilitate Food processing
• Lower food costs

Reduce occurrence of disease

Health Effects of Food Preservatives 

•       Immediate Effects:

v  Headache

v  Change in Energy Level

v  Alterations in Mental Concentration,

v   Behavior or Immune response

•       Long Term Effects:

v  Increase Risk of Cancer

v  Cardiovascular disease and

v  Other degenerative conditions.

Improper Use

• To cover up faulty or inferior products
• To deceive consumers
• To produce effects that can not be otherwise be achieved Safely

Numbering of Additives

•       Each additive is assigned a unique number termed as “E numbers” which is used in Europe for all approved additives (this system are also now been adopted & extended  by the Codex)

•       Some of Example

•       E 100 - Curcumin, turmeric

•       E 123 - Amaranth

•       999999E 140 - Chlorophylls, Chlorophyllin

•       E 210 - Benzoic acid

•       E 224 – Potassium metabisulphite

•       E 300 – Ascorbic Acid

•       E 330 – Citric acid

Food Preservatives 

Food Preservatives  (Class –I)

Food Preservative Class 2

• Common salt
• Sugar: Sucrose, dextrose, glucose, honey
• Pungent Spices, Vinegar
• Edible vegetables oil

Food Preservatives  (Class – II)

• Benzoic –its salt (Benzoic acid, Sodium Benzoate
• Sulphurous acid+ its Salt
• Nitrates/Nitrites of Na/K



Food Preservative Class 2

• Sorbic acid +its Na/K/Ca salts, & its esters

• Lactic acid +its Na/K/Ca salts
• CH3/C3H7 esters of p-OH benzoic acid
• Acid Ca-phosphate, Niacin
• Potassium Metabisulphite      ( K₂S₂O₅)
•  Propionic Acid

 

 

Food Preservatives  To Avoid

   Sodium Nitrate/Sodium Nitrite (E250 ) 

•          Causes :forms a variety of nitrosamine (carcinogen) compounds  in human digestive system) Uses : Hotdogs, bacon, ham, luncheon meat, cured meats, corned beef, smoked fish, processed meat

BHA and BHT (E320)

E320

•          Causes : neurological  system of the brain; alters behavior, form cancer-causing reactive compounds in human body.

•          Uses: Potato Chips, gum, cereal, frozen sausages, enriched rice, candy, jello.

Sodium Sulphite (E221)

 

•          Causes : one in 100 people are sensitive to sulphites, asthma, Headaches, Breathing problems and Rashes

•          Uses: Wine & Dried fruit

Artificial Sweeteners (E951): /Aspartame, aka Nutra Sweet/Equal 

 •          Causes :Neurotoxin & carcinogen Brain tumor,  Diabetes, Dizziness, headaches,     nausea,  etc

•          Uses :Diet coke, Jello,  sugar free gum, Drink mixes, ice tea, puddings, Cereal, breath mints, toothpaste, , cough syrup etc

 

       High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS)   

•          Causes : increases your LDL  “bad” cholesterol levels.

•          Uses: Processed breads, Candy, Flavoured yougurts, Salad dressings, Canned vegetables, Cereals etc.

Propyl  Galate

•          Causes : prevent fats and oils from spoiling

•          Uses : Edible oil

Monosodium Glutamate (MSG / E621)

•          Causes : Depression, disorientation; Eye damage, fatigue, Headaches and obesity etc.

•          Uses :Margarine, chips and crackers, baked goods, fast foods , beef

 

Trans Fat/ Partially hydrogenated vegetable oils

•          Causes : increase LDL cholesterol levels, & Decreasing HDL (“good”) cholesterol, increases risk of heart attack, diabetes & other health problem.

•          Uses :Margarine, chips and crackers, baked goods, fast foods

Common Food Dyes
(Blue #1 & Blue #2 ;Red #3 & Red #40 Yellow #6 & Yellow Tartrazine ( E133 E124;E110 E102 )

•          Causes: behavioral problems like ADD and ADHD in children ,  reduction in IQ.) linked to cancer/thyroid tumors);

•          Uses :Fruit cocktail, cherry pie mix,  maraschino cherries, ice cream, candy, bakery products, macaroni, cheese

 

Sulphur Dioxide E220

•          Causes : bronchial problems, asthma, hypotension, Anaphylactic shock; Destroys Vita–B1 & E in   the body

•          Uses :beers, soft drinks, dried fruit, juices, cordials, wine, vinegar,

 

Potassium Bromate (E924)

•          Causes: cancer in animals. Even small amounts in bread can create problems for humans

•          Uses : Bread and bread-rolls

 

Olestra/Olean

•          Causes : abdominal cramping, loose stools, inhibits absorption vitamins & other nutrients

•          Uses : Chips

What should Do
Drink lots of safe water  to flush out harmful toxins from your body and have some fresh tender vegetables and fruit  juices to change the minerals that you already know by drinking plenty of water.Sleep S at least 8-9 hours every day to excercise your human body's immune system. Exercise to unwind your body and mind. Important too, the less TV you watch, the less you're going to be uncovered to food advertising, and the less processed food you will eat. And then, be mindful of what you eat. All this will not start from day one for every person but you can do most of these step by step and before long you are carrying out all to keep your body healthy and yourself out of hospital.