Every day we are bombarded with information about food products that are healthy, all natural, with no artificial ingredients, no preservatives, low fat, fat free, cholesterol free, sugar free, vitamin fortified and that provide 100% of your daily requirements. of vitamins. Are these foods as healthy as advertising would have us believe they are?

Let’s look at the facts. There are over 3,000 different chemicals added to our food. The company that wants to produce the chemicals or use the chemicals in the food it produces usually does the safety testing. Safety tests have only been performed for individual additives, not combinations of additives. Nobody knows the effects of the different additives used in the thousands of different combinations. To make matters worse, due to political pressure, the FDA allows manufacturers to add small amounts of carcinogenic substances to our food. So a lot of our food is not only unhealthy, it’s also unsafe.

The FDA has even approved as safe additives that it knows are unsafe. Take, for example, Olestra, the fat substitute that was approved by the FDA over the objections of many leading food scientists. Olestra can cause diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and can even contribute to cancer, heart disease, and blindness. Foods containing Olestra must have a warning label on the package.

Then there is the artificial sweetener aspartame, also known as Nutrasweet. Aspartame was approved and declared safe by a specially appointed FDA commissioner after his own Board of Inquiry that investigated aspartame stated that it was unsafe. Aspartame can cause birth defects, central nervous system disorders, menstrual difficulties, brain damage in PKUs, seizures, death, and a long list of other reactions too numerous to mention. It can cause irreversible long-term health damage.

Fats are another story. A certain amount of the right kind of fat is necessary for your nervous system, your immune system, the formation of cell membranes, and the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins. The problem is that more than 90% of the food produced today contains hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oil, which contributes to heart disease, high cholesterol and triglycerides, non-insulin dependent diabetes and cancer. Research even shows an association between attention deficit disorder and hydrogenated oils.

The next time you go to the supermarket, look at the label on each item before you buy. Unless you already buy all organic and natural foods, almost every item you pick up will contain hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils. Instead, choose products that say they don’t contain hydrogenated oils. Use raw organic butter instead of margarine and extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil, or flaxseed oil (flaxseed oil should never be heated).

If you’re eating more chicken, turkey, and fish because it’s healthier, you may be surprised to learn that deli sliced ​​chicken and turkey contain nitrites. And nitrites cause cancer. Nitrites are found in almost all processed meats, including cold cuts, hot dogs, hot dogs, and bacon. Then there is the tuna, a healthy option if you only have tuna and water and eat it only occasionally. But most tuna contains broth or hydrolyzed vegetable protein, which contains monosodium glutamate. And MSG doesn’t need to be listed on the label because it’s an ingredient in the broth, it’s not added directly to the tuna. This is how food manufacturers hide MSG in the food they produce. And hidden MSG can be a very serious problem for those who are sensitive to it. MSG can cause a wide variety of symptoms including migraines, numbness and tingling, asthma, seizures, diarrhea, panic attacks, and heart problems.

Other sources of hidden MSG include autolyzed yeast, bouillon, bouillon, malt extract, malt flavoring, barley malt, maltodextrin, natural flavors, pectin, seasonings, carrageenan, soy sauce, soy protein, whey protein, anything enzyme-modified, fermented, protein-fortified, ultra-pasteurized gold, fast foods, potato chips, condiments, salad dressings, cold cuts, sausages, and soups. In fact, most processed foods contain MSG according to Kathleen Schwartz of the nonprofit group NoMSG.

So, buyer beware! Even if the label says “all natural ingredients” and “no preservatives,” the product could still contain harmful additives. So how do you know which foods are really safe to eat? You need to read labels and know how to interpret the information on the label.

Here are some tips on what to eat and what to avoid: Eat fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, good-quality protein, and healthy fats. Avoid these additives:

Aspartame or Nutradulce

Saccharin

MSG and free glutamates

artificial colors

Nitrites and Nitrates

Caffeine

BHA and BHT

Brominated vegetable oil or BVO

Olestra or Olean

sulfites

This is a general rule of thumb: if the ingredient list is long, there are likely to be too many chemical additives in the product and you are risking your health by eating it. If the ingredient list is short, it may or may not contain harmful additives, so read the label carefully before purchasing.

Dr. Christine Farlow has made it easy for you to identify which additives are harmful and which are not. In his handy pocket book, FOOD ADDITIVES: A Buyer’s Guide to What’s Safe and What’s Not, now in its revised 2004 edition, he ranks 800 commonly used food additives according to their safety, whether they can cause allergic reactions, and whether they are harmful. Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) by the FDA. In just seconds, you can tell if an additive in the food you’re buying is harmful to your health. It is clear, concise and easy to use. Make this book your constant shopping companion and never again will you wonder about the safety of the ingredients listed on the package. You will know.