Most refined foods contain several unpronounceable artificial ingredients as well as added salt, sugars, and/or unhealthy fats. When you pick up a whole, natural food, like fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and nuts, you know what you are getting, especially if you chose organic foods, which have minimal exposure to pesticide contamination. When you choose a processed food off the supermarket shelf, the guessing game begins. For one thing, more than 14,000 man-made chemicals are added to our food supply. The reasons they are added revolve mainly around two goals: to extend the shelf life of the food, and to make it more convenient and appealing.
Some of the general categories of additives added to processed foods include:
- Colors in the form of dyes and other additives so your food looks good
- Stabilizers so your pudding isn’t watery and your salad dressing has just the right consistency
- Emulsifiers so ingredients like oil and water WILL mix
- Softeners so your ice cream seems like it was “churned twice”
- Texturizers so your cereal stays crisp and those cookies have just the right feel in your mouth
- Preservatives so those cupcakes and frozen fish sticks will still be edible one year from now
- Flavorings so you think you’re really eating maple syrup
- Sweeteners to satisfy that sweet tooth and keep you wanting more
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not require food manufacturers to list additives as ingredients on foods if the additives are considered Generally Regarded As Safe (GRAS). All the manufacturers have to put on the label is “artificial flavor”, “artificial coloring”, or “natural flavor”.
The Center for Science in the Public Interest offers a list of food additives and rates them according to safety. Their general rule about additives is to avoid a short list of additives and to limit or try to avoid consumption of a long list of others. Certain additives are also potential carcinogens. Read more on Cancer causing food additives
See also
Foods to avoid for prostate health
Related blogs
101 ways to love your prostate
