What you Need to Know About Food Additives
Unless you only buy fresh produce and butcher your own meat, chances are you are consuming food additives. From preservatives to artificial sweeteners, these sneaky additives can find their way into our foods. The best way you can avoid them is to cook from scratch, but we understand that’s not always an option. Here’s what you need to know about food additives.
Preservatives
While being able to preserve food is incredibly convenient for us, it may not be doing our bodies any good. You might think that preserving food is simply used to make the food last longer, but some preservatives are used simply to make the food look good longer. Most ancient ways of preserving food involved using natural resources to do so. Things such as pickling, fermenting, salting, and canning, have all been used as natural forms of preservation. These are all excellent choices, as they do not add artificial preservatives, and they can even add necessary nutrients to our diets. Here are some common preservatives to avoid:
- Nitrites & Nitrates
- High Fructose Corn Syrup
- Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil
- BHA & BHT
- Sulphites
- Benzoates
- Bromates
This list is not exhaustive, and these ingredients can be cancerous, addictive, and known to cause skin irritations, auto-immune disorders, and other harmful issues. Many of these ingredients have been banned in other countries and should be avoided or limited as best as possible.
Enriched Foods
The thought of food being enriched sounds appealing doesn’t it? Enriched cereals, flour, and fortified dairy products are all marketed as better options, but the sad truth is that they aren’t. Many enriched and fortified foods are saturated with synthetic vitamins and additives. While that sounds great, synthetic vitamins are not bioavailable and often get stored as toxins in our body, while depleting our body of its own nutrient stores. These are foods that are commonly enriched:
- Dairy Products (avoid any dairy with added vitamins or DHA)
- Cereal
- Bread
- Pre-packaged Baked Goods
- Flour
- Pasta
- Nut Milk
- Rice
Food Dye
Food dyes can seem harmless. From our favorite treats like popsicles, candy, frosting, and cereal to more savory items such as bread and mac and cheese, food dyes can be found just about anywhere. Food dyes have been linked to many behavioral issues including ADHD, as well as hives, asthma, and an increase in tumors. Many food dyes also include the ingredient benzene which is a known carcinogen. Instead, opt for natural dyes like beets, turmeric, and spirulina, or foods that are dye-free. Common foods where dyes are found include:
- Children’s Food
- Candy
- Cereal
- Juice
- Soda
- Medications
- Processed Food
Artificial Flavors & Sugars
Zero-calorie foods seem too good to be true. Food is meant to nourish our bodies and be used as fuel for our daily tasks. Artificial sugars and flavors may taste good, but they are wrecking our bodies in the meanwhile. Sure, you may not gain the extra pounds when consuming them, but at what cost? These artificial ingredients are made in a lab with very harmful chemicals and are designed to trick our bodies into believing we’re consuming sugar which can cause the very health issues you’re trying to avoid.
Artificial flavors can contain thousands of different ingredients that they aren’t required to disclose. This information alone should be a red flag. However, if you do some digging, you’ll find that most of the approved ingredients aren’t that great for you at all. Here are some foods to avoid that contain these two culprits:
- Zero Calorie foods
- “Diet” foods
- Zero-Sugar
- Processed foods
- Flavored Sparkling Water
- Ice Cream
Here is a reference for the names of some common artificial sweeteners:
- Aspartame
- Saccharin
- Sucralose
- Acesulfame K
- Stevia
REACH OUT FOR MORE INFORMATION
Taking steps to clean up your lifestyle no matter how small will always be beneficial. At Intuitive Health Restoration, we work on any issues the body may have during the healing process your body is making. A well-rounded program works the best. One that cleans the gut, the organs, promotes drainage, and handles the neuroendocrine system. Contact us today to schedule a consultation and take a positive step towards health restoration.