Study: Petroleum-Based Additives Are Being Heavily Used In Popular Children’s Foods & Candy
By Arjun Walia
- The Facts: A study published in the journal Clinical Pediatrics outlines the prevalence of artificial food coloring in a high percentage of foods sold at a conventional grocery store.
- Reflect On: How often do you take the time to read food labels? In this day and age, if you want to be more health conscious it’s a necessary step to take.
Parents who wish to eliminate AFCs from their children’s diets face a challenge, as the current research found that about 4 in 10 packaged items in grocery store products marketed to children contain at least one AFC. Moreover, in some food categories almost all of the products contain AFCs, making it difficult for families to purchase those products without AFCs. Clinicians can educate parents about reading ingredient lists and avoiding certain products or categories, at least until companies implement policies to limit marketing of products containing AFCs. More effective, however, would be for the government to eliminate AFCs from all foods or, at the very least, require a warning notice on packages.
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That’s the conclusion of a study that was published in the journal Clinical Pediatrics that examined artificial food colors in food. The study found these chemicals, which are dangerous to human health for short and long term health, in 96.3 percent of candies, 94 percent of fruit-flavoured snacks and 89.7 percent of drink mixes and powders. 43.2 percent of children’s and adult foods combined actually contain artificial colors, and fresh produce was the only food category not made with artificial colors, which means that some meat, dairy and baked products also contain fake color.
Shockingly, this may be the only study to document the percentage of child-oriented products with AFCs.
As CancerNews points out,
The most egregious class of additives is certainly artificial colors, for which a strong body of evidence exists linking them to direct harm to children’s nervous systems. Evidence that artificial colors can produce hyperactive behavior in children has already led European countries to require warning labels on foods containing these ingredients. In fact, the same companies that use artificial colors in children’s products in the U.S. typically use naturally based colors for the same products in Europe.
On food labels, watch out for anything labeled a “dye” — a synthetic, petroleum-based coloring chemical, or a “lake” — the same color, but reformulated to be water-insoluble for use in dry or fatty foods. According to Center for Science in the Public Interest, the best policy is to avoid all foods made with artificial colors, not just because of the potential for health risks, but because artificially colored foods are typically low in nutritional value.
In fact, AFCs were originally manufactured from coal tar, which comes from coal. Early critics of artificial food colorings were quick to point this out. Today, most synthetic food dyes are derived from petroleum, or crude oil. Some critics will argue that eating oil is no better than eating coal. (source)
According to CancerNews, the most dangerous colors to watch out for are:
- Red 40: This is the most widely used artificial color, found in soft drinks, candy, gelatin desserts, pastries and even sausages. Although red 40 is one of the most thoroughly tested dyes, the major studies that the FDA used to pronounce it safe are considered to be flawed — even by the FDA! Red 40 is known to cause allergic reaction in some people.
- Blue 1: The second-most common dye, found in beverages, candy and baked goods. Studies have suggested that blue 1 may increase cancer risk and cause damage to neurons. It is also a known allergen.
- Yellow 5: The third-most common dye, used in candy, baked goods and gelatin desserts. It has been shown to cause allergic reactions in some people, particularly those sensitive to aspirin, and is regularly contaminated with the carcinogens benzidine, 4-aminobiphenyl and their biological precursors.
- Yellow 6: The last of the common dyes, found in beverages, candy and baked goods. Even industry-funded studies have linked it to kidney and adrenal gland tumors. It is also known to be contaminated with the same carcinogens (and precursors) as yellow 5.
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The study concludes that,
Parents who wish to eliminate AFCs from their children’s diets face a challenge, as the current research found that about 4 in 10 packaged items in grocery store products marketed to children contain at least one AFC. Moreover, in some food categories almost all of the products contain AFCs, making it difficult for families to purchase those products without AFCs. Clinicians can educate parents about reading ingredient lists and avoiding certain products or categories, at least until companies implement policies to limit marketing of products containing AFCs. More effective, however, would be for the government to eliminate AFCs from all foods or, at the very least, require a warning notice on packages.
In today’s day and age, it’s important for consumer, especially for parents, to actually read the labelling on foods and do their research into different food companies. It’s easy to simply grab something off of the shelf, but if you’re looking to be more health conscious, it’s a good practice to start reading food labels.
This article was sourced from Collective Evolution.
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