2,000 Untested Chemicals Discovered In Packaged Foods
In Brief
- The Facts:2,000 unregulated chemicals are currently being used in many conventional packaged foods across the U.S.
- Reflect On:Do you know what you are putting into your body? If you can't pronounce an ingredient, chances are you shouldn't be consuming it. Can you limit the amount of processed foods you are consuming or at least avoid cancer-causing chemicals?
A recent report by the Environmental Working Group
(EWG) shows that thousands of untested chemicals, approximately 2,000,
can be found in a huge variety of conventional processed and packaged
foods, which are available for purchase in US supermarkets. You may be
surprised to know that these chemicals are legal, based off current
chemical regulation laws, or lack thereof in the United States.
Out of the thousands of chemical
additives that were discovered, several are known or suspected
carcinogens, like synthetic sodium nitrite, which is found in many
varieties of processed meats. The World Health Organization considers
these probably carcinogenic. Another chemical, butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) is listed by the state of California as a cancer-causing chemical can be found in many items, such as a frozen pepperoni pizza.
Many other alarming chemicals are found
in the packaging of the foods themselves, such as polypropylene,
sulfuric acid and bisphenol A.
How Concerned Should You Be?
“It really depends on what level of risk consumers are comfortable with,” said
Dawn Undurraga, a nutritionist at EWG and co-author of the study. “The
more we learn about what is in conventional foods, the more evidence for
concern we accumulate.”
If you are consuming a lot of processed
foods, then obviously your risk level goes up, but these chemicals are
certainly something to be aware of. If you can’t pronounce it on the
ingredient list then it’s most likely a good thing to avoid.
Should The Government Take Some Responsibility?
Some consumers just assume that toxic chemicals should be regulated and legally prevented from winding up in our food. Aren’t there government organizations out there with our health and safety in mind?
Unfortunately when it comes to chemical regulation — not just in our
food, but also in our health and beauty products, as well as cleaning
products, these chemicals simply aren’t regulated. For instance, the
European Union has banned nearly 1300 chemicals from cosmetic products,
versus only 11 in the United States. This means that manufacturers can
use whatever the please, regardless of whether or not it’s gone through
any appropriate safety testing.
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“Unfortunately, our current policy on
food additives was written in 1958 and has been completely co-opted by
food and chemical companies,” Undurraga said.
“Additives that are deemed ‘Generally Recognized as Safe,’ or GRAS, by a
food or chemical company or trade association are exempt from the food
additive petition process where the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) reviews the safety of the additive.”
The GRAS exemption was initially created
to allow the use of many ingredients that are already recognized as
safe, such as vinegar. Unfortunately, with the rapid advancements in
food science, this provision has been applied to thousands of chemicals,
many of which, we do not even know the long-term effects of. Back in
2017, the EWG joined other public health and safety groups to file a
lawsuit against the FDA in an effort to eradicate the GRAS loophole.
“Rather than close the loophole, the FDA
has instead allowed companies to voluntarily notify the agency about
food chemicals and to allow companies to summarize the industry science
supporting their conclusions,” reads the EWG study. Many scientists who conduct the reviews for these chemicals are paid by the industry itself.
“Consumers shouldn’t have to be
toxicologists to be able to grab something at the grocery store that
doesn’t contain questionable or dangerous ingredients,” Undurraga said.
Which is true, but sort of like the Non-GMO Project
— we were unable to pass bills requiring food producers to label the
use of genetically modified ingredients, so the NON-GMO project decided
to start a label, which was granted to all products that, for sure, had
no genetically modified ingredients. This alone forced many food
production companies to re-evaluate the ingredients they had been using
and switch them out, to gain the approval of the label and keep up with
ever evolving conscious consumer demands.
Never Underestimate The Power Of The Consumer
By knowing what to look out for, and
avoiding the items that contain these cancer causing chemicals, and also
raising awareness about them by sharing information such as this, or
simply telling your friends and family, there is a tremendous impact
being made. More and more people will become aware, know what to look
out for and avoid these products. This will force food producers to omit
these ingredients or potentially go out of business. They will have to
essentially evolve or die!
Buying organic whenever possible is your
safest bet for avoiding cancer-causing chemicals and also drastically
limiting or cutting out altogether your consumption of processed foods.
Yes, organic is more expensive, but what is your health worth to you?
Keep in mind, handy tools such as the “Clean 15” list and the “Dirty Dozen”
as well, to know which foods you should always buy organic, and which
ones aren’t laden with pesticides and other harmful chemicals.
A little knowledge goes a long way here!
Since the government doesn’t always have
our best interest in mind, as it is often about profit before the
people, it’s up to us to be informed consumers and make the decisions
that are best for ourselves and our families.
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