What you have been asking about Food Additive & Colourings?

Are they the cause of our Increase of Disease & Allergies?

As a Naturopathic Health Care Practitioner it has always been my aim for each person to become and stay well with ease, keeping life simple using Nutrition – what we eat every day as the foundation to keeping you well and healthy. Unfortunately the more that our food is tampered with the less effective firstly it becomes with providing us this great foundation. Secondly with a bombardment of chemicals and toxins not only does it have difficulty eliminating these (a bit like your rubbish bin, it will only take so much rubbish before it starts to overflow making a mess everywhere). So it is both the overload of these toxins plus the interaction of these toxins, hence when they say about doing research into disease it becomes very difficult to pin point the source as there are many sources or causes plus this interaction of chemicals for which it is in mind impossible to know what effect they are contributing or what they are doing. If you think back to your chemistry class at school this will give you some idea of what I am talking about.
So let’s go through the maze of chemicals that is food additives and colorings that are going into our foods. This is a great way of eliminating probably over half of the chemicals that are harming our body, therefore giving our bodies a lot better chance of eliminating the ones that we don’t have control over.

Types of food additives

The different types of food additive and their uses include:
Anti-caking agents – stop ingredients from becoming lumpy
Antioxidants – prevent foods from oxidising, or going rancid.
Artificial sweeteners – increase the sweetness.
Emulsifiers – stop fats from clotting together.
Food acids – maintain the right acid level.
Colours – enhance or add colour.
Humectants – keep foods moist.
Flavours – add flavour.
Flavour enhancers – increase the power of a flavour.
Foaming agents – maintain uniform aeration of gases in foods.
Mineral salts – enhance texture and flavour.
Preservatives – stop microbes from multiplying and spoiling the food.
Thickeners and vegetable gums – enhance texture and consistency.
Stabilisers and firming agents – maintain even food dispersion.
Flour treatment – improves baking quality.
Glazing agent – improves appearance and can protect food.
Gelling agents – alter the texture of foods through gel formation.
Propellants – help propel food from a container.
Raising agents – increase the volume of food through the use of gases.
Bulking agents – increase the volume of food without major changes to its available energy.
Types of food additives

The different types of food additive and their uses include:
Anti-caking agents – stop ingredients from becoming lumpy
Antioxidants – prevent foods from oxidising, or going rancid.
Artificial sweeteners – increase the sweetness.
Emulsifiers – stop fats from clotting together.
Food acids – maintain the right acid level.
Colours – enhance or add colour.
Humectants – keep foods moist.
Flavours – add flavour.
Flavour enhancers – increase the power of a flavour.
Foaming agents – maintain uniform aeration of gases in foods.
Mineral salts – enhance texture and flavour.
Preservatives – stop microbes from multiplying and spoiling the food.
Thickeners and vegetable gums – enhance texture and consistency.
Stabilisers and firming agents – maintain even food dispersion.
Flour treatment – improves baking quality.
Glazing agent – improves appearance and can protect food.
Gelling agents – alter the texture of foods through gel formation.
Propellants – help propel food from a container.
Raising agents – increase the volume of food through the use of gases.
Bulking agents – increase the volume of food without major changes to its available energy.
Colored cereal

These synthetic dyes have been linked to a wide variety of health concerns including behavioural problems, hyperactivity, allergic reactions, and even cancers. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), an organization that advocates for nutrition and food safety, is calling for a ban on these synthetic dyes. Food-based dyes such as beet juice and turmeric are readily available, but are more expensive and often less bright, making synthetic dyes more attractive to food manufacturers.
Food dyes and allergic reactions:

Blue 1, Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6 have been reported to cause allergic reactions in some people.
Food dyes and hyperactivity:

Food dyes are of particular concern for children, since many colored foods are marketed to children, and their smaller body size makes them more susceptible to potential toxins. Hyperactivity in children following ingestion of food dyes is well-documented in placebo-controlled studies. Furthermore, a 2004 meta-analysis of 16 studies in children who were already hyperactive showed that their hyperactive behaviour increased in response to food colorings.2 In a study published in Lancet in 2007, researchers tested two different mixtures of food dyes vs. placebo in children of two age groups – one mixture increased hyperactivity in 3 year old children, and both mixtures increased hyperactivity in the 8-9 year-olds.3 This study sparked a reaction by the British government. They instructed food manufacturers to eliminate all of these synthetic dyes by the end of 2009. In fact, starting later this month, a warning notice will be required on dyed foods in Europe stating that these foods “may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children.”4 As a result, several international food companies now produce products with food-based dyes or no dyes in the U.K., but continue to include synthetic dyes in their U.S. products.

Empowering You to Optimal Health Julie Doherty N.D