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Food
Additives
& Preservatives
"Exposure to toxic chemicals and a combination of
genetic and toxic chemical factors cause about 28 percent of all developmental
defects affecting 120,000 infants born each year." (National Research Council
Commission on Life Sciences study, 2000)
`Instinctively, we crave for freshness in our
food. In the quest to satisfy the consumer's unending demand for freshness, the
food industry keeps trying to achieve it by extending the shelf life of
products. This is a contradiction in terms. You cannot extend the freshness in
food. Food that has been kept is no longer genuinely fresh. The simple fact is
that you neither store nor process food without damaging its nutritional
content. The more you process it, and the longer you store it, the more you
damage it. Preservation methods simply serve to slow down some of the aging
processes, and mask the degeneration. They do not maintain true freshness. We
have lost sight of this basic truth and a typical diet now consists of over 70
percent processed foods. This means 70 percent denatured food. Modern patterns
of illness reflect this trend.' (Gwen Hewett, Healthy Living, Early Summer
1989, p.11)
`Preservatives can be considered
in the classification of poisonous drugs because they have the same ill effects
on the tissues in which they settle. Many of our canned foods are being
preserved with drugs. In the past, arsenic was used in the canning of peas. We
find that some companies are using certain poisonous fluids and drugs to
preserve canned meats. Soda is frequently used as a preservative. Coal tar [a
known cancer-producing agent] products often are used for coloring and
flavoring.' (B. Jensen D.C., N.D., The Science and Practice of Iridology,
p.168)
One of our major concerns as
regards the action of preservatives is that they work by destroying
bacteria. The problem being that they indiscriminately destroy bacteria - good
bacteria and bad bacteria. Which means that they could interfere with the growth
of the friendly bacteria in the
colon - leading to serious digestion problems, and to various imbalances in the natural
bacterial population that should thrive in the digestive tract. This, we
believe, could be a major cause of what is known as thrush or Candida.
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"Science advances funeral
by funeral."
(Niels Bohr,
Nobel Prize-winning Physicist) |
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The table below lists a
number of additives, including some preservatives, that are suspected of having
an adverse effect on the human system. This information was gleaned from an
article by Garner Thomson in the Johannesburg Star dated 27/6/1985 as well as the book, Harmful Food Additives, Kroft and Houben, Port Washington, New York,
Ashley Books, 1981.
The following information should be considered in
the light of the fact that `the average person consumes between three and eight
kilograms of additives per annum, while the dedicated "junk food junkie" is
eating as much as 15 kilograms per annum.' (Garner Thomson, Johannesburg Star,
27/6/1985)
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Additive |
Effect |
Found In |
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Benzoates:
A family of about 10 chemicals that are banned in Russia |
Believed to
cause brain damage and to trigger allergies such as asthma and skin
rashes |
Margarine,
fruit juices, beer, fruit purees, tea and coffee extracts, pickles and
flour. |
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Bromates: |
Destroy
nutrients and cause nausea and diarrhoea |
Used to
bleach and to "mature" flour. Found in bread and white flour. |
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Butylates: |
Have been
implicated in high blood and cholesterol levels, as well as impaired
kidney and liver function. |
Margarine,
butter, vegetable oils. |
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BHA
(butylated
hydroxyanisole - a preservative) |
Suspected
of causing liver ailments and cancer |
Fresh pork
and pork sausages, steak sauces, vegetable oils, shortenings,
crackers, potato chips, dry cereals. cake mixes, frozen pizza, instant
teas, drink powders and many more. |
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Caffeine:
Colorant and flavorant |
Stimulant, diuretic, causes
nervousness, heart palpitations; may cause heart defects |
Coffee, tea, cocoa, cola, soft
drinks, chocolate |
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Caramel:
A
popular coloring and flavoring agent |
Suspected
of causing vitamin B6 deficiencies, having genetic effects and
possibly even causing cancer |
Candy,
instant tea, soft drinks, bread, frozen pizza, brown colored foods
like spreads, chocolate and baked goods. |
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Carrageenan:
Thickening agent and binder |
Suspected of colitis effects,
possible genetic effects |
Sour cream, cottage cheese,
yoghurt, whipped toppings, chocolate milk, ice cream, beer, jelly,
gelatin, pudding desserts, baby formulas, punch drinks, olives,
vegetables packaged with sauces, cookie dough, bread. |
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Chlorines:
Banned everywhere in the EEC except Britain |
Powerful
Irritant |
Used to
bleach flour and fat. In bread, flour and water. |
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Coal Tar
AZO Dies:
Includes Tartrazine. |
Hyperactivity, birth defects in animals, allergies, stomach upsets |
Packet
soups, sweets, smoked fish and meat, salad cream and jams. |
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Gallates:
They stop fats from going rancid |
Stomach
irritant and allergen |
Vegetable
oils, bread, dry cereals, and fats. |
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Glutamates:
As in monosodium glutamate |
Can cause
headaches, neck and/or chest pains in the sensitive, dizziness,
palpitations and cancer. May cause genetic damage. |
Used in
almost every convenience food |
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Mono- and Di-glycerides |
May cause
genetic changes, cancer, birth defects and other abnormalities |
Shortening, margarine, peanut butter, broth, bread, pies, dry roasted
nuts, vegetables packaged with sauce, cookies, cakes, ravioli. |
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Nitrates/Nitrites:
Used to preserve meat and give hams their pink color |
Increasingly suspected of causing cancer - especially in combination
with other products. Overdoses have caused deaths |
In cured
meat products, some cheeses and in water where nitrate fertilizers are
frequently used |
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Propyl Gallate |
May
damage the liver. May cause birth defects. |
Meat
products, potato sticks, vegetables packed with sauces, vegetable
shortening and oils, chewing gum, pickles. |
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Red Dye 40
(Allura
Red AC) |
Possibly
causes birth defects. Cancer suspect |
Frankfurters, red gelatin desserts, red sweets, red soft drinks, red
pistachio nuts, red chewing gums, cereals and baked goods. |
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Saccharin:
Inexpensive sugar substitute. Popular with diabetics. Danger warning
now required on packets in some countries. |
Causes
allergic response and toxic reactions affecting skin, heart and
gastro-intestinal tract. May cause tumors and bladder cancer.
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Sugar
substitute used in diet foods, ginger ale, plain and diet sodas,
frozen desserts and breakfast drinks. |
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Sodium Erythrobate
(Preservative,
coloring agent, used to "freshen" foods) |
Possible
genetic effects, banned in several countries |
Bacon,
ham, frozen turkey roast, frankfurters, baked goods, potato salads,
beverages. |
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Sulphites:
As in sulphur dioxide and calcium sulphite |
Genetic
mutations, cancer and allergies |
Fruit,
dried fruit and some wines |
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Tannin:
(Tannic Acid) Used for flavoring and in leather tanning |
May cause
liver tumors, cancer and other ailments |
Wine,
coffee, tea cocoa, beer, butter, artificial flavorings such as
caramel. brandy and maple. |
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