Processed foods, and snacks are full of additives which are tested by the foods standards authorities. Although additives are tested for ‘safety’ they have previously been tested in isolation. This means that we have no idea about their effect when mixed with other food additives (the chemical cocktail effect). Recently groundbreaking research about the combination effect of food additives has been published. Professor Vyvyan Howard, a toxicologist at the University of Liverpool has been researching 4 very common food additives, and their combined effect upon nerve cell function. The additives were tested in isolation, and then in combination. Two combinations were used; E133 Brilliant Blue with E621 monosodium glutamate (MSG: a flavour enhancer), and E104 Quinoline Yellow with E951 Aspartame (an artificial sweetener). The study used the additives in concentrations that mirrored those found in children’s snack foods. It was found that the additives when used in the first combination (Blue+ MSG) had an effect four times greater than in isolation, and seven times greater with the second combination (yellow with Aspartame).
So what does this mean to us? The study tested only four common additives in two combinations, and yet many processed foods contain many more combinations of additives (take a look on the back of a kid’s party cake). As these combinations are untested we have no idea about their true safety, but the Liverpool study suggests that the chemical cocktail effect may substantially increase the harmful action of additives. This however has not been researched by the food standards authorities. In effect the combination of food additives may be unsafe, and the long-term implication of a high-additive diet is completely unknown. Worryingly it is estimated that we each eat as much as 4 Kilos of additives each year; theoretically a child may have eaten their own body weight in additives by the time they reach adulthood. It is also believed that our bodies contain the residues of 300-500 chemicals which were not in existence 50 years ago; and many of these are reaching us through our diet. It is possible that we are damaging our health in ways which are as yet unknown.
This is bad enough news for adults, but for children the implications are greater, as their growing bodies and brains do not process and eliminate these chemicals effectively; the younger the child, the more damage may be caused by environmental toxins. Additives may also affect the growing foetus, and so pregnant women should remove additives from their diet where possible to be on the safe side. All of us should become more aware of what we are consuming, by checking labels, but when it comes to children’s foods we should be extra careful, choosing foods with the least amount of chemical additives. I hope that this important information will help you make healthier choices when purchasing food. Good luck and stay healthy!
