From me to you, this is my honest warning about four pretty common ingredients that may be approved by the FDA in small doses, but appear in our food way more frequently that wed assume making us more susceptible to some of the major side effects.
High Fructose Corn Syrup
High fructose corn syrup is used in place of a more expensive ingredient called cane sugar. Cane sugar is sugar in its natural form. the HFCS industry leads us to believe that because it comes from corn, it is totally safe and even somewhat natural. Wrong. Your body doesnt process HFCS the same way it would process cane sugar. In short, cane sugar takes time to break down and digest meaning it affects your body slower. HFCS doesnt require digestion so it hits your blood stream more quickly causing spikes in insulin levels and a more rapidly occurring process of fat storage. HFCS can also cause increased appetite, fatty liver disease and diabetes. The Huffington Post has a really in depth article on HFCS that is worth the read.
Foods to look out for: Heinz Tomato Ketchup, Oreos, Miracle Whip, and even Vicks Nyquil Cough medicine. Click here for a more complete list.
Brominated Vegetable Oil
This ingredient is made up of bromine which is used as a flame retardant. Its most commonly used in citrus beverage to keep the flavors from separating. So if you drink a lot of Mountain Dew or Diet Mountain Dew you are at risk for something called Bromide Dominance. This is when the bromine builds up in your tissue and prevents iodine metabolism. Iodine deficiency increases risks of breast, thyroid, ovary and prostate cancer. There are several blogs out there with more information on the risks of BVO and why companies use it.
Foods to look out for: Mountain Dew of most varieties
Monosodium Glutamate
MSG literally acts like a drug in your brain. The purpose of MSG is to boost the flavor of food, but it doesnt actually do anything to the actual flavor. The work of MSG is done in the brain. It triggers your brain to release dopamine which in turn increases your enjoyment of the food. The affects are eerily similar to the temporary high of a drug addict. Subsequently, MSG is highly addictive and leads to overeating. MSG is in a lot of processed and packaged foods. Because so many processed foods are made of cheap ingredients, manufacturers use MSG to make the cheaper product taste good when in reality, the only reason we think it tastes good is because a chemical is forcing our brains to relate the release of dopamine to eating cheap foods. FoodMatters.tv has written some very compelling articles on MSG that will definitely change the way you think about processed foods.
Foods to look out for: Cup-o-Noodles, Hidden Valley Ranch products, Pringles. Click here for a more complete list.
Aspartame
What if I told you that you were drinking the feces of one of the deadliest bacteria in the world? I bet youd put your drink down and run to the nearest toilet to puke. Well, if you drink or eat things with aspartame, you are. Recently, the patent for aspartame was released to the public and it confirms that aspartame is made by taking the feces of genetically modified E. Coli bacteria and soaking it in methanol. The process is shocking and unnerving. As if the thought of drinking E. Coli pooh doesnt turn your stomach enough, consider the side effects of aspartame poisoning which include joint pain, menstrual cycle irregularities, seizures, migraines and more.
Foods to look out for: Chewing gum such as Extra, Yogurts including brands like Dannon, Diet sodas and more.
Do you read ingredient labels when you shop? If not it may be time to start. After doing the research on these ingredients I am convinced that soda is entirely out of my diet. Its becoming more and more obvious that packaged foods are less food and more chemicals. The reasoning behind eating clean and making treats from scratch is becoming stronger and stronger in my mind.
Does this make you want to give up some of those process snacks? If so, which ones?
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