11 Dangerous Food Additives

There are more than 3,000 substances that can be added to foods for the purpose of preservation, colouring, texture, increasing flavour and more. While each of these substances is legal to use whether or not they are all something you want to be consuming is another story all together. With any processed food you run the risk of coming across additives, and reading through ingredient labels can be like trying to decode a puzzle.

Look for them on ingredient labels and if one turns up, take a pass.

11 Dangerous Food Additives

Propyl Gallate - This preservative, used to prevent fats and oils from spoiling, might cause cancer. It's used in vegetable oil, meat products, crisps, chicken soup base and chewing gum, and is often used with BHA and BHT (see below).

BHA and BHT - Butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) are used similarly to propyl gallate - to keep fats and oils from going rancid. Used commonly in cereals, chewing gum, vegetable oil and crisps (and also in some food packaging to preserve freshness), these additives have been found by some studies to cause cancer in rats.

Monosodium glutamate (MSG) - MSG is used as a flavour enhancer in many packaged foods, including soups, salad dressings, sausages, hot dogs, canned tuna, crisps and many more. There is a link between sudden cardiac death, particularly in athletes, and excitotoxic damage caused by food additives like MSG and artificial sweeteners. Excitotoxins are a group of excitatory amino acids that can cause sensitive neurons to die. Many consumers have also personally experienced the ill effects of MSG, which leave them with a headache, nausea or vomiting after eating MSG-containing foods.

Aspartame - This artificial sweetener is found in candarel and hermasetas along with products that contain them (diet drinks and other low-cal and diet foods). This sweetener has been found to cause brain tumours in rats as far back as the 1970s, however a more recent study in 2005 found that even small doses increase the incidence of lymphomas and leukaemia in rats, along with brain tumours.People who are sensitive to aspartame may also suffer from headaches, dizziness and hallucinations after consuming it.

Acesulfame-K - Acesulfame-K is an artificial sweetener that's about 200 times sweeter than sugar. It's used in baked goods, chewing gum, gelatin desserts and soft drinks. Two rat studies have found that this substance may cause cancer, and other studies to reliably prove this additive's safety have not been conducted. Acesulfame-K also breaks down into acetoacetamide, which has been found to affect the thyroid in rats, rabbits and dogs.

Olestra - Olestra is a fat substitute used in crackers and crisps, marketed under the brand name Olean. This synthetic fat is not absorbed by the body (instead it goes right through it), so it can cause diarrhoea, loose stools, abdominal cramps and flatulence, along with other effects. Further, olestra reduces the body's ability to absorb beneficial fat-soluble nutrients, including lycopene, lutein and beta-carotene.

Sodium Nitrite - Sodium nitrite (or sodium nitrate) is used as a preservative, colouring and flavouring in bacon, ham, hot dogs, luncheon meats, corned beef, smoked fish and other processed meats. These additives can lead to the formation of cancer-causing chemicals called nitrosamines. Some studies have found a link between consuming cured meats and nitrite and cancer in humans.

Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil - The process used to make hydrogenated vegetable oil (or partially hydrogenated vegetable oil) creates trans fats, which promote heart disease and diabetes. It is advised that consumers should eat as little trans fat as possible. You should avoid anything with these ingredients on the label, which includes some margarine, vegetable shortening, crackers, cookies, baked goods, salad dressings, bread and more. It's used because it reduces cost and increases the shelf life and flavour stability of foods.

Blue 1 and Blue 2 - Blue 1, used to colour sweets, beverages and baked goods, may cause cancer. Blue 2, found in pet food, sweets and beverages, has caused brain tumours in mice.

Red 3 - This food colouring is used in cherries (in fruit cocktails), baked goods and sweets. It causes thyroid tumours in rats, and may cause them in humans as well.

Yellow 6 - As the third most often used food colouring, yellow 6 is found in many products, including backed goods, candy, gelatin and sausages. It has been found to cause adrenal gland and kidney tumours, and contains small amounts of many carcinogens.