Q: WHAT IS MSG AND WHY IS IT BAD FOR ME?

A: MSG (Monosodium glutamate) is a fairly controversial food additive. It is used both in food processing and in restaurant cooking. It is basically a flavour enhancer, and is commonly found in seasoning salts, soups, spices, condiments, meats, some baked goods and candies. Some fermented and Oriental food preparations contain MSG, as do most food dishes served in Chinese restaurants.

MSG is the monosodium salt of glutamic acid, an essential amino acid, that seems to affect brain chemistry. Certain tests in rats suggest that high amounts of MSG can cause brain damage.

Recently “Chinese restaurant syndrome” has become associated with the use of MSG. Symptoms occur after eating foods high in MSG and include headaches, tingling, numbness and chest pains. It seems that there are many people that are sensitive to MSG and experience some untoward reactions when using it.

Q: IS ‘HYDROGENATED’ FAT ACCEPTABLE FAT?

A: There are two basic kinds of fat: saturated (hard) fat and unsaturated fat. It is neither essential to eat saturated fat, nor ideal to eat too much. Processed foods often contain hardened or ‘hydrogenated’ polyunsaturated fats. These are worse for you than saturated fat and best avoided. Refining and processing vegetable oils can change the nature of the polyunsaturated oil. An example is making margarine. To turn vegetable oil into hard fat the oil goes through a process called hydrogenation. Although the fat is still technically polyunsaturated, the body cannot make use of it. Even worse, it blocks the body’s ability to use healthy polyunsaturated oils. This kind of fat is called a trans fat because it’s nature has been changed – it is like a key that fits the body’s chemical locks but will not open the door. Most margarine contains these so-called ‘hydrogenated polyunsaturated oils’ and are best avoided. So too are manufactured foods that contain hydrogenated fats, so check ingredients lists on product labels carefully.

Q: WHY SHOULD I AVOID FOODS THAT HAVE COLOURANTS?

A: As a general category, ‘colouring agents’ is probably of most concern. Natural food colourants include carotene, caramel, annatto, beet red, saffron, turmeric, paprika, grapes, vegetable and fruit juices, and titanium dioxide. All of these are considered safe in the usual amounts used to colour foods. However, most colouring agents are synthetic and potentially toxic. These synthetics are a fake substitute for the natural, fresh colour of foods. Artificial colours are chemicals synthesized from petroleum and coal-tar products.

There are several major concerns with coloured foods. The first is potential toxicity, including allergic reactions, liver stress from metabolising these chemicals, and potential carcinogenicity. Another problem is that they may cause behaviour problems in children. Many children with short attention spans and learning disabilities improved on a diet without food colouring.

In 1938, about 15 dyes were certified for use in foods (labelled FDC colours). Through the years, many have been eliminated from food use. In 1950, FDC Orange #1 and #2 and Red #32 were withdrawn because they caused illness in children. More were removed in 1973 for various reasons (hyperactivity, allergy, general toxicity, carcinogenicity); these included Red #1 and #4, Yellow #1, #2, #3 and #4 and Violet #1. In 1976, Red #2 was removed (except for use in colouring orange skins), because of it’s carcinogenicity in rats. More recently, Orange B (used in casings for frankfurters and sausage) was withdrawn because of it’s cancer links. Those in current use include:

• Citrus Red #2 – withdrawn in 1976, except for use in colouring oranges, because it was shown to cause cancer in animals. It had been widely used in desserts, cereal and maraschino cherries.

• Red #3 (erythrosine) – used in cherries, jelly, ice cream, fruit cocktail, candy, sherbet, pudding, cereals and baked goods. It is on the safe list but it has been suggested that this coal-tar derivative is harmful, possibly causing gene mutations, cancers, or changes in brain chemistry. Clear evidence is lacking, so FDC Red #3 stays on the safe list and does not have to be listed on labels except as ‘artificial clolour’.

• Red #40 (Allura Red AC) – took the place of banned Red #2 and is used in foods, drugs and cosmetics. It may cause cancer in animals.

• Blue #1 – a coal tar derivative used in soft drinks, candy, ice cream, cereals and puddings. It is on the permanent safe list. It is a possible allergen, and it can cause tumours in animals at the site of injection.

• Blue #2 – used the same way as Blue #1 and is on the permanent list. The World Health Organisation rates it in category B – questionable for use in food.

• Green #3 – this colour is used for green foods such as mint jelly, jellys, candy, frozen desserts and cereals. It is classified as safe but is a potential allergen and tumorigenic upon injection.

• Yellow #5 (tartrazine) – this is the most notable colour agent, partly because it causes the most immediate allergic reaction in people sensitive to salicylates such as asprin (to which it is related), and because, by law, it is the only artificial colour that must be listed by name on packaging. Tartrazine is used in yellow-coloured foods such as spaghetti, puddings, jelly, soft drinks, sherbets, ice cream, cereals and candy. Attempts to ban it have not succeeded. Most people can tolerate some Yellow #5 in foods, but those with sensitivity may develop skin reactions or asthma symptoms.

• Yellow #6 – another coal-tar colour, it is used in many foods, such as candies, baked goods, carbonated beverages and jelly. It is considered safe, though there is also some concern about allergy.

Q: WHAT ABOUT PRESERVATIVES? ARE THEY SAFE TO EAT?

A: This group of about 100 different chemicals is used to prevent spoilage. Each of these is specifically mentioned on the label when added to food. There are 3 main types of preservatives: antioxidants, mould inhibitors and sequestrants. At the end of they day they are artificial and synthetic and are best eaten rarely. As early as the 1930s a Dr Kouchakoff found that the intake of foods processed with preservatives, additives and chemicals so disturbed the white blood cell pattern of the immune system that it looks the same as a white blood cell pattern that is seen with infections. Eating highly processed, nitrate-, pesticide-, and additive-filled meats, like hot dogs and salami, gives the white blood cell pattern that one typically sees with severe food poisoning.

Q: WHY SHOULDN’T I EAT FOOD GROWN WITH PESTICIDES AND HERBICIDES?

A: Pesticides, herbicides and additives in the foods have been linked with cancer, weakened immune system, allergies, neurotoxicity, hyperactivity in children and brain allergies. Another category of common pathological effects from these toxins is varying levels of neurotoxicity to the brain and the rest of the nervous system, which has more subtle symptoms, such as reduced mental functioning, decreased mental clarity and poor concentration. Increased cancer rates is just one of the most extreme results of toxins in our food and water.

Unless one eats organic foods, one is continually exposed to pesticides.

In 1985, nearly 1000 people in the western United States and Canada were poisoned by the pesticide Temik in watermelon. People had a variety of reactions, including grand mal seizures, cardiac irregularities and even several still births. Next the dangers of alar in apples was exposed. In 1987, the National Academy of Sciences concluded that in our lifetime pesticides in American food may cause more than one million additional cases of cancer in the United States. The Natural Resources Defence Council (NRDC) reported in the Amicus Journal that each year 2.6 billion pounds of pesticides are used in the United States and nearly all Americans have residues of the pesticides DDT, chlordane, heptachlor, aldrin and dieldrin in their bodies. In 1975 the sixth annual report of the Council on Environment stated that dieldrin, which is five times more potent than the outlawed DDT, was found in 99.5% of the American people, 96% of all meat, fish and poultry, and in 85% of all dairy products. Dieldrin is one of the most potent carcinogens known!

Q: WHAT IS THE BEST APPROACH TO FOOD ADDITIVES?

A: First, we need to eat more wholesome foods, such as fresh fruit and vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds, beans and range-fed animals. To find and purchase the organic produce and organically fed poultry and beef, and thus support those farmers (and our own health), thereby making these foods more available and at a better price.

It is also very important to buy and eat less of the packaged foods that contain additives. We should definitely avoid the nitrates and nitrites, as they can form carcinogenic nitrosamines in the food and in our body. The sulfites, such as sulphur dioxide, sodium sulphite, bisulphite and metabisulphite which are commonly used to prevent or reduce spoilage or discolouration, are best avoided, particularly by people with allergies. Artificial colours should definitely be left out of our diet and artificial flavours such as MSG should be minimised also.

Common food additives to look out for are: chemicals including solvents such as formaldehyde, benzene and carbon tetrachloride – all carcinogens. Different detergents and bleaching agents may also be used in processing without being listed on the label.

Q: I AM VERY CONCERNED ABOUT FOOD IRRADIATION, COULD YOU PLEASE GIVE ME MORE INFORMATION ON THIS SUBJECT?

A: Gamma radiation with nuclear waste products serves the purpose of preserving food. The US army originally began using irradiated foods in the early 1960s, serving such foods as irradiated bacon, ham, potatoes and strawberries to 12 military bases. The Food and Drug Administration later revoked their use after cellular studies suggested that irradiated sugar affected cell growth and produced damaged chromosomes. But food irradiation has come back strong in recent years.

Foods are irradiated, ostensibly, to improve their shelf life and prevent microbial and insect contamination, so that there is less waste and more profits. It can also mean a reduction in the use of toxic chemicals that are now used to preserve these foods. Irradiation is done by exposing foods to gamma rays emitted from a nuclear source, such as Cobalt 60, as they pass on a conveyor belt. It is claimed that the irradiated foods do not themselves become radioactive and thus are not introducing radiation to the consumer.

The concern with irradiated food is that it may produce by-products that are carcinogenic and increase the incidence of leukaemia and other types of cancer or disease of the liver and kidneys. These health problems may not become evident for 20 to 30 years. It is also possible that irradiation may affect the nutritional content of the foods treated, by altering protein structure, reducing vitamin levels, or deactivating sensitive enzymes. It destroys somewhere between 20 and 80% of the vitamins including A, B2, B3, B6, B12, folic acid, C, E, and K. Amino acids and essential fatty acids are also destroyed as well as enzymes.

The bottom line is that we must be very careful about food irradiation, because it can affect a lot of people in a very short time, and the effects are probably not reversible.

Something to bear in mind – another way of irradiating food is the use of microwave ovens. Instead of gamma waves, these ovens use pico waves, which have a much less toxic effect, but exposure can cause hormonal changes and affect our immune defences, so use them sparingly.

Q: GENETIC ENGINEERING IS A MARVEL OF SCIENCE. HOW CAN THIS BE BAD?

A: Genetically engineered food raises some similar issues as what is raised with food irradiation, in that it is not a well understood technology and there have been few clear studies of the effects. One soybean that used a Brazil nut for genetic material caused a significant incidence of allergies. Currently there are no FDA (Food and Drug Administration) regulations on genetically engineered food. Genetically engineered milk products, corn, potatoes, soybeans, squash, cotton, tomatoes and canola on the market do not seem to require labels indicating that they are genetically modified. There are genetically engineered foods in infant formula, pizza, chips and many other aspects of our diet. There is no guarantee that our children or grandchildren will not get cancer from it or that it will not weaken the germ plasm.

Q: WHAT DOES ORGANIC MEAN?

A: Organic products are grown to strict guidelines that are defined by the law. To use the word organic the product must have been certified by an organic body. An organic farmer / manufacturer will work very closely with the Soil Association who certifies the majority of their products. For more information on this process please visit their website www.soilassociation.org

The word organic actually refers to the way that the product ingredients are grown. An organic product is grown using no artificial chemicals and fertilizers. The soil is healthy as crops are rotated and the use of chemicals is prohibited. The actual products contain no artificial additives or preservatives.

Organic Products:

• Do not use pesticides.
• Do not contain additives.
• Do not contain any GM ingredients.
• Benefit the environment and wildlife due to the way they are grown.

Reference from:

Staying Healthy with Nutrition by Elson M. Haas, M.D
Conscious Eating by Gabriel Cousins, M.D
The Optimum Nutrition Bible by Patrick Holford