Food additives. By now we know that inside the packaged food we buy there can be anything: dyes, preservatives, stabilizers and so on and so forth. But what really are these substances that take the generic name of food additives and what are the possible risks for our health?
Don't store avocado like this: it's dangerous
Food additives. By now we know that inside the packaged food we buy there can be anything: dyes, preservatives, stabilizers and so on and so forth. But what really are these substances that take the generic name of food additives and what are the possible risks for our health?
There are many and different substances that can be added to foods and drinks with different purposes. Classified under the generic name of "food additives" there are a lot of ingredients most of the time indicated with a letter and a reference number, a confusing situation even more difficult to manage for the consumer who usually does not know what those acronyms refer to.
Read also: 7 FOOD ADDITIVES AND SUBSTANCES TO AVOID
The great presence and variety of food additives in our food, among other things, has been accused several times of being harmful to health: a research has linked some of these substances to the increased risk of autoimmune diseases other experts are instead convinced that it is precisely the food additives present everywhere responsible forincrease in food intolerance.
WHAT FOOD ADDITIVES ARE AND WHY THEY ARE USED
We wanted to better understand what food additives are and what the health risks may actually be by interviewing Marina Mariani, food safety expert e Stefania Testa, expert in food hygiene, authors of a book on the varied and vast world of food additives.
Among the food additives there is the category of stabilizers, substances that serve precisely to "stabilize" or to make a certain food always the same over time that would otherwise change consistency, color, etc.
Read also: 5 ADDITIVES OF ANIMAL ORIGIN: CRUELITY YOU DON'T EXPECT
We then asked Dr. Mariani when food additives can be used and how can we see the presence of these substances in food labels:
We have spoken several times then of a particular food additive which is the charcoal, used to make bread, pizza and other baked goods black that with the addition of this substance are also sold as healthier. Here's what Dr. Testa told us about it:
Read also: IS VEGETABLE COAL BLACK BREAD REALLY GOOD? THE OPINION OF OUR EXPERTS
EFFECTS OF FOOD ADDITIVES ON HEALTH
Now we come to the possible effects on health, the expert stresses that it is important evaluate the doses in which the various food additives are taken in addition to the symptoms that they can give, they are often just transient symptoms and not real illnesses. More It is difficult to establish the long-term effect, there are more doubts about this:
Read also: 7 FOOD ADDITIVES THAT INCREASE THE RISK OF AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES
And as for the dyes, widely used in children's products in order to make them more beautiful and captivating? Here's what Dr. Testa told us:
How can we defend ourselves from the invasion of these substances? The advice we offer is always the same: buy as much as possible fresh seasonal food and whenever you can, prepare your own food but also drinks at home.
