You read all the ingredient labels, right?
You might have seen headlines recently about a push to regulate chemicals in our processed foods.
There have been major grassroots activism pushes to get food companies like Kellog’s to change their formulations, and the FDA is planning to release new regulations by the end of the year.
Young people are speaking up, as well. A young man In Pennsylvania is suing big food manufacturers like PepsiCo, Kraft Heinz, and Mars for making food so addictive that he developed non-alcoholic fatty liver disease by the age of 16.
Even my oldest son is doing his big school final project on the effects of food additives on our health.
Holistic nutritionists and functional health experts of course have been making noise about chemicals and additives in our food for years. So what’s up?
What’s in your food?
Companies that produce packaged food, from cereal to sports drinks to chicken nuggets to snack chips, use many different chemicals in their products.
Some chemicals are for shelf stability or are preservatives. Others are for color or for a more palatable texture. Many are used as flavorings, even to mimic flavors found in nature. (Ever wondered what a blue razzberry is?)
In the US, food companies are under no obligation to prove that these chemical additives are safe before adding them to food, and the FDA does not conduct safety trials of these additives themselves.
The FDA follows a practice called “GRAS”, or Generally Regarded As Safe. The FDA only requires that manufacturers submit their own evidence of an ingredient's safety, and does no testing themselves. If the chemical is in the same family as other chemicals that are GRAS, they are considered safe to be added to food.
This is quite different from Canada in Europe, where food companies are required to prove the safety of their ingredients before bringing them to market, and many never do.
In fact, quite a few packaged foods we are familiar with here in the US have different formulations in other countries that do not contain these synthetic chemicals like food dyes. (Which is what the whole Kellog’s kerfuffle is about.)
But are these chemicals bad for us?
The main point is that we don’t know for sure, because no one has conducted a study on people who regularly consume these foods for 10, 20 or 30 years.
But more and more studies continue to come out showing associations with negative health impacts from consuming foods that contain these additives like red dye 40 and red dye 3. Issues like:
Hyperactivity and attention issues
Learning struggles
Digestive issues
Skin problems
Cancer
Inflammation and oxidation
Food scientists have gotten extremely good at making foods that are irresistible. Through a combination of salt, fat, sugar and texture, many of these foods are impossible to put down.
Setting aside the chemical additives, this irresistible nature makes maintaining good metabolic health almost impossible when these foods are in our diets.
Plus, much of the raw ingredients for these foods, which are grains, corn or soy, are soaked in pesticides and herbicides like Glyphosate, which come with their own host of issues.
There is an argument to be made that these chemicals are in junky foods we shouldn’t be eating anyway. But the problem is that many of these additives and herbicides are used in foods for school lunch programs and prisons and other federally-funded food programs.
Even the most conscientious parent is going to let their kid have Takis or a soda once in a while, exposing kids to not just excessive refined starch and sugar, but potentially toxic food dyes, additives and pesticides as well.
Which is… not great, obviously.
What can you do?
I think you know the words to this song, right?
We know that eating lots of artificially flavored and colored foods as adults isn’t doing us any favors. We can link ultra processed foods to a host of metabolic issues and chronic disease.
But what are we feeding our kids, who don’t have control over what food they eat?
Doing our best to feed ourselves and our families whole, nutrient dense foods most of the time is the right answer here.
No one expects you to be perfect, and you shouldn’t either.
Start your day (and your kids’ day, too!) with protein, fat and fiber. Eggs, sausage, whole fruit, yogurt, and nut butters. A small piece of whole wheat toast or half of a whole wheat bagel can be ok.
Try to avoid breakfast cereals, bagels, oatmeal and granola, and limit waffles, pancakes and pastries to a once-in-a-while treat.
If you’re often in a rush in the morning, here are a few ideas:
Make a batch of hard boiled eggs to grab on your way out the door
Bake a frittata or breakfast casserole on Sunday to eat all week
Throw an egg on your leftovers from last night
Premake a low-sugar yogurt & chia pudding with fruit
Learning about what is in your food so you can make better choices is key to sustainable, long-term health.
I totally get that it can be overwhelming. Deciding what is best to feed yourself and your family can feel complicated.
But that’s why I’m here! In my 6-month program, we work together to find the most nutritious, nourishing things that you and your family love to eat.
So you can stop worrying about chronic health issues. So you can start feeling energized and confident again.
What do you say? I’m ready when you are.
Ready? Let's go!
Comments