I just read this really interesting article that I was sent a link to by the Organic Consumers Association titled the same as the title of this blog post. Wow--what an amazing point they drive home. We worry about what IS on a label, but how about the dangerous "ingredients" that are not listed??? There is no way I can paraphrase what they said and get the point across as well, so I am just going to copy and paste their article here.
Warning: Eat This, You'll Get Fat & Sick
By Alexis Baden-Mayer
Organic Consumers Association, Aug 26, 2010
Straight to the Source
It takes a food chemist to translate the eight-syllable words commonly found on ingredients lists into plain English, but many of the most dangerous substances found in food today are additives, contaminants, or packaging and processing aids that don't get listed on the label. Here are a few hidden dangers that should be revealed to consumers:
Acrylamide - a chemical linked to cancer that forms in starchy food cooked at high temperatures, such as French fries and potato chips
Bisphenol A - a chemical linked to hormone disruption and heart disease that leaches from the lining of canned foods
E. coli O157:H7 - the "hamburger disease," the leading cause of acute kidney failure in U.S. children, is an intestinal pathogen transmitted from factory-farmed, corn-fed cows to humans when fecal matter gets in food
Colibacillosis - a bacterial disease that infects chickens imprisoned in filthy, overcrowded, intensive confinement factory farms
Campylobacter - the most common cause of neuromuscular paralysis in the United States, is a bacterial food poison that contaminates a majority of store-bought chicken
Salmonella - a food borne illness that kills more Americans than any other, is directly related to CAFOs (confined animal feeding operations) and to contaminated feed containing blood, slaughterhouse waste, and manure
Mercury - a toxin that can harm an unborn baby or young child's developing nervous system, is found in nearly all fish and shellfish, especially Shark, Swordfish, King Mackerel and Tilefish
Trans-fat - hydrogenated vegetable oils that increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, the cause of 1 of every 2.9 deaths
Ingredients produced through the use of cloning, genetic engineering or nanotechnology
Ingredients that contain the residues of pesticides, including organophosphates, which are linked to neurological disorders like ADHD
Packaging aids like 2-methylnaphthalene which triggered the Kellogg's cereal recall
Solvents like hexane, a neurotoxin that is a by-product of gasoline refining used to process soy-based ingredients and cooking oils
Crazy stuff, huh? It really makes you think...
=o)
Jen
My husband has done a LOT of research lately and we've discovered a lot of stuff along these same lines. About the only good for your oil is olive oil, which is all we use in our house anymore. (I DO eat the "Can't believe it's not butter" brand of 'butter' but, being lactose intolerant, I'm kind of damned either way and at least with the fake butter, I'm not physically ill afterward.) But it is insane what they allow in foods, including dead bugs and rodents...EWW!!
ReplyDeleteOn a bit of a side note, a few years back we also looked into what goes into our pets food, specifically our dog, and were HORRIFIED to say the least. Makes what goes into and is allowed in people food seem like nothing in most cases.
I totally get it! Crazy, huh?
ReplyDeleteHave you tried the Smart Balance Organic Buttery Spread which is 100% vegan? I would think that would be good. We buy it at Harris Teeter and really like it.
Yes, I have also switched our cat over to Organic Cat Food and natural litter. Pretty disgusting what is allowed.