Guest guest Posted September 28, 2004 Report Share Posted September 28, 2004 Toxins in the Food Chain JoAnn Guest Sep 27, 2004 20:49 PDT Toxins in the Food Chain " Over four hundred pesticides are currently licensed for use on America's foods,and every year over 2.5 billion pounds are dumped on crop lands, forests, lawns, and fields. " One of the greatest long-term problems health-conscious individuals face is the pervasive contamination of America's food supply. For decades, the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) and other government agencies have allowed the multibillion-dollar food industry to grow and process its products with hundreds of questionably safe chemicals such as pesticides, industrial pollutants, dyes,stabilizers, and preservatives, as well as antibiotics, hormones, and other drugs given to animals. The long-term consequences of ingesting these chemicals is still not well understood. Many experts now believe that lifetime ingestion of these chemicals can play a major role in causing cancer, neurotoxicity (destruction of nerve tissue by toxic substances), birth defects, decreased immune function, food allergies, and chemical sensitivity. In his book, Diet for a Poisoned Planet, David Steinman, former representativeof the public interest at the National Academy of Sciences, makes an exhaustivestudy of how contaminated the food chain is with chemical residues. As asolution, he recommends the general principle of eating food as low on the foodchain as possible. Animal products, high on the food chain, are laden with pesticides from the foods the animals consume, as well as antibiotics, sulfadrugs, and growth hormones. Plants, on the other hand, are relatively less contaminated, usually only by what's been freshly sprayed on them. Environmental Medicine " It seems like we've heard nothing but bad news about foods for the past fewyears, " writes Steinman.1 " Sometimes it seems that nothing is safe to eat, andthat we live in a constant state of food anxiety . . . but you must not feelhelpless. There is plenty of safe, delicious food to eat. And for your ownwell-being you need to find it. " Although many believe that the first step toward a healthy diet is knowing what to eat, it is more important to know what to avoid. Some areas of concern are: Pesticides: Over four hundred pesticides are currently licensed for use on America's foods, and every year over 2.5 billion pounds are dumped on crop lands, forests, lawns, and fields. According to Steinman, a person gets several types of pesticides with a salad, different ones in meat or fish, still others in the vegetables on the side, and a separate dose with dessert. Wine has pesticides and, in many areas, water as well. In a single meal a person would easily consume residues of a dozen different neurotoxic or carcinogenic chemicals. Yet, the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Office of Pesticide Programs does not include the potential exposure to the same pesticide when calculating permitted residue levels of a given compound on a single crop. The agency sets these levels with " blinders " to the fact that people eat more than one product that has permitted residues of the same compound. EPA scientists have found that at times these residues, if totaled, exceeded 500 percent of the allowed daily intake.2 Furthermore, many chemicals in food have not been adequately tested for human safety. And they have certainly not been tested with the " chemical cocktail syndrome " (multiple chemical exposure) in mind. The EPA does not have a scientifically acceptable method for determining the risk for multiple chemical exposure. Yet when scientists have done studies on multiple chemical exposure, it seems quite clear that the chemicals act synergistically. In one 1976 study, a scientific team used three chemicals on a group of rats. The chemicals were tested one at a time on the rats without ill-effect. When the scientists gave the rats two at a time, a decline in health was noted. When the rats were given all three chemicals at once, they all died within two weeks.3 Additives: Approximately two thousand food additives-artificial colors, artificial flavors, stabilizing agents, texturizers, sweeteners, antimicrobials, and antioxidants-are currently permitted in America's food supply by the FDA. Yet studies show that some additives may be carcinogenic, such as Blue Dye No. 1, Blue Dye No. 2, and Green Dye No. 3, while others pose still different hazards. In 1981, researchers at the National Institutes of Health reported that Red Dye No. 3 may interfere with the neurotransmitters of the brain.10 Meanwhile, aspirin-sensitive people have developed life-threatening asthmatic symptoms when ingesting Yellow Dye No. 5, which is found in breakfast cereal, bottled soft drinks, ice cream, sherbet, candy, bakery products, and pasta.11 Food additives can also have profound effects on behavior. Authorities at Tehama County Juvenile Hall in Red Bluff, California, had positive results in curbing antisocial behavior when they used honey in place of sugar and eliminated meats cured with nitrites and other foods with additives.12 United States Naval Correction Center officials in Seattle, Washington, discovered that removing white bread and refined sugar from the diet of inmates reduced the incidence of violent behavior.13 In 1979, the New York City public schools ranked in the thirty-ninth percentile on standardized scholastic achievement test scores, meaning that 61 percent of the nation's public schools scored higher. That same year, the New York City Board of Education ordered a reduction of the sugar content of foods served in the schools and banned two synthetic food coloring. In 1980, New York's achievement test scores went up to the forty- seventh percentile. Next, the schools banned all synthetic colorings and flavorings. Test scores increased again, bringing New York City schools up to the fifty-first percentile. By 1983, when the additives BHA and BHT were removed from foods, New York City schools scored in the fifty-fifth percentile. Prior to the dietary changes, the academic performance of the students never varied more than 1 percent up or down in the course of a year.14 Irradiation: This process exposes food to radioactive materials like cesium-137 and cobalt-60 to kill insects, kill bacteria, kill molds, kill fungi, prevent sprouting, and extend shelf life. Irradiation may not be as dangerous as its harshest critics charge; however, this process leads to the formation of additional toxic substances in foods, including benzene and formaldehyde. Irradiation of foods may also have other hazardous consequences. For example, a study conducted by Ralston Scientific Services for the U.S. Army and the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) found that mice fed a diet rich in irradiated chicken died earlier and had a higher incidence of tumors.15 The Radura Label required on irradiated food by the U.S. FDA Furthermore, foods that have been irradiated lose much of their nutritional value. The vitamin C content of potatoes can be reduced by as much as 50 percent, according to a Japanese study.16 In cooked pork, a dose of irradiation equal to one-third the level permitted by the FDA reduced thiamine levels by 17 percent.17 Finally, irradiation plants pose hazards to workers as well as to the communities where they are located. Unfortunately for consumers, while whole irradiated foods must be labeled with the flowerlike radura symbol, irradiated ingredients within foods are not identified. For example, commercially prepared spaghetti sauces may contain irradiated ingredients but not have to carry any warning. Top Ten Food Additives to Avoid Aspartame: This chemical sweetener has the longest list of complaints the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) has ever received-over three thousand. Aspartame also goes under such brands as NutraSweet? and Equal?. Symptoms associated with aspartame sensitivity can range from rashes, mild depression, headaches, nausea, ringing ears, vertigo, and insomnia to loss of motor control, loss or change of taste, slurred speech, memory loss, blurred vision, blindness, suicidal depression, and seizures. Many doctors now warn pregnant women to avoid any products containing aspartame. Brominated vegetable oil (BVO): A potentially dangerous additive for some persons, BVO is used as an emulsifier in some foods and as a clouding agent in many popular soft drinks. Bromate, the main ingredient of BVO, is a poison. Just two to four ounces of a 2 percent solution of BVO can severely poison a child.5 Butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT): Used to prevent fats, oils, and fat-containing foods from becoming rancid, BHA or BHT is often also added to food packaging materials. Researchers report that BHA in the diet of pregnant mice results in brain enzyme changes in their offspring including a 50 percent decreased activity in brain cholinesterase, which is responsible for the transmission of nerve impulses. BHA and BHT also affect the animals' sleep, levels of aggression, and weight. The authors of the study speculate that BHA and BHT can affect the normal sequence of neurological development in young animals too. Many consumers eat nearly twenty milligrams or more of BHA or BHT daily. Babies who are beginning to eat solid foods are estimated to ingest as much as eight milligrams per day.6 Citrus Red Dye No. 2: Used to color orange skins, Citrus Red Dye No. 2 is a probable carcinogen and may cause chromosomal damage. Some experts contend that this compound does not migrate from the organ skin into the pulp but the FDA has recommended a ban. Its continued use should be one more reason to seek organically grown foods. Monosodium glutamate: Also known as MSG, monosodium glutamate is a flavor enhancer often found in fast food, processed food, and packaged food. Sensitivity symptoms include headaches, flushing of the skin, tightness of the chest, heart palpitations, and nausea. Nitrites: Nitrites are used as preservatives in cured meats such as bacon, ham, and smoked fish to prevent spoilage. Nitrites form cancer-causing compounds known as nitrosamines in the gastrointestinal tract. They have been associated with human cancer and birth defects.7 Saccharin: Still widely used as an artificial sweetener, this additive is a possible human carcinogen. Every packet of Sweet 'n Low? has forty milligrams of saccharin. It is also used as a sweetener in soft drinks. Sulfur dioxide, sodium bisulfite, and sulfites: These are used to preserve foods such as dried fruits to prevent them from drying and stiffening, and are also used on shrimp and frozen potatoes. The FDA has received hundreds of letters reporting adverse reactions in asthma sufferers who have consumed foods with sulfiting agents. At least four deaths caused by acute reactions to sulfites have been reported to the FDA.8 Tertiary butylhydroquinone (TBHQ): This chemical is often used along with BHA or BHT to spray the insides of cereal and cheese packages. TBHQ, which is toxic at extremely low doses, has been implicated in childhood behavioral problems. It is mainly found in candy bars, baking sprays, and fast foods. Yellow Dye No. 6: Used in candy and carbonated beverages, Yellow Dye No. 6increases the number of kidney and adrenal gland tumors in rats. It may also cause chromosomal damage as well as allergic reactions. It has been banned in Norway and Sweden.9 Problems with Eating Red Meat David Steinman reports that the combination of a high-fat diet and toxic overload may have a synergistic effect on human health. Fatty foods, he says, particularly red meat, can increase the toxicity of the chemicals that are lodged in them. In several animal studies, chemical carcinogens were more likely to produce tumors in the group that was fed fatty food than in the group fed low-fat foods. Thus, a high-fat diet of animal foods can be especially troublesome because the most potent pesticides are concentrated in fat and the chemical properties of fat itself may actually increase their carcinogenicity. Worldwide, a clear association consistently appears between the highest rates of breast, colon, and prostate cancers and nations that have the fattiest diets. But the link between cancer and meat eaters' exposure to toxic chemicals goes even deeper. All fried and broiled foods contain mutagens, chemicals that can damage cellular reproductive material. But fried and broiled meats have far more mutagens than similarly prepared plant foods. One study indicates that some 20 percent of American meat eaters may have toxic mutagens in their digestive tracts that can be absorbed into the bloodstream where they can attack cells. The same study indicates that vegetarians are unlikely to have any mutagens in their digestive tracts. _________________ JoAnn Guest mrsjo- DietaryTi- www.geocities.com/mrsjoguest/Genes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.