Name(s):
Carcinogenic food additives
Toxic food colourings
Toxic food preservatives
Nature
These substances, widely used in the more industrialized countries, are normally defined as non-nutritive substances which are intentionally added to food, generally in small quantities, to improve its appearance, flavour, texture or storage properties. Although not contaminants in the strict sense, they may give rise to harmful chemical changes and should be regarded as potentially toxic materials. For example, nitrates or nitrites have been widely used as preservatives, but have been found to cause methaemoglobinaemia, especially in young children, and may give rise to carcinogenic nitrosamines. Certain non-nutritive sweetening agents (such as cyclamates) have been widely used in recent years, but it has been found that bladder tumours develop in animals to which they are fed in relatively high doses. As a result, the use of these agents has been restricted or completely prohibited in a number of countries.
Incidence
31 artificial colours and more than 2,000 artificial flavours are actually listed. A single strawberry flavour of ice cream can contain as many as 55 different additives. In all, 2,800 substances are intentionally added to food in the USA.
Claim
Most additives are use to replace flavours and colour destroyed by processing, disguise second-rate (and sometimes bad) food, and turn basic and relatively cheap ingredients into costly 'convenience' foods. Some additives are harmless, but some are known to be health risks, among them the azo coal tar dyes used for colouring, particularly the yellow dye Tartrazine, E102 and the dyes E104-133, 142, 151 and 154-155; the benzoate preservatives, E210-213; and the purine flavour enhancers, E627-635.