Chemicals such as additives are essential to our human lives. They are known to improve storage life, improve the flavour of foods, increases the nutritional value, makes food easy to prepare as well as enhances the attractiveness of most products… So many positives!
Organic compounds are standard molecules that contain carbon atoms attached to hydrogen atoms (C-H bond). All organic compounds have a hydrocarbon backbone, whether or not they also have a mixture of other compounds (typically oxygen, nitrogen and phosphorus1). As humans, we have organic compounds in our bodies that make up our macromolecules (lipids, carbohydrates, nucleic acid, protein). Although it is essential that we have organic compounds, additives can be detrimental to our wellbeing.
The history
The use of additives is not something new to our world. After the french revolution, a man by the name of Antoine Lavoisier - a chemistry influencer and modern father of nutrition - was one of the first to demonstrate how metabolism works, which is clearly very important in understanding the digestion of food2. Prior to his findings, the only way in which people could analyze food was through organoleptic means. This refers to using your taste, smell, touch, sight and sound. The ancient Egyptians also practiced methods of additives, such as food colours, seasonings, spices and flavours. In the 1400’s during the rise of the Columbian Exchange, the silk road and boating led to the spread of Egypt’s additives to the rest of the new world.
Inhibits
Thanks to additives, the quality of food we have today has improved drastically. Additives amplify the condition of the taste, smell, colour and texture of foods. They preserve the flavour and enhance the taste and appearance. Additives such as food dye are often used to represent a flavour as well, for example purple typically equates to grape flavouring. Additives are added to food to serve a technological and chemical purpose, and are not to be eaten on their own. Some additives that are common in our day to day lives are:
Below is a list of additives, those in red are ones that tend to be dangerous.
Colour additives: Dehydrated beets (bluish-red), annatto extract (yellow)3.
Dough strengtheners: pH regulators, redox agents, emulsifiers4.
Flavours and spices
Humectants: Moisture preservers
Aspartame: Sugar substitute in beverages; an artificial non-saccharide sweetener that is 200 times sweeter than sucrose.
Benzoic acid: Salts that are used as food preservatives.
Sodium benzoate: A pickling salt
Monosodium glutamate (MSG): Added to processed foods, typically chinese food and canned vegetables.
Anti-caking agents: Stop food from becoming sticky.
Antioxidants: Prevent food from moulding
Emulsifiers: Stops fats from clumping together
Food acids: Help maintain the right acid levels
Preservatives: Stops microbes from multiplying and spoiling food
Mineral salts: Enhance texture and flavour
Vegetable gums:Enhances texture and consistency
Flour treatment
Glazing agent:”
There are two types of food additives. The first are direct, meaning that they are typically added by a company through a food processor (canned goods). The second are indirect food additives, typically happen and are added momentarily through the processing, growing or packaging phases of shipment.
Impact on human health
Added sugar
Sugar is an immunosuppressant, meaning that it can weaken the immune system when eaten in large quantities. Sugar interferes with the act of immune-boosting lymphocytes, which is what causes people to get canker sores and cold sores after eating sweets. The sugar quantity is so pure that it causes you to be more susceptible to infections, typically in your mouth as it comes in direct contact with the sugar additives.
Increased sugar in the body leads to a rapid production of insulin due to a spike in blood sugar. Insulin helps your body store glucose, which is found in most juices, fruits and sugary treats. The overproduction of insulin can lead to the development of cancer cells, as insulin receptors feed off of cancer cells. Once those receptors open up, they give leeway to stimulate the division of the cancer cell, therefore multiplying it5.
It is not uncommon that people are particularly sensitive to additives, that often give off the symptoms of either hives or diarrhea. Severe allergic reactions were also noted from asthmatics when the FDA reported a high severe reaction after the ingestion of sulfites. Sulfites are typically found on produce as they prevent discolouration or spoilage of foods.
Personal profession:
As you can see, there are quite a few impacts on human health in regards to additives. Not just human health, but the world's health as a whole is frequently put into jeopardy due to additives.
My family of 6 has been zero waste for as long as I can remember. Prior to my adoption in 2007, my parents were minimalists and vegans. Once they found out that they were going to be adopting my sister Kyla and I, they switched their lifestyle to a vegetarian one so that consumable nutrients were easier to fulfill.
As a child, I used to do the “Saturday shopping run” with my mom. We’d go to your average grocery store with our biodegradable mesh bags and cloth satchels. It is unbelievable the amount of unnecessary packaging there is these days. A single cucumber? Yeah, let’s wrap it in plastic that will outrun our lives in terms of lifespan. There’s so much wrapping that is uncalled for when looking around a grocery store.
The summer’s were always the best in my household. We would buy all our veggies and fruits locally, to stray away from the pesticides and additives that are so commonly used in mass production.
On top of buying locally, we also had our own garden that gave us a bountiful amount of goods. We typically grow radishes, lettuce, squash, zucchini, tomatoes, avocados, spices and figs from our fig trees. Our neighbour has an apple tree as well, so it was fairly easy to find fresh food. We have a drainage system for our water, so that on rainy days, the water that ends up in our eavesdrops is circulated and is connected to a barrel system that we can depend on for watering our plants.
In the winter, we clearly cannot farm our own goods, so like many others, we rely heavily on mass production. Believe me, after being exposed to the freshness of home grown food, grocery store goods are no match. Let’s use an apple as an example. When my neighbour grows apples, we pick them, give them a good rinse, and then they’re good to eat. Store bought apples are a little different. You see, store bought apples are always shiny and look fairly crisp. This is thanks to the waxy coating that covers all store bought apples. The wax serves the purpose of most additives or pesticides; it prevents moisture in the apple from escaping, lengthening the storage time of the fruit. The use of wax is also called “anaerobic respiration”, meaning that the wax acts as an oxygen barrier for the apple.
If you don’t believe me about apple wax, try this little experiment. Go to your usual grocery store and buy an apple, any apple of your choice. Grab a knife and begin scraping at the apples' surface. You should notice that a waxy layer starts to pull away from the apple. No amount of washing will “rid” the apple of its waxy coating. So you may wonder, “do I just eat the wax then?” NO! Absolutely not! Rather than washing your apples with water and soap, wash them with vinegar. Vinegar’s properties are strong enough to pull away the adhesive additive that gives apples their waxy glow. That way, you don’t end up eating this waxy film that is no good for you.
Additives and pesticides… They improve storage life, the taste, nutritional value and make food SO easy to prepare. I hope that by reading my blog post, you will be able to see that “all that glitters is not gold”. In this case, a shiny apple with pesticides seems appealing, but when you hear all the negative health impacts that it carries with it, it’s not so appealing after all. So, wash your fruits! Wash your vegetables! Buy locally! Promote gardening! Let us put an end to these ever growing additives!
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