When you buy food at the store do you ever read the ingredient label? You should. The reason for ingredient labels is to help consumers make wise food choices. Foods contain a variety of ingredients: some good, some not-so-good, and some that are definitely bad. The good are real foods such as fruit, whole grains, vegetables, herbs, and spices. The not-so-good are foods that have been so highly processed or refined that they have been stripped of most of their vitamins and minerals such as sugar, vegetable gum, and starch. The bad are chemically altered, man-made, or artificial substances (note that I didn’t call them foods). These include such things as red dye #40, BHT, MSG, sodium phosphate, metabisculfite, aspartame (Nutrasweet), and partially hydrogenated vegetable oil.

The items in the bad category are added primarily to enhance flavor, color, and texture and to retard spoilage. They have absolutely no food value and are generally quite toxic. Commonly used food additives are known to promote tumors, cause allergies, depress the immune system, and accelerate aging. The list of health problems can go on and on. So why would anyone in his right mind eat foods that contain artificial food additives?

Most of us do it out of ignorance. We don’t realize how dangerous they are. The government recognizes the toxic nature of these additives and usually sets a limit or at least makes a recommendation on how much can be included in a serving. The amount you would get in one or two servings is not considered too dangerous and is, therefore, acceptable. The problem with this reasoning is that many people get far more than a couple of servings worth each day. Consider the fact that the foods we eat for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks may all contain harmful additives. If you ate these foods only once or twice a week it probably wouldn’t have a huge impact on your health, but if eaten every day, day in and day out, year after year, what do you expect will happen? Toxins have an accumulative effect. When you’re young you won’t notice much, but as you get older you will experience signs of premature aging—lack of energy, joint and back pain, loss of mental ability, frequent illness, and chronic health problems. The symptoms get worse and worse each year. Chemical food additives are a major source of toxins in our bodies. To prevent the buildup of these health-destroying poisons you should read ingredient labels and choose your foods wisely.