Quick Guide To Understanding The Purposes of Chemical “Food Additives” In Food

We have all probably read the label on a package of food and wondered, “What the hell is butylated hydroxytoluene?!” This article will serve as a guide identifying some common “food additives”, such as butylated hydroxytoluene, and explaining their purpose in our foods. Sometimes it can feel overwhelming to sift through all of the information on typical packaged foods such as calorie counts and percentages of daily nutritional values. Food packagings are designed to be confusing and to draw our attention away from the part of the package where all the most important information is. The secret to reading food labels is to go directly to the ingredients section where we can find a list of which raw materials the food is actually made of.

There tend to be a lot of ingredients on the label with long, hard to pronounce names such as butylated hydroxytoluene. As a rule of thumb, it’s best to avoid consuming something if it’s unclear what the substance it is. It can be a daunting task to identify all of these substances so I have created this quick guide detailing the purposes of these additives, what foods they are commonly found in, and how they might appear on the label.

Emulsifiers and Stabilizers

Purpose: Make the food look more appealing as without an emulsifier the water and the oil content in food will look separate, which will give a very unappetizing appearance. Stabilizers act in a similar way by stopping the separation of ingredients bound together by emulsifiers.

Typically found in: Margarine, mayonnaise, bread, biscuits, crackers, cakes, soft drinks and many other “snack items”.

Some examples of how emulsifiers and stabilizers appear on the ingredients label:

• Soy lecithin
• Monoglyceride
• Calcium Stearoyl Di Laciate
• Calcium chloride

Anti-caking Agents

Purpose: These food additives make products manageable for packaging, transport, and for use by the consumer. They keep powders or granulated materials such as milk powder, powdered sugar or tea powders, flowing freely and prevent the formation of “lumps” in the food.

Typically found in: Powdered coffee or cocoa, soup, milk and cream powders, baking powder cake mixes, and table salt.

Some examples of how anti-caking agents appear on the ingredients label:

• Sodium aluminosilicate
• Magnesium carbonate

Artificial Coloring Agents

Purpose: Coloring agents add color to make the food “look like it should”, making it more appetizing to the consumer. They are also used to make food look interesting and fun for children, especially in breakfast cereals and candies.

Typically found in: Cereals, popsicles, some meat and fish products, candies, sodas and many baked goods, although the list could go on and on.

Some examples of how Artificial coloring agents appear on the ingredients label:

• Blue #1
• Red #40
• Yellow #5

Artificial Sweeteners

Purpose: To make the food taste better or to enhance the flavor of the food. These chemicals are much different than simple natural sugars and without them most packaged foods would probably taste like the other chemicals they are made up of! Take one taste of a preservative like sulfur dioxide and you will instantly understand why artificial sweeteners are used.

Typically found in: Breakfast cereals, yogurt, salad dressing, sodas, ice cream, candy, jams, ketchup, and most store bought honey, just to mention a few.

Some examples of how artificial sweeteners appear on the ingredients label:

• High fructose corn syrup
• Aspartame
• Xylitol
• Saccharin

Preservatives

Purpose: To prevent the food from spoiling, extend it’s shelf life, and to preserve the “natural” look of the food.

Typically found in: Almost all types of packaged foods including oats (pictured), chips, microwave meals, crackers, cereal, pasta, bread, chocolate, wine and juice.

Some examples of how preservatives appear on the ingredients label:

• Sodium Sulfite
• Sodium Nitrate
• Sulfur Dioxide
• Citric Acid
• Butylated hydroxytoluene

It’s interesting to note that the first word in the chemical name of many of these food additives is sometimes a mineral like potassium, magnesium or sodium, which most people probably recognize. When many people see these substances on a label they think, “Oh yeah, sodium, that’s just salt”. This is a very common mistake, so don’t feel bad, but there is a major difference between sodium and sodium sulfite. Sodium is a vital mineral and electrolyte which supports fluid regulation, among other things, while sodium sulfite is a preservative which has toxic affects on the human body.

If it’s unclear what an ingredient is on the label it’s really easy for us with technology today to pull out our smart phone and do a quick google search while we’re at the store. Usually we will be able to identify which category the ingredient falls under, and as result, determine if it’s something we want in your body or not. Any ingredient that comes up as a preservative, emulsifier, anti-caking agent, artificial sweetener or artificial coloring agent is most likely a chemical additive. There are natural food additives in many of these categories, although they are typically more expensive and as a result used much less often. Most food additives are put into the food for a specific purpose which is usually not to provide our body with essential minerals and vitamins. All we have to do is ask ourselves the questions, “Did the company who produced this food add these specific ingredients to benefit my health? Or did they add it to extend the shelf life, improve the appearance of the food, enhance the flavor, and overall to increase their bottom line?”

Here is the main takeaway. The best way to avoid these substances is to eat whole and natural foods. Mainly of these chemical substances disrupt the natural balance inside the body and are difficult to digest and eliminate, among a long list of other potentially hazardous side effects. Once we start to investigate packaged foods we soon find that it is extremely difficult to buy something in a package that doesn’t contain harmful food additives. I wish you guys the best of luck seeking out high quality foods containing natural ingredients! It can be difficult to find these products but the long term health benefits are well worth the effort.

Stay happy and healthy,

John