Food is normally considered one of life’s great pleasures and can even be a part of memories. Food is how we nourish our bodies, “Food is Fuel” is a phrase often associated with this, but we need to fuel our bodies with the right food or it can essentially be poison.
Today diets are full of unhealthy fats and crazy amounts of added sugar, which has caused a major increase in chronic disease and health problems. The dangers from additives and preservatives in foods are something most people are unaware.
About 60% of foods available for purchase in the U.S have additives. Which is an increase since the last decade. For example these five ingredients are consistently consumed in the U.S; titanium dioxide, brominated vegetable oil, BHA and BHT, rBST, and artificial food dye. What most individuals don’t know is these ingredients -chemicals rather- are banned in several other countries. Chewing gum, candy, frozen foods, breakfast cereals, and dairy products, are just a few examples that contain these chemicals.
The rise in processed foods has fully changed the whole way humans eat. Foods have been stripped of their natural nutrients and are loaded with chemicals to enhance their flavor and texture and to preserve for a longer period. All of these processed foods actaully contain little or no nutritional value at all. Eventually, the prolonged consumption these things will be the cause of weight gain and contibute to other illnesses associated with it, such as diabetes and heart disease. The convenience of these foods comes with a cost.
In addition, artificial sweeteners, food colorings, and flavor enhancers-most of these types of chemical additives are added simply to increase the appeal of food. A few of these food colorants can actually lead to hyperactivity in children and even cause some kinds of cancers. Why if Red 40 has such an awful effect on our body then why would any food manufacturers put it constantly into something we intake daily? Why is this allowed? It is quite evident that the result of eating and digesting chemicals is pretty dangerous. Red 3 was recently just banned in the United States, which hopefully is a start to banning many more of these harmful chemicals
So many people crave foods rich in all of these ingredients that are poor for our health. Poptarts for example, are a staple in the American diet, whether it be a quick snack or breakfast. In 1964, the original Poptart had twenty ingredients. Today, a Poptart contains 30+ ingredients. This is a common theme with processed foods that have been around for a while.
Health risks can be reduced by focusing on whole foods, unprocessed foods and making better dietary choices that encourage your long-term health. In this way, food can be transformed from poison back into nourishment and a source of pleasure so that people can continue to make memories.
