1. IES Simancas presentation for the Comenius project: “Colours, sweeteners and additives in food products”

2. Our students went to local shops to select sweets.

3. Selecting food products

4. They studied their composition.

5. Main sorts of food aditives we have found Food colourings Flavour enhancers Preservatives Antioxidants Emulsifiers Gellings Acidulants Stabilizers

6. Definitions Food colouring is any substance, liquid or powder, that is added to food or drink to change its colour. Flavour enhancers are used to bring out the flavour in a wide range of foods without adding a flavour of their own. Preservative food additives can be used alone or in conjunction with other methods of food preservation. Preservatives may be antimicrobial preservatives, which inhibit the growth of bacteria or fungi, including mold, or antioxidants such as oxygen absorbers, which inhibit the oxidation of food constituents

7. An antioxidant is a molecule capable of inhibiting the oxidation of other molecules. An emulsifier (also known as an emulgent) is a substance which stabilizes an emulsion by increasing its kinetic stability. Gellings or Thickening agents are substances which, when added to an aqueous mixture, increase its viscosity without substantially modifying its other properties, such as taste. They provide body, increase stabilility, and improve suspension of added ingredients. Acidulants are additives that give a sharp taste to foods. They also assist in the setting of gels and to act as preservatives.

8. Stabilizers are an indispensable substance in food items that categorised as food additives. When added to the food items, they smoothen the texture of the food and give a definite body to the food. Food stabilisers are added in relatively small amount which aggravate the effect of emulsifiers. Sweeteners: This category of nonnutritive, high-intensity sugar substitutes includes aspartame, acesulfane-k and saccharin. Leavenigs: A leavening agent is any one of a number of substances used in doughs and batters that cause a foaming action which lightens and softens the finished product

9. Products and their main additives

10. Flavour enhancers: Monosodium glutamate (MSG) Ionisator Disodium guanylate It contains (per 100 gr) 532 kcal Satured fat 15,0 g Sugar 3,1 g Potato crisps

11. Industrial desserts Emulsifiers: Soy Lecithin E 472b Gellings: E 407 E 401 178 kcal (per 100g)

12. Chocolates Emulsifier: Soy lecithin Leavings: E 500 A piece (29 g) contains: 143 kcal Sugars 3,1 g

13. Chocolate pills Emulsufier: Soy lecithin Glazing Agents: E 414 E 903 E 901 It contains (per 100 g): 481kcal

14. “Mantecados”:Spanish Christmas cakes Antioxidant: E 320 Caloric information is not available.

15. Coke Food colour: E 150d Acidulant: E 338 Per 100 ml it contains: 42 kcal Sugar 10,6 g

16. Fanta Acidulant: E 330 Perservatives: E 202 Stabilizers: E 414, E 412, E 445. Antioxidant: E 300 (Ascorbic acid) Food couloring: E 160a (Carotens) Per 100 ml it contains: 52 kcal 12,9 g sugar

17. Zero Coke Sweeteners: E 952, E 950, E 951 Acidulant: E 338 Acid corrector: E 331 Per 100 ml it contains 0,2 kcal

18. Chewing gums Antioxidant: E 320 Food Colours: E 171, E 141 Emulsifier: E 442 Sweeteners: Aspartame, acelsufano Coating agents: E 903 (carnauba wax) E 553b (Magnesium silicate without asbestos) It contains (per 100 g): 178 kcal

19. Jellies

20. Study of the composition

21. Emulsufiers Soy lecithin: Soy lecithin has been found to be effective in various food and industrial applications due to its emulsifying properties. high doses have been seen to cause various problems and side effects which include gastrointestinal problems, diarrohea, either weight gain or loss of appetite, rashes, headache, nausea, dizziness, vomiting and unpleasant body odour and bad breath.

22. E 472b: Esters of mono and diglycerides Used to give emulsions their stability and the required viscosity. They are now currently included in low calorie spreads, peanut butter and ice cream to control their texture, starch based foods such as macaroni, noodles, potato products and in the bakery industry.There is concern in some quarters that may be carcinogenic.

23. Flavour enhancers Monosodium glutamate (MSG E 621): It is often used in fast food, snack foods, tinned and frozen food. MSG is safe for most people when “eaten at customary levels”. However, it also said that, some people may have an MSG intolerance that causes “MSG symptom complex” and/or a worsening of asthmatic symptoms. Didodium Guanylate: Disodium guanylate is produced from dried fish or dried seaweed and is often added to instant noodles, potato chips and other snacks.Disodium guanylate is not safe for babies under twelve weeks, and should generally be avoided by asthmatics and people with gout,

24. Jellings E 407: Carrageenans or carrageenins are a family of linear sulfated polysaccharides which are extracted from red seaweeds. The Joint FAO expert committee on food additives states "that based on the information available, it is inadvisable to use carrageenan in infant formulas“.There is evidence that degraded carrageenan (poligeenan) may cause ulcerations in the gastro- intestinal tract and gastro-intestinal cancer. E 401:Alginic acid, also called algin or alginate, is an anionic polysaccharide distributed widely in the cell walls of brown algae, where it, through binding water, forms a viscous gum. In extracted form it absorbs water quickly. In March, 2010 researchers at Newcastle University announced that dietary alginates can reduce human fat uptake by more than 75%. Sodium alginate

25. Food colours E 150d:Caramel color or caramel colouring is a soluble food colouring. It is made by a carefully controlled heat treatment of carbohydrates in a process called caramelization. Caramel colouring may be derived from a variety of source products that are themselves common allergens.So, people with known sensitivities or allergies to food products are advised to avoid foods including generic caramel colouring. E 160 a: Carotene, alpha-, beta-, gamma-Carotene colouring fades on exposure to light. Typical products include fruit juices and squashes, cakes, desserts, butter and margarine.

26. E 171: Titanium dioxide. Titanium dioxide may be used in food to give opacity. No adverse effects are known, and the compound is chemically inert. E 141: Copper complexes of chlorophyll. Olive colour, extracted from plants, no adverse effects are known when used in foods.

27. Acidulants E 338: Phosphoric acid, used in many soft drinks (primarily cola), has been linked to lower bone density in epidemiological studies. E 330: citric acid is a colourless, crystalline organic compound, belonging to the family of carboxylic acids. Its use as a food additive is wide and varied. Recorded problems are that it can be a local irritant and in large amounts can cause teeth erosion. E 331: Ascorbic Acid. Ascorbic acid and its sodium, potassium, and calcium salts are commonly used as antioxidant food additives.

28. Sweeteners E 952:Sodium cyclamate is an artificial sweetener. It is 30–50 times sweeter than sugar, making it the least potent of the commercially used artificial sweeteners E 950:Acesulfame K is 180-200 times sweeter than sugar.Critics say acesulfame potassium has not been studied adequately and may be carcinogenic. E 951:Aspartame (or APM) is an artificial, non- saccharide sweetener used as a sugar substitute in some foods and beverages. A 2007 medical review on the subject concluded that "the weight of existing scientific evidence indicates that aspartame is safe at current levels of consumption as a non-nutritive sweetener

29. Our students carried out a survey They studied sweets consumption among students from 14 to 17 years old The results were the following ones:

30. How often do you eat sweets?

31. What do you prefer?

32. How often do you eat chocolates?

33. How often do you eat caramels?

34. How often do you eat toffies?

35. How often do you have marmalade?

36. How often do you eat jellies?

37. How often do you eat industrial desserts

38. How often do you have chewing gums?

39. What do you prefer: home or industrial desserts?

40. Why do you choose sweets?