1. Food Additives Kevin Thomas, RD POMH Food and Nutrition

2. Objectives  Define food additives  Explore how food additives come to market and who approved their use  Types of food additives  Food Dyes and research  Natural and Artificial Flavors  Funny Facts about Food Additives

3. What is a Food Additive?  Legally, the term refers to "any substance the intended use of which results or may reasonably be expected to result -- directly or indirectly -- in its becoming a component or otherwise affecting the characteristics of any food." -FDA 3000  The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) maintains a list of over 3000 ingredients in its data base "Everything Added to Food in the United States", many of which are used at home every day (e.g., sugar, baking soda, salt, vanilla, yeast, spices and colors).  This list does not include natural and artificial flavors.

4. Why are Food Additives Used?  To maintain or improve safety and freshness  To maintain or improve nutritional value  To improve taste, texture, and appearance

5. Types of Food Additives PreservativesSweeteners Color AdditivesFlavors and spices Flavor enhancersFat replacers NutrientsEmulsifiers Stabilizers and thickeners, binders, texturizers Leavening agents Anti-caking agentsHumectants (raise moisture) Yeast nutrientsFirming agents Dough strengthenersGases

6. Food Additives With Food Additives Makes for a more diverse food supply Less risk for spoilage More consistent products Quicker, cheaper, more convenient foods Aids in preventing/correcting nutritional deficits Without Food Additives Potential nutritional deficiencies Foods would cost more Greater time to prepare foods/meals Foods would have an inconsistent “look” Limited food supply bound by geography and time of year *The consumer would have a better idea of what’s actually in food

7. Traditional Food Additives vs. New  Traditional food additives also contained chemicals  Sodium Bicarbonate  Salt preserves meat  Vinegar acts as a preservative  The rate of food additives production is higher than ever before

8. Who Approves Food Additives?  Any substance that is reasonably expected to become a component of food is a food additive that is subject to premarket approval by FDA, unless the substance is generally recognized as safe (GRAS) among qualified experts  FDA also ensures accurate labeling. Ingredients listed by weight (heaviest items listed first)

9. Who Approves Food Additives? Cont.  Two routes of approval 1. Manufacturer must petition the FDA for approval followed by providing evidence that the substance is safe for the ways in which it will be used. 2. GRAS (generally recognized as safe) ingredients. Based on their extensive history of use in food before 1958 or based on published scientific evidence. Ex: Caffeine, Baking Soda -GRAS allows food producers to use existing science and their own research to determine that an ingredient is safe*

10. Delaney Cause  The Food Additives Amendment of 1959. New food additives would be subject to testing including the "Delaney clause“  The Delaney clause was a provision in the amendment which said that if a substance were found to cause cancer in man or animal, then it could not be used as a food additive.  This led to the banning of cyclamates in the United States and Britain in 1969. Saccharin was found to cause cancer in rats but kept in the food supply with a warning label. Saccharin was later found to only be cancer causing to rats due to their unique urine chemistry.

11. To what standard does the FDA hold food additives?  The Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) value of a substance is 100 times less than the smallest amount that may cause a health concern.

12. Cumulative Effect

15. Processed foods make up approximately 70 percent of the U.S. diet

16. Food Dyes  Manufacturers usually add dye for the following reasons:  To add color to colorless foods  To enhance colors  To avoid color loss due to environmental elements  To provide consistency when there are variations in the coloring of the food  The amounts of artificial food dyes has quadrupled over the last 50 years

17. Artificial Food Dyes  There are nine certified color additives approved for use in the United States.  Ex: FD&C Blue No. 1 (added in 1993), FD&C Yellow No. 5, etc.  31 artificial food dyes are used in medication  Colors that are exempt from certification include pigments derived from natural sources such as vegetables, minerals or animals (including insects)  Carminic acid is extracted from the female cochineal insects and is treated to produce carmine, which can yield shades of red such as crimson and scarlet. Ex: Red lip stick

18. Food Dye and ADHD  In the 1970’s artificial food dyes began being linked to hyperactivity in children.  Dr. Feingold, pediatric allergist from California, created a diet free of artificial colors, artificial flavors that was meant to reduce hyperactivity  There are 10 banned artificial dyes that were once used in the food supply  “To date, no conclusive evidence has been found to show that food coloring causes ADHD”—WebMD. However,…

19. Food Dye, ADHD, and the FDA  In 2011, the Food and Drug Administration Food Advisory Committee convened to evaluate the current status of evidence regarding attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).  FDA evaluated 35 years of research on Food Coloring  Food Colorings are not a main cause of ADHD, but they may contribute significantly to some cases, and in some cases may additively push a youngster over the diagnostic threshold  The current status of evidence is inconclusive “but too substantial to dismiss.” Until safety can be better determined, we suggest minimizing children’s exposure to artificial food coloring. With the current concerns about childhood obesity, there appears to be no need to make food look more attractive than its natural color.  “The dose alone makes the poison” –Paracelsus (Renaissance physician, founded the discipline of toxicology)

20. Food Dye and Health  For some, especially younger children, food dyes can pose a potential risk to health  Complete food dye avoidance is nearly impossible for some (cost, food preferences, habits)  Restricting food dyes can be beneficial simply for the fact that plentiful amounts of dyes are contained within calorically dense, nutrient sparse foods (Ex: junk food, sugary cereal)  However, consider that the United Kingdom banned artificial food dyes in 2007-2008  McDonald’s foods and M&Ms are free of artificial food dyes, yet only in the UK not in the United States.

21. Natural vs. Artificial Flavors source  The only real difference between natural and artificial flavors in the source.  Artificial flavors come from inedible chemicals  Natural flavors come from …essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional.  However, the process of extracting many “natural” flavors can involve synthetic (artificial) solvents.

22. Natural vs. Artificial Flavors  In a food’s ingredient list, it can have “Natural Flavors” and/or “Artificial Flavors” which can have 5, 10, 20, or 100 different flavors added to produce a unique flavor.  Ex: Dr. Pepper pop contains 23 flavors and has been a secret since 1885.  Dr. Pepper houses the Flavors Technology lab which is filled with samples of more than 3,000 flavors, including the 23 in Dr. Pepper.

23. Flavoring,Cont.  Givaudan, the largest flavoring company in the world  Givaudan was founded as a perfumery company in 1895 in Zurich (Switzerland)  The Swiss company employs almost 9,000 people in 45 countries 750  Givaudan has thousands of flavors and each is unique. For example, it has 750 flavors of orange, tangerine, and mandarins.  Givaudan’s flavors and fragrances are usually custom- made and sold under confidentiality agreements

24. What is in a Chicken Nugget?

25.  CHICKEN MCNUGGETS: Ingredients: White Boneless Chicken, Water, Food Starch-Modified, Salt, Seasoning (Autolyzed Yeast Extract, Salt, Wheat Starch, Natural Flavoring [Botanical Source], Safflower Oil, Dextrose, Citric Acid), Sodium Phosphates, Natural Flavor (Botanical Source). Battered and Breaded with: Water, Enriched Flour (Bleached Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamin Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Yellow Corn Flour, Bleached Wheat Flour, Food Starch-Modified, Salt, Leavening (Baking Soda, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate, Sodium Aluminum Phosphate, Monocalcium Phosphate, Calcium Lactate), Spices, Wheat Starch, Dextrose, Corn Starch. CONTAINS: WHEAT. Prepared in Vegetable Oil (Canola Oil, Corn Oil, Soybean Oil, Hydrogenated Soybean Oil) with TBHQ and Citric Acid to preserve freshness of the oil and Dimethylpolysiloxane to reduce oil splatter when cooking. *Minimum 30 ingredients

26. What is in a Chicken Nugget?  TBHQ (tert-butylhydroquinone) – Preservative/Antioxidant in cosmetic products such as lipsticks, eye shadows, perfumes, blushers, and skin care preparations.  Potential risk for cancer (only high doses)  Autolyzed Yeast Extract (often contains MSG) – Anecdotal reports of headache, flushing, facial pressure or tightness, numbness, tingling or burning in the face, neck and other areas, heart palpitations, chest pain, nausea, and weakness.  Researchers have found no definitive evidence of a link.  Dimethyl Polysiloxane – Anti-foaming agent that prevents oil splatter  Found in hydraulic fluid, head lice medications, skin moisturizers, hair conditioners, Silly Putty, filler fluid in breast implants  Hydrogenated Soybean Oil – Semi-solidifies oil  Increases risk of heart disease

27. What is in your Protein Bar? 40 total ingredients (without vitamins/minerals is 24)

28. What is in your Protein Bar?  Hydrolyzed protein collagen – found in the bones, skin, and connective tissue of animals such as cattle, fish, horses, pigs, and rabbits  Mannitol – Can cause bloating and diarrhea  Sucralose – artificial sweetener  Glycerin—Simply a component of fat and can be found in electronic cigarette liquids, antifreeze, fuel

29. Chemicals and the Environment

30. Fun Fact about Food Additives  There is seaweed in yogurt  Carrageenan is a polysaccharide that is extracted from red edible seaweeds  Used for it gelling, thickening, and stabilizing properties

31. Fun Fact about Food Additives  This food additive can be used to thicken sauces and salad dressings, adds the texture feel of ice cream and is also used to thicken drilling mud Xanthan gum derives its name from the strain of bacteria used during the fermentation process, Xanthomonas campestris. X. campestris is the same bacterium responsible for causing black rot to form on broccoli, cauliflower, and other leafy vegetables.

32. Fun Fact about Food Additives  Can you name which cocktail contains something that also treats malaria? Gin and Tonic Quinine relieves malaria symptoms and puts the bitter flavor in tonic water, bitters, and some pre-dinner drinks and sodas. Used in drugs, quinine can cause serious side effects, but not in the small amounts used in drinks.

33. Fun Fact about Food Additives  Guinness beer is not vegan!  Guinness beer contains Isinglass which is a gelatin- like substance produced from the swim bladder of a fish.  It is used in a process called fining --when unwanted leftovers, like solid particles and degenerated yeast cells, are removed from the brewing process.

34. Fun Fact about Food Additives  Without beans low-fat ice cream would look and taste like sherbet.  Guar gum is extracted from guar beans in India  Prevents the formation of ice crystals

35. Closing Point Food and Drug Administration (FDA) absolutely reasonable certainty of no harm to  “Because of inherent limitation of science, FDA can never be absolutely certain of the absence of any risk from the use of any substance. Therefore, the FDA must determine—based on the best science available—if there is a reasonable certainty of no harm to consumers when an additive is used as proposed.

36. Summary  FDA is tasked with ensuring the safety of food additives (>3,000 can be used). Yet, 10,000+ natural and artificial flavors in our food supply.  Other countries allow different food additives (dyes, flavors, etc)  Most foods contain some food additives  A food additive deemed safe does not imply healthy  Food additive’s potential for harm is real yet there are regulations in place to help assist in preventing harm  One can choose to remove food additives yet understand that they have a useful role in the food supply  For the most part, food additives are safe yet there tends to be a trend with processed foods  The more processed the food is, the greater likelihood of more food additives, and the greater likelihood for unsafe foods.