Chemicals Found in 1,000 Processed Foods May Harm Immune System, According to New Study

AHA Publisher — Mon, 10 May 2021 07:00:16 +0000

Damon Hines via NaturalHealth365 – You know the symptoms; we all do. Bloating, fatigue, stomach upset, and a general feeling of blah thrown in for good measure. It’s the after-effects of gorging on Doritos or indulging in a pint of ice cream. Too much fat, sugar, and salt, too much high fructose corn syrup, and we’re left with a food hangover, our bodies laden with additives and preservatives and depleted of the water and enzymes needed to process them. But the health problems associated with processed foods are far worse than bloat and a mean case of the blahs. Processed foods account for a shocking 58% of calories in a U.S. diet. According to a study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, ultra-processed food consumption is associated with an increased risk of heart disease. But that’s only the beginning. New research published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health suggests that chemicals found in over 1,000 processed foods may also harm the immune system. TBHQ: Used by Manufacturers to Prolong a Product’s Shelf Life and SHORTEN Your Life Ultra-processed foods are defined as “industrial formulations made with no or minimal whole foods and produced with additives such as flavorings or preservatives.” According to the study, the chemical preservative tert-butylhydroquinone, or (TBHQ), which is found in Pop-Tarts, Cheez-It crackers, Little Debbie Swiss Rolls, and more than 1,000 other processed foods, can negatively affect the immune system, as well as polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a group of chemicals that can leach into food from packaging. In addition, a 2017 Trusted Source study concluded that eating foods containing additives – including processed meats– may lead to an increase in the risk of several immune conditions. The study looked at additives such as sucralose, aspartame, carboxymethylcellulose, polysorbate-80, sodium, and carrageenan. Big Food Manufacturers Have No Incentive to Change Their Formulas Additives like TBHQ were approved by the FDA decades ago. The FDA allows the food and chemical industry to determine which ingredients are safe for consumption, like asking a drug cartel to regulate its product. Sodium Nitrate. Yellow #5. Brominated vegetable oil. TBQH. Sadly, our kitchens have become as chemically-filled as a science lab. Potentially dangerous additives need to be reviewed by the FDA, and regulatory loopholes need to be closed. Guarding Your Immune System Starts With Choosing a Carrot Over a Bag of Industrially Produced, Carrot-Flavored Veggie Puffs Processed food makes us ill, increases the risk of heart disease, weakens the immune system, and drives the global obesity epidemic. But if you want to improve your health and maintain a well-functioning immune system, it’s going to take more than avoiding what food journalist Michal Pollan calls “the edible food-like substances.” You’re going to have to eat right, too. Foods that are known to provide immune-boosting benefits include citrus fruits, foods that contain zinc – such as peas, raw cheese, organically-raised chicken breast, cruciferous vegetables, garlic, and ginger. Finally, as a consumer, be sure to read all packaging and labels carefully. Don’t let processed food take over your shopping cart. Bottom line, if you’re having a hard time reading (and understanding) a food label – don’t buy it! Sources for this article include: Livescience.com Medicalnewstoday.com To read the original article click here. For more articles from NaturalHealth365 click here.

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Should We Be Concerned with the Trans Fat in Animal Fat?

AHA Publisher — Fri, 30 Oct 2020 07:00:20 +0000

Michael Greger M.D. FACLM via Nutrition Facts – The years of healthy life lost due to our consumption of trans fats are comparable to the impact of conditions like meningitis, cervical cancer, and multiple sclerosis. But, if “food zealots” get their wish in banning added trans fats, what’s next? I explore this in my video Banning Trans Fat in Processed Foods but Not Animal Fat. Vested corporate interests rally around these kinds of slippery slope arguments to distract from the fact that people are dying. New York Mayor Bloomberg was decried as a “meddling nanny” for his trans fat ban and attempt to cap soft drink sizes. How dare he try to manipulate consumer choice! But isn’t that what the food industry has done? “Soft drink portion sizes have grown dramatically, along with Americans’ waistlines.” In 1950, a 12-ounce soda was the king-sized option. Now, it’s the kiddie size. Similarly, with trans fats, it was the industry that limited our choice by putting trans fats into everything without even telling us. Who’s the nanny now? New York City finally won its trans fat fight, preserving its status as a public health leader. “For example, it took decades to achieve a national prohibition of lead paint, despite unequivocal evidence of harm,” but New York City’s Board of Health led the way, banning it “18 years before federal action.” There’s irony in the slippery slope argument: First, they’ll come for your fries; next, they’ll come for your burger. After the trans fat oil ban, one of the only remaining sources of trans fat is in the meat itself. “Trans fats naturally exist in small amounts in the fat in meat and milk,” as I’ve discussed before in my video Trans Fat in Meat and Dairy. Before the trans fat ban, animal products only provided about one fifth of America’s trans fat intake, but since the U.S. trans fat ban exempts animal products, they will soon take over as the leading source. As you can see at 2:09 in Banning Trans Fat in Processed Foods but Not Animal Fat, now that added trans fats are banned in Denmark, for example, the only real trans fat exposure left is from animal products found in the U.S. dairy, beef, chicken fat, turkey meat, lunch meat, and hot dogs, with trace amounts in vegetable oils due to the refining process. The question is: Are animal trans fats as bad as processed food trans fats? As you can see at 2:38 in my video, a compilation of randomized interventional trials found that they both make bad cholesterol go up and they both make good cholesterol go down. So, both animal trans fats and processed food trans fats make the ratio of bad to good cholesterol go up—which is bad. Therefore, all trans fats cause negative effects “irrespective of their origin.” The researchers suspect that also removing natural trans fats from the diet could prevent tens of thousands of heart attacks, but unlike processed foods, you can’t remove trans fats from milk and meat because trans fats are there naturally. The livestock industry suggests that a little bit of their trans fats might not be too bad, but you saw the same everything-in-moderation argument coming from the Institute of Shortening and Edible Oils after industrial trans fats were first exposed as a threat. The bottom line is “that intake of all sources of trans fat should be minimized.” The trans fat in processed foods can be banned, and just adhering to the current dietary guidelines to restrict saturated fat intake, which is primarily found in meat and dairy, would automatically cut trans fat intake from animal fats. The reason no progress may have been made on animal trans fat reduction in Denmark is because The Danish Nutrition Council that pushed for the trans fat ban was a joint initiative of The Danish Medical Association and The Danish Dairy Board. They recognized that “the economic support from The Danish Dairy Council could be perceived as problematic” from a scientific integrity point of view, but, not to worry—“The Danish Medical Association expanded the Executive Board and the funding members to also include the Danish pork industry, the Danish meat industry, The Poultry and Egg Council and The Danish Margarine Industry Association.” If people want to eat trans fat, isn’t that their right? Yes, but only if they’re informed about the risks—yet The Food Industry Wants the Public Confused About Nutrition. For more on the industry pushback, see my video Controversy Over the Trans Fat Ban. There does not appear to be a safe level of exposure to trans fat—or to saturated fat or dietary cholesterol, for that matter. See Trans Fat, Saturated Fat, and Cholesterol: Tolerable Upper Intake of Zero. To read the original article click here. For more articles from Dr. Greger click here.

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Chemicals Found in 1,000 Processed Foods May Harm Immune System, According to New Study

Should We Be Concerned with the Trans Fat in Animal Fat?