Freedom Ingredients
US food additives that are banned in Europe
I was working on a 28 ounce bottle of an unspecified sports drink to combat the dehydration from a recent bout of Covid when something occurred to me. My doctor recommended I drink this, while I know for a fact, it contains chemicals that are banned in Europe and other countries.
We ‘mericans call those ‘freedom ingredients.’
☠️ Potassium Bromate and Azodicarbonamide
These are dough conditioners / whiteners. Sure, they may initiate or encourage the growth of tumors, but it makes bread more ‘bready.’ Groups advocating for public health have been petitioning the FDA to remove them for years, but the FDA insists they are safe in limited amounts. The problem is that these ingredients are present in a bunch of US products. And if Americans are known for anything, it's eating in moderation.
Oh, that’s right, personal responsibility. Stop eating all that crap!
This food has been formulated in a lab with just the right amount of salt fat and sugar to stimulate the prehistoric part of our brains that are stocking up until the next mammoth is slain.
Just avoid processed foods?
Okay. Now you sound like every recipe commenter on the internet. Can your own vegetables. Milk your own oats and harvest the salt from the sweat of your brow. Stop being so lazy thinking you can trust the food in the grocery store. Little Debbie? Did you mean Little Deadly?
Be vigilant or suffer the healthcare system that is certainly not in cahoots with the food system.
What are you, a conspiracy theorist?
☠️ Brominated Vegetable Oil (BVO)
Brominated Vegetable Oil is added to citrus flavored soft drinks and sports drinks (think Gadorade) to stop the natural separation of ingredients on shelves. Excessive, meaning daily consumption of two to four liters of soda with BVO have caused memory loss, tremors, fatigue, loss of muscle coordination, headache, and a super sexy droopy eyelid.
Major beverage companies, Coke and Pepsi announced the removal of BVO from their products in 2014, but they didn’t actually remove it until 2020. It has been in use since 1931 and is still in many grocery store brands.
Soda drinking Boomers, Gen-xers, and Millennials have gotten plenty over the years. Consumption of perhaps the most notorious citrus flavored soda, Mountain Dew, is almost cultural among gamers of a certain age. ‘Extreme’ is the basis of their entire ad campaign. My husband and I had friends who toasted with Mountain Dew at their wedding instead of champagne.
It wasn’t until November of this year that the FDA finally proposed a ban on BVO, citing “headaches and nervous system damage” as the reason for revocation.
☠️ Yellow food dyes No. 5 and No. 6, and Red Dye No. 40
In Europe, products containing these substances must have a warning label with the following message.
“Coloring agent may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children.”
It’s funny how companies will reformulate a product for sale in Europe to avoid such a label and yet continue to sell the dangerous one in the US. It makes one wonder what their motivation could be…
It’s not like the natural alternatives are drastically different. Check out these M&Ms. Would Americans even notice or care if they switched to the version on the right? I doubt it has any effect on the taste.
Yellow No. 5 is found in Gadorade and Mountain Dew, not to mention a host of other products you wouldn’t think of like condiments and breakfast bars. The omnipresence of these artificial dyes in a wide variety of products on the market makes them difficult, time consuming, and expensive to avoid.
It seems that European regulatory agencies and others across the globe err on the side of caution when it comes to food safety. The US Food and Drug administration seems to take a more lax approach. These chemicals are innocent until proven guilty. I can’t imagine that the money being made on these products is worth the risk, but then I am not a multi billion dollar industry making record profits while US cancer rates continue to climb.
Sources:
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Leslie Writes
Another struggling millennial. Writing is my creative outlet and stress reliever.
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Comments (25)
Great and interesting read, Leslie! Yikes, scary, too. I hate that we even have to think about this, to be honest. I try to buy as much organic as possible and also to stay away from processed foods, but the busy American lifestyle just screws you all around sometimes. There are still nights I pull that frozen pizza out because I'm too tired from work to cook. 🫣
Excellent story . So many food additives so many here in America. Thanks for writing about this very important issue .
Excellent piece! Congrats on your TOP STORY!
Part of my business is helping those who have suffered the effects of these additives. It is truly scary how much people don't know about the food they consume and the impact on their health. Congratulations on Top Story!
Three years ago, I stopped drinking soda because of its taste (the best decision of my life, for sure) and also try my best to avoid packaged food as much as possible. I can't help but think my 50-year-old self will be grateful for these choices. 😂 It's really sad. Everything we eat now is dangerous. Unless we grow our own food, I hope someday things will change for the better. 😣😣 And yes congratulations on top story!❤
I had a similar converstion about this with my students the other day. One is American Slovak and he was telling me a similar thing. I mean to research a bit more when I got home, and then you wrote about it. A super interesting read-Thank you 🤍
This was really interesting to read! Thank you and congrats on top story!
Exploring the concerning use of 'freedom ingredients' in US food, banned in Europe, raises questions about food safety standards and consumer awareness. It's crucial to stay informed and advocate for healthier choices in our diets. #FoodSafety #HealthAwareness" Burn Boost Reviews https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJ_SVTDovoc
Once I cleaned up my diet, a lot of these items became gross to me. I also learned through experience that foods in other countries taste better. The only explanation I can figure is it’s all part of capitalism, where every industry feeds the other. Cancer causing food = doctor & dentist visits, prescription drugs, addiction to some of these drugs, then death.
Confirms my belief in not drink or consuming those drinks Congratulations
Very informative. I loved the humor being added to this. It helps readers stay engaged. Congratulations on Top Story!
I'm back to say congratulations for your Top Story!
This made me so thankful I don’t eat/drink any of that. It’s not appealing to me. A game changer was when I have up sugar. That eliminates most processed foods. But I’ve always eaten organic everything, and locally sourced whenever possible. They wouldn’t sell us poison if it wasn’t lucrative, so it’s up to Americans to stop buying it.
Very informative, we listen it’s too late our body is already affected
Ah, it's all just a big conspiracy theory, right?😅 Like your sarcastic tone here, though am afraid some may take it too serious.
And that's why I drink water... Great TS! 🏅
"What are you, a conspiracy theorist?!" No ma'am just a person with a collection of facts that clearly make you uncomfortable, lol. Loved this so much, Leslie! I buy all organic, 80% whole foods, maybe about 20% packaged, minimally processed because there is no such thing as "junk food," there is "food" and there is "junk!" The junk genuinely doesn't hit the "yum" part of my brain. I must have an anchor for junk food that equates it to poison and the anchor supersedes all of the salt/fat/sugar nonsense. The cool thing about the human mind is that this type of anchoring is actually available to anyone who is willing to explore the techniques used to do this! (Hypnosis, NLP, eye movement). Just leaving that helpful info here for anyone who might see this and go "but the junk is just so good, I can't quit." Yes you 100% can, watch some NLP youtube videos on anchoring and you can change your mind in one afternoon. 😜
Yes! Thank you for writing this and SO happy it made top story!!! Love your playful humor, and grateful to you for sharing such an important topic. 👏🏽👏🏽
Some excellent information and observations here
"harvest the salt from the sweat of your brow." HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHA that took me out! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Jokes aside, everything we eat now is dangerous. Unless we grow our own food. They don't care about the health of people. They only care about their business and money.
Excellent, informative article. The ingredients listed may be dangerous, but your sarcasm is just the elixer I needed. Well done.
I loved the article
Blah! Dyes are in everything, even marshmallows and white icing sometimes!😩😩 it’s so annoying!
I loved the humor and sarcasm used to warn us about the dangerous crap they still put in our food. Thank god I’m allergic to caffeine and gave up soda 15 years ago. But I know it goes well beyond just sodas. I stopped drinking Gatorade because I hate things that dye my tongue. I knew it couldn’t be healthy. The pic below your line about moderation was perfectly staged lol. Dare I say, congrats on your Top (urgent) Story. Thanks for sharing!
Awesome article!!! Again, the money trail shows pofits over people!💕❤️❤️