At some point, it is inevitable that any intelligent shopper who takes the time to read the ingredient list on most mass-produced pre-packaged food items that come in un-refrigerated cardboard boxes will ask the following question:
Are We Being Knowingly Poisoned by the Food Industry? | Suite101.com.
The answer is, unfortunately, yes.
One might debate the meaning of “being poisoned,” as the food industry clearly holds themselves to a looser definition than, say, any dictionary. But the fact is, a super large number of common ingredients are known to cause harm, even in small or moderate amounts. Where the food industry seems to circumvent conscience or general rules of decency is by falling back upon legal levels of what constitutes a lethal dose of anything, with the allowance that if only a few people out of a thousand or so are going to die from exposure to a substance then it’s okay to include it as an ingredient as long as there is not a direct link between immediate consumption and death.
By this I am not referring to common allergens, such as peanuts or milk, which are clearly natural foods even if they are lethal to some unfortunate individuals. And I am not referring to dihydrogen monoxide, which is sadly responsible for a huge amount of deaths each year even though it makes up something like 60 to 70 percent of your body mass.
The bottom line is that there is a lot of junk in manufactured foodstuffs that does not need to be there. Chemical colorants and flavor enhancers are in a remarkably huge number of products, mainly to disguise the quality of primary ingredients or give the illusion of uniformity across a product line. The fact is that it isn’t just “kids treats” that are loaded with dyes and modified sweeteners.
Diet products are especially nefarious and care should be taken to examine any ingredients that are not clearly natural substances. Many artificial sweeteners are believed (for good reason) to actually contribute to obesity or are neurotoxins or have other known links to health issues.
It is no coincidence that many restaurants specializing in various Asian cuisines advertise that their food contains “no MSG.” What is surprising, however, is that many restaurants still use MSG as one of their primary seasoning ingredients and do not readily disclose this fact. Many times I have ordered food and asked if MSG or artificial dye was used only to first be told that, no, the food was all natural until I pressed for the waiter or order taker to please double check — then get the response that there was in fact one of these toxins in the food. This might not be a big deal for most people. Adults, especially, can process these toxins out of their system with relatively little consequence, although in some MSG or dye or some coal derivative might be the hidden cause of the next migraine or heart palpitations or sudden bout of perspiration or swollen body parts. Children who are sensitive may have erratic or unsociable behaviors, attention difficulties or other attitude issues that are readily or easily confused with something they are not, whether that is ADHD or just plan brattiness. Take away the toxins and like magic a kid can return to normal.
What does that mean to corporations that dump unhealthy products on the largely uneducated market? Not much, I suspect. Unless the bottom line suffers.