Excerpts from FOOD ADDITIVES: A Shopper's Guide... #10

Let's take an example of a 123 calorie snack with 7 grams of fat, 2 grams of protein and 13 grams of carbohydrate of which 12 grams of the carbohydrate is sugar.

To get fat calories, multiply 9x7=63 calories from fat.
To get percentage of fat, divide 63 fat calories by 123 snack calories to get 51% fat.

Use the same procedure for protein and carbohydrate, using 4 calories per gram instead of 9.

Tomorrow I'll do the calculations for the number of teaspoons of sugar in this snack. Why not try to figure it out now, then come back tomorrow and check your answer.

Better yet, get your own copy of FOOD ADDITIVES and have all this information at your fingertips right when you need it!

Excerpts from FOOD ADDITIVES: A Shopper's Guide... #9

Nutrition Facts give you information on calories, and grams of fat, cholesterol, sodium, carbohydrates, dietary fiber, sugars, and protein in each serving. Here's some useful conversions to help you use and understand this information better.

1 gram of fat = approximately 9 calories.
1 gram of protein = approximately 4 calories.
1 gram of carbohydrate = approximately 4 calories.
4 grams of sugar = 1 teaspoon of sugar.

Tomorrow I'll give you an example of how to use this for your benefit.

Now is the time to protect your health by making healthy food choices. Why not get your own convenient, pocket-sized copy of FOOD ADDITIVES: A Shopper's Guide ... and keep it with you when you shop so you can be sure you're making safe and healthy food-buying choices.

Excerpts from FOOD ADDITIVES: A Shopper's Guide... #8

Here's a general rule of thumb: If the list of ingredients is long, there's probably a lot of chemical additives in the product, and you're risking your health by eating it. If the list of ingredients is short, it may or may not have harmful additives in it, so read the ingredients carefully before you decide to purchase the product.

You can learn which ingredients are harmful and which are safe in FOOD ADDITIVES: A Shopper's guide....

Excerpts from FOOD ADDITIVES: A Shopper's Guide... #7

Ingredients are listed on the label in order of predominance by weight ... the ingredient that weighs the most is listed first, the ingredient that weighs the least is listed last.

Start protecting your family now from harmful ingredients in packaged fooods.

Excerpts from FOOD ADDITIVES: A Shopper's Guide... #6

How To Read Labels

Finding the ingredients on the label and being able to read them can be a challenge. They are often hidden under a flap of packaging material in very tiny print, barely readable without a magnifying glass.

Often the package has statements like "NATURAL FRUIT FLAVORS, with Real Fruit Juice," or ALL NATURAL INGREDIENTS and NO PRESERVATIVES ADDED. This DOES NOT mean there are no harmful additives in the product. The manufacturer hopes you'll think these are healthy, natural products, but if you read the list of ingredients and compare each additive with the additives listed in this book, you'll see it's not true.

Find out how to get your copy and start reading labels now.

Excerpts from FOOD ADDITIVES: A Shopper's Guide...#5

Some of the additives are followed by a number or series of numbers. These numbers represent a code for the uses of the additives. These codes are listed on pages 8-11.

The additive listing may also include some of the adverse effects that may be associated with consumption of the additive, and if the additive has not been adequately tested.

FOOD ADDITIVES (sample listing)

X     Acesulfame-K - 11, "Sunette"; may cause low blood sugar attacks; causes cancer, elevated cholesterol in lab animals; not adequately tested.

Sample of codes listed on pages 8-11.
11. artificial sweetener - used in processed foods.

Note X is defined in Excerpts ... #3

Get your copy of FOOD ADDITIVES: A Shopper's Guide... and start protecting your family from the scourge of harmful ingredients in common foods.

Excerpts from FOOD ADDITIVES: A Shopper's Guide... #4

The GRAS classification of safety by the FDA does not guarantee that the additive is safe. The FDA evaluates additives based upon their ability to cause cancer and harmful reproductive effects, generally ignoring other harmful outcomes. In addition, a number of formerly GRAS additives have been removed from the GRAS list after they were found to be harmful. It is virtually certain that some additives in common use now, and considered to be safe, will one day be banned.

Learn how to protect your family from harmful food additives.

Excerpts from FOOD ADDITIVES: A Shopper's Guide... #3

HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

The codes below are to the left of each additive and indicate the safety of the additive.

*         GRAS - Generally Recognized As Safe by the FDA

o         FDA Approved colorant

S         There is no known toxicity. The additive appears to be safe.

A         The additive may cause allergic reactions.

C         Caution is advised. The additive may be unsafe, poorly tested, or used in foods we eat too much of.

C1       Caution is advised for certain groups in the population, such as pregnant women, infants, persons with high blood pressure, kidney problems, etc.

X         The additive is unsafe or very poorly tested.

Get your copy of FOOD ADDITIVES: A Shopper's Guide ... and make sure the food you buy doesn't contain harmful ingredients that can make you sick.

Excerpts from FOOD ADDITIVES: A Shopper's Guide... #2

Even if all of the food additives used in our foods were safe individually, rarely does any food have only one additive in it. Testing for additive safety has been done for individual additives, not for combinations of additives. Additives that are safe individually may be harmful in certain combinations. Nobody knows the effects of the many different additives used in the thousands of different combinations.

This book lists 800 of the most common food additives. Each additive is preceeded by a code representing it's safety and the advisability of its use. The code indicates if the additive is generally recognized as safe (GRAS) by the FDA, and an evaluation of its safety and advisability of its use, independent of the FDA evaluation. The codes are listed on page 7 under HOW TO USE THIS BOOK.

Excerpts from FOOD ADDITIVES: A Shopper's Guide... #1

This book will guide you when you're shopping to help you make informed choices about the foods you buy. It's purposely small so you can carry it in your pocket or purse.

There are more than 3000 different chemicals that are purposefully added to our food supply. The testing for the safety of these chemicals is generally done by the company that wants to produce the chemicals or to use the chemical additives in the foods they produce. The Delaney Clause of the 1958 Food Additives Amendment states that any additives shown to cause cancer in humans or animals are not permitted to be added to our food. However, political pressure has caused the FDA to relax these standards and allow small amounts of cancer-causing substances to be used in foods.

Learn more about food additives.