When it comes to food additives, many people scoff and think that it should be banned, but in Germany, people have built additive museums and attracted many tourists, if you are interested, you can also go to see.
In the museum, there are rows of shelves with cartons on them, and labels introduce the types of additives in them, do you think this is a bad additive? No, it's actually showing people that additives should be treated correctly, not as beasts of prey, and that people's diets can't live without them.
Colorants: sunset yellow, carmine, red yeast pigment, titanium dioxide, bright blue, etc
Bleaching agents: sulfur dioxide, sulfur, sodium sulfite, etc
Preservatives: sodium benzoate, potassium sorbate, sorbic acid, calcium propionate, etc
Leavening agent: sodium bicarbonate, ammonium bicarbonate, etc
Acidity regulators: citric acid, tartaric acid, malic acid, potassium citrate, etc
……
There are more than 2,000 kinds of food additives, which are simply listed here to give everyone a general understanding of them. It is precisely because of its many types that it can be used in a variety of foods to bring wonderful experiences to the taste buds. But there is a saying on the Internet that the high incidence of cancer in China is related to additives in food, is it really reasonable?
(1) People treat chemical raw materials as food additives
For example, in the past, the well-known Sudanese red mooncake incident, people are scolding how the additives are, do not know, its "real body" is a chemical dye, not used to eat, generally used to add color to the oil, or to make the floor, leather shoes become bright.
There is also melamine, the culprit of the "poisoned milk powder" incident, which is also a proper chemical raw material, and from a legal point of view, they are originally banned from the food industry.
Now would you still say that it is the fault of food additives?
(2) People are misled by zero-additive products
There was nothing in the food additives, and suddenly one day there was a kind of "no additive" on the market, breaking the current balance, and in its contrast, the additive seemed to become the wrong party, inexplicably rejected by people. In fact, as long as it is legal and reasonable, there is no one who is right and who is wrong.
(3) Illegal merchants use food additives in excess of doses
It is indeed an additive that can be complied with, but in order to achieve better results, overdoses are used, which may bring health risks to consumers, and if they are not professionals, they cannot eat at all. Such problems are worrying.
In the process of law enforcement, the Tianjin Jinghai District Market Supervision Bureau found that some vendors added a large amount of baking powder and aluminum to the oil cake in order to make the food more fluffy and delicious, so they punished it. Through this incident, people are also worried about other restaurants around them, will there be overdoses in other homes? However, there are three additives that should indeed be touched less, and there may be a risk of carcinogenicity.
Nitrite – May induce stomach cancer
First explain in advance, in a safe dose, the use of it will not cause cancer, but if it is used excessively, it may pose a health risk. It is often seen in pickled foods and can improve the preservative ability of food. In related animal experiments, it did increase the risk of esophageal cancer in mice, and human experiments were also conducted, showing that long-term intake of food containing high doses of nitrite increased the incidence of tumors. Therefore, people who usually love to eat pickled foods should pay attention to the right amount and touch less.
Potassium bromate – may induce kidney cancer
Its use has been banned because it has been found in animal experiments to have a certain link with cancer. It was often seen in pasta and baked goods in the pasta and baked goods, and it can make bread large and soft, and it looks very appetizing. Its harm is mainly in the kidneys, it is best to touch less.
Carrageenan – may affect development
People who love jelly and ice cream should be familiar with it, adding it to food can become viscous, more elastic, and can also bring you a fat-like taste, in addition to snacks, cold drinks, in addition to meat products can also be added. Injection of glue meat is added by unscrupulous traders carrageenan, if it is eaten for a long time, it may affect intellectual development, especially pregnant women and children, must touch less of this kind of food.
Everyone should know that tofu has been made since ancient times, so how does the ground bean juice solidify? It is necessary to use salt brine, which is the old saying "brine point tofu", and have to admire the wisdom of the ancients. ——(Coagulant)
And fritters, do you think alum fritters are a product of modernization? No, in fact, it has existed since the Southern Song Dynasty. ——(Leavening agent)
It can be seen that the use of additives has a long history, and I have never heard of anyone who eats tofu and has cancer. China's high incidence of cancer, can not be said to be the problem of additives, the fault is not them, but we, is some users of improper operation, so that people have a prejudice against additives, if it is used rationally, additives can also bring convenience to life, so that food becomes more delicious.
Finally, remind everyone that "zero additive≠ health, less additives, food has lost its "soul", there may be mold or other microorganisms, accidentally eating will also affect health. In short, remember to add a few words according to the law.
Resources: [1] The German Additive Museum is visited by many visitors. Life Times.2020-07-18 [2] Are food additives really beasts of prey?. China Economic Net.2021-06-05 [3] Tianjin first-morning shop food additives exceeded the limit and has been transferred to the public security. Tianjin Daily.2021-12-05 [4] Popular Science China: What are food additives. Chinese Academy of Sciences China Science Expo.2016-01-15