Food additives are substances that are applied to a food during processing or preparation in order to maintain flavors and freshness while also improving taste and appearance.

Despite the fact that some have been used for decades, the use of such food additives is becoming increasingly common, and some of them are particularly harmful to your health, if not toxic.

I'm not referring to the occasional intake of a particular packaged food containing additives, which poses no risk to anyone. I'm referring to everyday usage. According to statistics, the average American spends about 90% of his or her budget on this type of food; this means that if you open an American refrigerator or look up on the shelves, you'll find loads of frozen, dehydrated, artificial, or processed food, all of which is incredibly unhealthy and can lead to health issues if consumed regularly.

↚

The variety of names and codes they're labeled with, as well as the tiny fonts used to list them on the ingredient list, make these food ingredients notoriously difficult to recognise.

The top ten toxic ingredients are listed below.

Get your magnifying glass and begin reading labels!

1) High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS)

HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup) is a highly modified artificial sweetener derived from corn starch that can be used in nearly any packaged product, including bread and baked goods, salad dressing, candies, milk, and soda. According to some surveys, it has surpassed meat as the most common source of calories in the United States.

Indeed, because of its ease of use and low cost, it has become the most common granulated sugar substitute: Over the last 40 years, our consumption of refined sugar has decreased while our consumption of HFCS has increased by nearly 20 times.

HFCS has been linked to weight gain, increased LDL (“bad”) cholesterol levels, and has been linked to the development of diabetes and tissue damage, among other negative consequences.

Furthermore, recent studies published by the American Association for Cancer Research have discovered that the fructose in HFCS promotes cancer development, especially pancreatic cancer.

Sodium Nitrate and Sodium Nitrite are two types of sodium nitrate (NaNO3- NaNO2)

Both are chemical compounds used as food additives to preserve and add a sweet red pinkish color to cured meats, smoked fish, and poultry. Despite the fact that their function appears to be benign, these ingredients are extremely carcinogenic, and their consumption has been linked to gastrointestinal cancer and heart disease.

In reality, under some conditions, they can produce nitrosamines, which are cancer-causing molecules in both animals and humans.

Nitrite – and nitrate, which can convert to nitrite in some conditions – can also cause methemoglobinemia in large doses. In our bodies, nitrites have the ability to transform the composition of hemoglobin into methemoglobin, which has a higher affinity for oxygen in the remaining heme sites when oxygen is bound to it. This causes the red blood cell's overall capacity to release oxygen to tissue to be decreased, which can result in tissue hypoxia.

You can't stop consuming salami, bacon, or ham? Pick the ones who haven't been healed.

Sodium Nitrate has the E number E250, while Sodium Nitrite has the INS number 251 or E number E251.

3) Monosodium Glutammate (MSG)

MSG is a taste enhancer that is widely used in Chinese cuisine, canned vegetables, soups, and processed meats. Although glutamic acid is naturally present in our bodies and many foods, such as tomatoes and cheese, it is chemically generated by hydrolysis of vegetable proteins with hydrochloric acid to disrupt peptide bonds or fermentation of starch, sugar beets, sugar cane, or molasses in the processed-foods industry.

The substance created has the power to excite our taste buds and make it taste delicious, which wouldn't be such a big deal if high levels of MSG didn't have been shown to mess with brain chemistry, causing damage to areas of the brain not covered by the blood-brain barrier.

4) Synthetic Colors

Food dyes are one of the most popular ingredients in processed foods, and they're used to make your meals or beverages taste better.

That would be fine if they hadn't been connected to any significant health issues.

Blue No. 1 and Blue No. 2 (E133)

Norway, Finland, and France have all banned it. Chromosome damage is possible.

Candy, cereal, soft drinks, sports drinks, and pet foods all contain this chemical.

Red dye #3 (also known as Red #40, which is a more recent dye) (E124)

After eight years of debate, it was banned from use in many foods and cosmetics in 1990. Until stocks run out, this dye will be available on the market! In laboratory animals, it has been shown to cause thyroid cancer and chromosomal damage, and it may also interfere with brain-nerve transmission.

Fruit drink, maraschino cherries, cherry pie mix, ice cream, sweets, bakery goods, and more contain maraschino cherries.

Yellow Tartrazine (E110) and Yellow #6 (E110) (E102)

Norway and Sweden have banned it. In laboratory animals, it increases the number of kidney and adrenal gland tumors and can cause chromosomal damage.

American cheese, macaroni and cheese, candy and carbonated drinks, lemonade, and more contain this ingredient! (Image courtesy of the Food Matters website)

The slogan "Eat the Rainbow" is still cool, but please keep it natural!

5) BHA & BHT BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole), also known as E320, and BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene) are two organic compounds commonly used as preservatives in the food industry because of their antioxidant properties, which can avoid rancidification of fat-containing foods.

Despite the FDA's declaration that they are healthy, the National Institutes of Health in the United States stated that they may cause cancer by causing reactive compounds in our bodies.

They can also cause problems with the hormonal and neurological systems.

Pick up a bag of chips, a packet of cereal, a package of frozen sausages, or simply chew a gum, and you're likely to come across BHA and/or BHT (or, even worse, both of them) in the ingredients list.

Artificial Sweeteners (No. 6)

Artificial sweeteners are sugar substitutes that are used to give beverages and foods a sweet taste without the calories of sucrose.

The most well-known is aspartame, also known as NutraSweet, Equal, and E951. It tastes 200 times sweeter than sugar, but it has a bitter effect on the human body: it is a neurotoxin and carcinogen.

According to some reports, it is the most harmful drug on the market, with a wide variety of health effects ranging from minor problems like memory loss, headaches, and dizziness to more severe issues like multiple sclerosis, diabetes, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, fibromyalgia, and mental disorders.

Acetisulfame K, Saccharin (Sweet'N Low, SugarTwin), and Sucralose (Splenda) should also be avoided.

Sulfur Dioxide 

Sulfur Dioxide is an antimicrobial and antioxidant chemical compound that is used as a preservative in dried fruits such as apricots, raisins, and prunes, as well as in fruit juices, cereal bars, and breakfast cereal to avoid discoloration, ripening, and rotting.

It's a good idea to look for it on food labels, as well as sulfites in general, with numbers in the range E220-228, but companies are only supposed to list it if there are more than 10 parts per million (ppm) in the finished product.

Although it is safe for healthy people when used at prescribed doses, it can cause asthma and respiratory problems in sensitive people when consumed, including at high dilutio levels.

8) Trans Fatty Acids

“Trans fats, also known as trans-unsaturated fatty acids or trans fatty acids, are a form of unsaturated fat found in small quantities in nature but widely manufactured industrially from vegetable fats for use in margarine, snack foods, packaged baked goods, and frying fast food beginning in the 1950s. Trans fat has been linked to an increased risk of coronary artery disease, a leading cause of death in Western countries, in an intake-dependent manner.”

Trans fats, in reality, have the ability to raise LDL (bad cholesterol) levels while lowering HDL (good cholesterol) levels in our bodies. Quick food restaurants are high in trans fat. Here is a list of health problems related to trans fat consumption: Alzheimer's disease, coronary artery disease, cancer, diabetes, obesity, liver dysfunctions, infertility, depression, and memory loss are just some of the conditions that can affect you.

Remember them when you're eating your fries!

Sodium Benzoate (No. 9)

The sodium salt of benzoic acid, sodium benzoate, is well-known for its antifungal properties.

Pick up a can of soda and you'll almost certainly find it as an ingredient (E211). It is widely used in the soft drink industry, and not only there. This chemical compound is mainly used to improve the taste of acidic foods such as prickles, sauces, and vinegars.

When combined with ascorbic acid (also known as Vitamin C), sodium benzoate has an unfavorable side effect: it produces benzene, a powerful carcinogen that contributes to the development of a variety of cancers.

10) Bromate of potassium

Last but not least, potassium bromate is a flour additive used in the United States to boost dough elasticity and strength and enable it to rise higher.

Potassium bromate was declared a potential human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer in 1999. It has since been outlawed in many countries, including Europe and Canada, but not in the United States, where studies have discovered it in over 86 baked goods found on supermarket shelves.