http://www.montalk.net

Kinda makes that Twinkie stick in the throat after reading this....

Ever wonder why junk food is so cheap, despite having so many ingredients? It would seem that they require costly refining processes and complex preparation procedures. So why are Hostess, Little Debbie, and Twinkie snacks a mere dollar a box sometimes, and why are value meals called "value" meals? And yet all the health food that contains one tenth the number of ingredients tends to cost two or three times as much. Some say it's because the added preservatives in junk food improve shelf life, so it's cheaper to keep the products on sale for longer periods of time.

But that's only part of the answer. The real reason is that junk food is an effective method of industrial waste disposal. Many of those unpronounceable chemicals you see on the ingredient list are byproducts that some clever chemists have marketed to junk food, soft drink, tobacco, and cosmetics companies. Waste is normally expensive to dispose of, but with invented demand it becomes another industry's treasure. Everyone wins except the consumer.

Even the orthodox medical industry makes billions in blood money from patients who have gotten cancer, neurological damage, and other ills from the consumption of these waste products. The low price attracts thrifty consumers, particularly lower class families.

The elite have never been fond of these, whom they call "useless eaters"; feeding them dangerous chemicals apparently makes them useful as waste receptacles, though. Next time you pay for junk food, just remember that it will be paid in two installments: first in cash, then in health. A little might not hurt, but a consistent diet will take its toll.

The simplest solution is to eat simple: spend more time in the fruits, vegetable, and cut-meat section of the grocery store than the refined foods areas. Overall it is cheaper and healthier. Complaining that one doesn't have time to cook fresh foods is a poor excuse, especially if the time saved by eating junk food is spent watching TV.

THE DANGERS OF FOOD ADDITIVES
by Dr. William Rice DC, DACBN, CCN, FACCN

A food additive is a substance other than basic foodstuffs, present in a food as a result of any aspect of processing, production or storage. This does not include chance contaminants. Some additives are beneficial, some are harmless, some are even poisonous. Although sometimes enriching, additives have
little or nothing to do with the nutritional value of the food.

Manufacturers are required by law to list the ingredients on the package in descending order of predominance of the amount used. (Review "Understanding Food Labels".) There are certain "standard" foods, however, for which no ingredients need be listed, such as mayonnaise, ketchup and ice cream. For example, 93 additives may go unlabeled in bakery products, 76 in soft drinks, 58 in frozen desserts and 31 in cheese.

While additives are subject to a variety of tests for their potential or immediate toxicity, many additives have not been tested long enough to determine their safety. The list of damaging effects from long- or short-term consumption of food additives includes genetic damage, birth defects, brain damage, retardation, paralysis, cancers of all kinds, miscellaneous tumors, kidney and liver damage, heart damage, poisoning, allergic reactions, hyperactivity, migraine headaches and death. There is evidence to suggest that the allergenic properties of many additives may cause hyperactivity in children.

The question for the individual then becomes one of common sense. Consumers should read the package label and then decide, "Is this what I want to put into my body?"

The following information was designed to make you a more knowledgeable consumer as well as to encourage you to think more carefully about the value and content of the food you eat. In this way you can answer the above question from a more objective perspective.

The most common food additives:

Sodium/Potassium Nitrate and Nitrite -- chemical preservatives used in meats, cold cuts, frankfurters, sausage, smoked meats and cured fish as a color fixative. These are extremely toxic substances that destroy nutrients and vitamins. When combined with protein (amino acids), they form powerful cancer-causing substances: nitrosamines.

BHA/BHT -- chemical preservatives and antioxidants used in beverages, gum, ice cream, ices, candy, baked goods, gelatin desserts, soup bases, potatoes, dry breakfast cereals, dry yeast and shortening. They can cause stress, liver and kidney disorders and allergic reactions. They are possibly carcinogenic.

MSG (Monosodium glutamate) -- use as a flavor enhancer in almost all processed foods. "Accent" is pure MSG. This is the substance believed responsible for the "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome" consisting of chest pain, headache, dizziness or numbness after a Chinese meal. It causes brain damage in young rodents and other laboratory animals. It can also cause effects in the reproductive systems and may be carcinogenic.

EDTA -- a sequestrant (a substance that renders metal ions inactive by absorbing them) in carbonated beverages, canned seafood and salad dressings. It is used to retard crystal formation and promote color retention. It can cause muscle cramps and kidney and gastrointestinal disorders. Sodium/Calcium Propionate -- a mold and fungus inhibitor in bread and rolls, also used in poultry stuffing, chocolate products, processed cheeses, cakes, cupcakes and artificially sweetened fruit jelly and preserves. It has been used as an antifungal medication for the skin. It can cause allergic reactions.

Sodium Benzoate -- used as a flavoring and as a preservative in margarine, codfish, bottled soft drinks, mince meat, fruit juices, pickles, confections, fruit jelly, preserves and jams. It is also used in the ice used to keep fish cold. It can cause intestinal upset and allergic reactions.

Mono- and diglycerides -- emulsifying and defoaming agents used in bakery products to maintain softness, in beverages, ice cream, ices, ice milk, milk, chewing gum base, shortening, oleomargarine, confections, chocolate and whipped toppings. The diglycerides are being studied for possible mutagenic
(causing genetic changes) and teratogenic (causing changes in the developing embryo) effects.

Food colors -- some are coal tar derivatives used in soft drinks, ice cream, candy, baked goods, snack foods, cereals and cosmetics. They can cause allergic reactions, hives and asthmatic symptoms and are possibly carcinogenic.

Sulfur Dioxide -- used to bleach vegetable colors and to preserve fruits and vegetables, as a disinfectant in breweries and food factories, a bleaching agent in gelatin and beet sugar, an antioxidant, and as a preservative and anti-browning agent in wine, corn syrup, table syrup, jelly and dried fruits, beverages, dehydrated potatoes, soup and condiments. It destroys Vitamin A and is very poisonous and highly irritating. Inhalation of the gas produces respiratory irritation and death when sufficiently concentrated.

Aspartame  aka Nutrasweet is the most recent low-calorie sweetener to be perpetrated on the American consumer seeking to lose weight. This substance is a combination of two amino acids. Together, they may alter nerve tissue function and cause memory loss, panic attacks and many other nervous disorders. In addition, it may mimic several chronic degenerative disorders or aggravate them; multiple sclerosis, alzheimerâ's, fibromyalgia, arthritis, parkinson's disease, lupus , multiple chemical sensitivities (MCS), diabetes, epilepsy, chronic fatigue syndrome, lyme disease, attention deficit disorder (ADD and
ADHD), panic disorder, depression and other psychological disorders.

For more information, read A Consumer's Dictionary of Additives by Ruth Winter (Crown Publishing Co., NY).
 

Back to Basics 

Knowing “Body Basics” exposes illogic of drug and vaccine solutions to a flu pandemic 

This column was started to teach people how basic healthcare should be when one understands how the body works and what steps one should take when experiencing any type of dis-ease. I firmly believe that the current CDC and Bush administration promoted avian flu hysteria can only happen due to this general ignorance of basic health principles. Let’s face it: Our public education system has been controlled by social engineers whose goals do not include preparing our youth for responsible adulthood by becoming independent-thinking citizens. How many graduating high school seniors know their current legal status as a citizen, the basics of our legal system, how banking really works, how a healthy economic system functions, and the fundamentals of how their body works? So far I haven’t met any young adults who know this foundational information and, sadly, most home-schoolers do not know such vital information either.

Proper Digestion and Whole Foods Diet - keys to immune function

 Due to years of eating processed, pre-packaged cooked foods, most Americans have accumulated fecal material in their small and large intestines. Much of this brown sludge is a result of partially digested cooked food and is a perfect breeding ground for parasites.

Your body will also accumulate waste if it is not getting the proper nutrients it needs and lacks sufficient oxygen, creating the acidic condition that is necessary for pathogens to thrive.

The first step is to do a colon cleanse. There are many out there. I still recommend the 7-day colon cleanse devised by Dr. Bernard Jensen and memorialized in his book, Tissue Cleansing Through Bowel Management (c.1981). Since then, several innovations in colon cleansing have come my way. Dr. Richard Schulze at www.HerbDoc.com or 1-800-HerbDoc has written the best newsletter on this topic, “Your Colon: Knowing what goes on in the last 5 feet can save your life!” March 2002 Get Well! newsletter, and provides his clients with a very easy to follow colon cleanse that produces amazing results. (See April 2002 Back to Basics column.) Recently I was made aware of an even easier 13-day cleanse that is disguised for food addicts as a 13-day whole food nutritional event called the Tri-Decathlon, and described as “an inner run down the full length of the alimentary canal every day for 13 days”. (See Whole Food Farmacy ad on this page.)

According to ASH founder Vickie Barker, who assists thousands in reclaiming their health, the latest medical scam is to perform a colostomy, the complete removal of the entire colon. According to the 2005 World Almanac, approximately 150,000 cases of colon cancer will be diagnosed this year with about 60,000 people dying of colon cancer in this country alone.

If you have never done any fasting or cleansing in your life, you will much more vulnerable to getting whatever flu bug our government has decided to unleash upon us. Colon cleansing is the first step to take in eliminating the breeding ground for a wide range of pathogens as well as parasites. Once you decide to do a colon cleansing program, it is easier to make the transition to a whole foods diet. Once you are eating raw, enzyme-rich whole foods, you need to learn how to eat properly. Master herbalist and naturopath John Christopher taught his students to “drink their solid food and chew their liquids”. This means that every thing we put into our mouth should be thoroughly mixed with saliva before swallowing it. Our bodies produce one and a half pints of saliva for digesting each and every meal we eat. Our saliva is what stimulates the production of our other digestive juices such as hydrochloric acid. After years of coffee drinking and washing our food down with water or milk while eating, most Americans have extremely poor digestion. (Have you ever seen kernels of corn appear in your stool?) Dr. Christopher’s simple solution for restoring our body’s ability to digest our food properly is to drink 20-30 minutes before each meal a beverage made with one tablespoon of organic and raw apple cider and a half a teaspoon of honey in 8 oz. of warm water. Each mouthful of this beverage needs to be swished in the mouth, mixing it thoroughly with saliva before swallowing. This simple remedy works wonders for chronic indigestion and heartburn.

 Your Liver – master filter of your circulatory system

 Your bloodstream and lymphatic system are barometers of your state of health. It is the liver that detoxifies the blood circulating throughout your body. Most Americans have gallbladders filled with gallstones and livers that are so “diseased” that they can no longer properly filter the many chemicals and toxins we are exposed to through our food, air and water. And many Americans have undergone gallbladder surgery, having this important organ completely eliminated from their body. For those who have no gallbladder at all, stones end up forming in the liver itself, further compromising its function as our body’s master filter.

Dr. Schulze also describes the liver as our life force and the main source of our energy. The liver synthesizes the sugar glucose from carbohydrates that we eat. Glucose could be called “pure energy” since it is used by our brain and our cells for the energy needed to run our bodies. Excess glucose is stored by our liver as glycogen and can be converted back to glucose whenever energy is needed. The liver is a virtual natural chemical factory, making vitamins, clotting factors, amino acids and the cholesterol needed to produce steroid (sex) hormones and other important metabolic chemicals. It even makes vital lipoproteins. The liver also stores such energy nutrients vitamin B-12 and iron as well as vitamins A, D, E and K.

As you can see, keeping your liver and gallbladder in good working order are major keys in boosting immune function. There are a variety of liver and gallbladder cleanses that can be done to ensure the optimal functioning of these organs. Due to the constant barrage of chemicals and known toxins we are exposed to daily, periodic liver cleansing is essential to restoring and maintaining our health. (See May 2002 Back to Basics column.)

 How clean is your bloodstream?

 Naturopath Carol Geck uses live blood cell analysis and iridology as a means of giving  her patients an accurate diagnosis, revealing which body systems need healing and are the likely source for their ailments. One friend of mine was experiencing ill health for the first time in her life after returning from Peru. Since she was fanatical about eating organic foods, raising some food in her garden, and keeping pharmaceutical drugs and vaccines away from herself and children, I too was puzzled as to what could be the source of her ailments. I suggested she go on a fast that incorporated colon cleansing, a parasite flush and gallbladder flush. She did a modified fast and cleanse but didn’t feel that this was the source of her problems. Exasperated, I sent her to Carol Geck for a more thorough diagnosis. Carol told her that the live blood cell analysis revealed in extremely toxic bloodstream – one of the worse she had seen! My friend didn’t want to hear this, having a difficult time believing this could be the case. Later I found out that she was pressured into receiving the Hepatitis A and B vaccines prior to traveling to Peru.

How much sense does it make to inject a cocktail of pathogens, heavy metals, and known poisons into the lymphatic system where these toxins can access every cell in your body while polluting your bloodstream in the process? John Christopher always told his students that the bloodstream is the river of life. A bloodstream that is polluted by chemicals, drugs and vaccines cannot produce health.

Another friend of ours who sees Carol Geck once or twice a year was told recently that his bloodstream was one of the cleanest she has ever seen. She asked him what he was doing. He told her that he takes vitamin C and oil of oregano daily.

So there you have it. One of the best ways to “protect” one from the flu or cold bug is to take 1,000 mg. of vitamin C daily (in powdered form mixed with juice) and taking a dropper full of oil of oregano that has been diluted with pure olive oil. (See February 2003 Back to Basics column.)

A good check to see where your body is in terms of being “susceptible” to an infestation of parasites or pathogens such as a flu virus, is the Ph test that can be done first thing in the morning before eating or drinking anything. For our convenience, we keep test strips by the toilet in the bathroom. You can purchase a roll of Ph test strips at your local drug store or online at www.azurestandard.com  If your body is over acid by registering a Ph of 5.5 or lower, you are in need of a cleanse, a better diet and nutrients that will support your body’s ability to heal itself.

With the current flu hysteria being hyped by the media and our federal government, it is important now more than ever before to get our body “temple” in order through colon cleansing, liver cleansing, a whole foods diet, plenty of purified water and the power of prayer.

References:

1)      Dr. Richard Schulze, Healing Liver and Gallbladder Disease Naturally, 2003.

2)      Dr. Richard Schulze, Health and Healing: 20 Simple, Easy and Powerful Steps to Create a New Healthy Life, 2002.

3)      Dr. Richard Schulze’s newsletter, Get Well! March and May 2002. Available online at www.HerbDoc.com   

Note to homeschoolers: Make sure the above books and newsletters are part of your curriculum.

Did you know that the FDA has acknowledged that benzene, a carcinogen, has been found in U.S. soft drinks at four times the limit considered safe for drinking water? This contradicts earlier FDA statements that the levels of benzene were insignificant. Organizations such as the Environmental Working Group have accused the FDA of concealing information about benzene in soft drinks.  Benzene has been linked to leukemia. It can form in soft drinks made with vitamin C and sodium or potassium benzoate. America's Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said last week an ongoing investigation, also known as work by independent scientist James Neal-Kababick, showed its tests for benzene in drinks over the last 15 years may be faulty.

Kababick has now announced his Flora Research Laboratories in California have developed a new procedure that would minimise the formation of benzene during testing by halving the time and temperature needed to measure benzene levels in drinks.

Current FDA tests for benzene involved heating up the beverage, a process likely to increase benzene formation in the drink during testing and, therefore, risk unrealistic results.  Recent FDA testing has found some soft drinks containing benzene, a known carcinogen, above the maximum level allowed in US drinking water. The suspected source is two common ingredients - sodium benzoate and ascorbic acid (vitamin C) - in the drinks.  The FDA and soft drinks industry have known for 15 that these two ingredients could react to form benzene in drinks, as well as that exposing such a drink to heat could significantly raise benzene levels. Kababick said that, bearing this in mind, "it took me 10 minutes to realise the problem with their [FDA] testing method".

His new method has now been contracted by the US government's Office of Dietary Supplements to help it examine benzene formation in liquid supplements and vitamin drinks that also contain sodium benzoate. It could also help soft drinks firms, and producers of other liquid foods or supplements containing the two ingredients, to examine their own products.  Kababick said: "A different sampling technique to remove benzene means we can measure levels down to 500 parts per trillion, which makes it more sensitive than the FDA method. It is important for producers to see benzene formation before it hits the EU or FDA limits for water."

The flaw identified in FDA testing for benzene does not, however, mean the agency and soft drinks firms are out of the woods.  It was unclear why the FDA had apparently not altered its testing method for benzene in the 15 years since it first made the link between benzene and the sodium benzoate-ascorbic acid combination, in 1990. "They have lots of labs all over the country and there could be a lot of factors involved, but I'm not sure why the FDA did not address this
matter," said Kababick. And, he added, the new testing procedure should not be used to belittle the issue of benzene forming in drinks containing sodium benzoate and ascorbic acid.  Recent tests on drinks conducted by Kababick found a bottled lemon concentrate drink with 50 parts per billion benzene, five times above the World Health Organisation's limit for benzene in tap water.

"Actually I would grade that as fairly accurate," said Kababick, despite the result coming from what he termed a transition testing model. Other tests done by Kababick's Flora labs revealed "fairly low" levels of benzene in various different kinds of soft drinks.  But, he said, all the samples had been refrigerated prior to testing, and the effect of heat on benzene formation should not be discounted.

Industry testing on soft drinks 15 years ago is thought to have found that temperatures of 30°C and exposure to UV light for several hours were enough to more than triple benzene residues in some drinks. Both Kababick and a food scientist who worked on those industry tests said it was essential for authorities and companies to test for benzene in soft drinks exposed to a range of different storage and transport conditions.

"Not all consumers are buying their beverages from refrigerators in grocery stores. And sometimes when the drinks are brought home they are left standing in the sun on a porch or in a hot car," said Kababick.  Data reported by America's soft drinks industry association in the 1980s showed that soft drinks could be exposed to between 32°C and 49°C in US summer months.  Kababick said his new testing procedure merely aimed to provide greater accuracy during tests on drinks from a range of different conditions. He expected to publish a journal article on the procedure, together with tests on drinks, within six months.

The stakes are high following recalls of drinks in the UK, and the launch last week of the first lawsuits against soft drinks firms over benzene in drinks.

Law firm McRoberts, Roberts & Rainer LLP joined forces with tobacco litigation veteran Tim Howard to file class action lawsuits against In Zone Brands, who make Bellywashers drinks, and Polar Beverages.  They alleged independent tests showed both companies had drinks contaminated with benzene above the limit for drinking water in the US. 

The FDA has repeatedly said that none of the benzene levels it had found in drinks so far were considered a health risk for consumers.

The continuing presence of the issue 15 years after it was discovered, however, suggests a communication breakdown. Soft drinks firms pledged in 1990 to "get the word out and reformulate". The American Beverage Association said reformulation did take place, but that some brands may not be aware of the potential for sodium benzoate and ascorbic acid to form benzene.  "15 years ago it was under control, but this is a fast-growing industry. There are a lot of new companies, a lot of new brands and things have changed," association spokesperson Kevin Keane said.  Robert this is just another piece of information I had to share with you. I hope that you take this info to heart and choose nice, clean, pure water the next time you think about a "soft drink". 
Until next time, drink lots of water!

Dr. Mike
www.BioTruth.com
 

The 59 ingredients in a fast-food strawberry milkshake
To make one at home, you need four fresh ingredients. The processed version isn't so simple ...

Monday April 24, 2006

Guardian

Britons now spend more than £52bn on food every year - and more than 90% of that money is spent on processed food. But the canning, freezing and dehydrating techniques used to process food destroy most of its flavour. Since the end of the second world war, a vast industry has arisen to make processed food taste good.
During the past two decades the flavour industry's role in food production has become so influential that many children now like man-made flavours more than the real thing. As marketing to children has become more and more important to processed food companies and fast food chains, flavourists have increased their efforts to discover what children like. The flavour companies constantly run "taste tests" for kids - focus groups in which new products are piloted.

Fresh fruit and vegetables often have complicated, unpredictable flavours that combine bitterness with sweetness. When flavourists create additives for adult foods, they try to imitate nature as closely as possible. When flavourists create additives for kids' foods, they usually get rid of the bitterness and increase the sweetness. Children's flavours are often twice as sweet as those made for adults.

"Children's expectation of a strawberry is completely different," says one flavourist. "They want something that is strong and that has something like bubblegum notes."

The phrase "artificial strawberry flavour" offers little hint of the scientific wizardry that can make a highly processed food taste like a strawberry. For example, if you wanted to make a strawberry milkshake at home, here's all you'd need: ice, cream, strawberries, sugar and a touch of vanilla.

Now take a look at the ingredients you might find in a fast-food strawberry milkshake: milkfat and nonfat milk, sugar, sweet whey, high-fructose corn syrup, guar gum, monoglycerides and diglycerides, cellulose gum, sodium phosphate, carrageenan, citric acid, E129 and artificial strawberry flavour.

And what does that "artificial strawberry flavour" contain?

Just these few yummy chemicals: amyl acetate, amyl butyrate, amyl valerate, anethol, anisyl formate, benzyl acetate, benzyl isobutyrate, butyric acid, cinnamyl isobutyrate, cinnamyl valerate, cognac essential oil, diacetyl, dipropyl ketone, ethyl butyrate, ethyl cinnamate, ethyl heptanoate, ethyl heptylate, ethyl lactate, ethyl methylphenylglycidate, ethyl nitrate, ethyl propionate, ethyl valerate, heliotropin, hydroxyphrenyl- 2-butanone (10% solution in alcohol), ionone, isobutyl anthranilate, isobutyl butyrate, lemon essential oil, maltol, 4-methylacetophenone, methyl anthranilate, methyl benzoate, methyl cinnamate, methyl heptine carbonate, methyl naphthyl ketone, methyl salicylate, mint essential oil, neroli essential oil, nerolin, neryl isobutyrate, orris butter, phenethyl alcohol, rose, rum ether, undecalactone, vanillin and solvent.

The chicken nuggets and hamburgers at fast food restaurants are usually the least profitable things on the menu. Selling French fries is profitable - and selling soft drinks is incredibly profitable. "We at McDonald's are thankful," a top executive once said, "that people like drinks with their sandwiches." Today, McDonald's sells more Coca-Cola than anyone else in the world.

The fast food chains buy Coca-Cola syrup for about 53p a litre. They add the syrup to bubbly water and serve it in a paper cup. A medium Coke that sells for 75p contains about 5p worth of syrup. Buying a large Coke for 85p instead, as the worker behind the counter always suggests, will add another 2p worth of syrup - and another 8p in pure profit.

Thanks in large part to the marketing efforts of the fast food chains, Americans now drink about twice the amount of soft drinks as they did 30 years ago. In 1975, the typical American drank about 120 litres of soft drinks a year. Today, the typical American drinks about 240 litres of soft drinks a year. That's well over 500 340ml cans of soft drink, per person, every year.

Even toddlers are now drinking soft drinks. About 20% of American children between the ages of one and two drink soft drinks every day.

Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2007

  Food Additives Could Fuel Hyperactivity in Kids
Study makes first link between colorings, preservatives and behavioral woes.

By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter


(SOURCES: David Katz, M.D., M.P.H., director, Prevention Research Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Conn.; Sept. 6, 2007, The Lancet)

THURSDAY, Sept. 6 (HealthDay News) -- Some common food colorings and preservatives appear to increase the risk of hyperactive behavior among children, British researchers report. The link between food additives and hyperactivity has long been suspected, but this is the first study to show a direct connection. The findings have already caused the British government's Food Standards Agency, which funded the study, to issue a warning to parents about food additives.

"Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is an increasingly common problem, and theories abound to account for that," said Dr. David Katz, director of the Prevention Research Center at Yale University School of Medicine. "Among them is the notion that food additives induce hyperactivity." Despite this apparent connection, Katz cautioned that the increasing number of children with ADHD cannot be blamed on food additives alone. "No one factor is solely responsible for rising rates of ADHD," Katz said. "Along with the hazards of a highly processed food supply, children are getting less and less physical activity as a means of dissipating their native rambunctiousness."

In the study, Jim Stevenson, a professor of psychology at the University of Southampton, and his colleagues gave drinks containing additives to 297 children. The children were in two groups: 3-year-olds and 8- and 9-year-olds. The drinks contained artificial food coloring and additives such as sodium benzoate, a preservative. These concoctions were similar to the drinks that are commercially available. The amount of additives were also similar to what is found in one or two servings of candy a day, according to the report.

As a control, some children were given drinks without additives, according to the report in the Sept. 6 issue of The Lancet. Over the six weeks of the trial, Stevenson's team found that children in both age groups who drank the drinks containing additives displayed significantly more hyperactive behavior. These children also had shorter attention spans. However, which specific additives caused specific behavioral problems is not known, the researchers said.

One of the additives, sodium benzoate, has been linked to cell damage in a previous study, and to an increased for cancer. Sodium benzoate is found in Coca-Cola, Pepsi Max and Diet Pepsi, and in many fruit drinks. Other additives assessed in the study include a number of colorings -- sunset yellow (E110), found in fruity drinks; carmoisine (E122), a red coloring often added to jams; ponceau 4R (E124), a red food coloring; tartrazine (E102), found in lollipops and carbonated drinks; quinoline yellow (E104), a food coloring; and allura red AC (E129), and orange-red food dye.

"Although the use of artificial coloring in food manufacture might seem to be superfluous, the same cannot be said for sodium benzoate, which has an important preservative function. The implications of these results for the regulation of food additive use could be substantial," the researchers conclude.

Based on these findings, the British government's Food Standards Agency cautioned parents to be on the lookout for hyperactive behavior linked to food additives.

"Parents of children showing signs of hyperactivity are being advised that cutting out certain artificial food colors from their diets might have some beneficial effects on their behavior," the agency said on its Web site. "However, we need to remember that there are many factors associated with hyperactive behavior in children. These are thought to include genetic factors, being born prematurely, or environment and upbringing," Dr, Andrew Wadge, chief scientist at the Food Standards Agency, said in a statement.

Insights about the causes of ADHD should help parents implement preventive strategies which are urgently needed, Katz noted. "A healthful, unadulterated diet and regular physical activity seem like a good place to start," he added.

More information

For more information on food additives, visit the U.S. Food and
<http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~lrd/foodaddi.html
<http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/%7Elrd/foodaddi.html>> Drug Administration.
 

Rats on American diet died early fought continually and were heavily diseased while those who ate raw lived longer, healthier and were never diseased right to old age.

NaturalNews.com printable article
Originally published June 10 2008

Raw Foods vs. Cooked Foods - The Great American Rat Experiment
by Paul Eilers (see all articles by this author)

(NaturalNews) The following is an account of an interesting three-part experiment comparing the effects of raw foods versus cooked foods in rats. This account is taken from a book titled Goldot, by Lewis E. Cook, Jr. and Junko Yasui:

"It has been found that a group of rats who were fed diets of raw vegetables, fruits, nuts and grains from birth grew into completely healthy specimens and never suffered from any disease. They were never ill. They grew rapidly, but never became fat, mated with enthusiasm, and had healthy offspring. They were always gently affectionate and playful and lived in perfect harmony with each other. Upon reaching an old age, equivalent to 80 years in humans, these rats were put to death and autopsied. At that advanced age, their organs, glands, tissues and all body processes appeared to be in perfect condition without any sign of aging or deterioration.

A companion group of rats were fed a diet comparable to that of the average American and included white bread, cooked foods, meats, milk, salt, soft drinks, candies, cakes, vitamins and other supplements, medicines for their ailments, etc. During their lifetime, these rats became fat and from the earliest age, contracted most of the diseases of modern American society including colds, fever, pneumonia, poor vision, cataracts, heart disease, arthritis, cancer, and many more.

Most of this group died prematurely at early ages, but during their lifetime, most of them were vicious, snarling beasts, fighting with one another, stealing one another's food and attempting to kill each other. They had to be kept apart to prevent total destruction of the entire group. Their offspring were all sick and exhibited the same general characteristics as the parents.

As this group of rats died one by one or in epidemics of various diseases, autopsies were performed revealing extensive degenerative conditions in every part of their bodies. All organs, glands, and tissues were affected, as were the skin, hair, blood, and nervous system. They were all truly total physical and nervous wrecks. The same conditions existed in the few which survived the full duration of the experiment.

A third companion group of rats was fed the same diet as the second group to an age equivalent to about forty years in humans. They displayed the same general symptoms as the second group. They were sick and vicious so that they had to be separated to prevent them from killing each other and stealing one another's food. At the end of this initial period, all rats in this group then received the natural (raw) diet of the first group of rats. Within one month, the behavioral pattern had changed completely so that the now docile, affectionate, playful creatures were once again able to live together in a harmonious society and from this point on never suffered any illness.

Several rats were put to death and autopsied at the end of the initial period revealing the same general deterioration as that exhibited in the second group of rats. However, the remaining rats lived out the full duration of the experiment, to the equivalent of 80 years in humans, and when they were autopsied there were no signs of aging or deterioration or disease just as those in the first group. The obvious disease, degeneration, and deterioration of body parts evident in their first half of life had been completely reversed and excellent health restored.

The same principles apply to human life as there is only one Truth! Thus, it may be concluded that sick people may be restored to health simply by choosing the proper diet and observing the other rules of health. There is no mystery. There is no external force that will help -- all healing is accomplished within the body, by the body, in accordance with the laws of organic life and health."

About the author
About the Author:
Paul F. Eilers is an independent nutrition researcher and writer. His main interest is in cutting-edge nutrition that improves health and reverses illness. For further information, visit http://www.PaulsHealthBlog.com

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