FOOD FORTIFICATION: WHY THERE ARE HIDDEN HARMFUL CHEMICALS IN OUR FOOD 3
HOW MANY TIMES HAVE WE COME ACROSS THE WORD FOOD FORTIFICATION? HAVE WE EVER IMAGINED THAT HARMFUL SUBSTANCES OR CHEMICALS CAN GET IN OUR FOOD THROUGH FORTIFICATION? DO WE KNOW WHAT FOOD FORTIFICATION ENTAILS?
WHAT EXACTLY IS FOOD FORTIFICATION?
Food fortification in simple terms is regarded as a means by which missing or lost nutrients in food products are re-added. It is an effort made by manufacturers to equip food products and maintain its nutritional value despite processing.
An infant cereal fortified with iron
[source](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q>source
You have probably seen spices fortified with iron, infant cereals especially get fortified with iron and probiotics or milk fortified with calcium. It is the aim of manufacturers to produce nutritional and safe food for consumption, however, most added vitamins or elements in the name of fortification are not the exact vitamins in their natural state, they are synthetic versions created in the laboratory. they are chemicals!
The question is, why should we need to fortify food substances? How are nutrients lost in food? Why do we need to introduce chemicals in a bid to fortify?
WHY DO WE NEED TO FORTIFY?
some fortified foods
source
Food fortification is done to replenish lost nutrients especially lost micronutrients which have been lost during processing especially vitamin C and other vitamins. Food fortification is also done to raise the level of a particular micronutrient in a food substance, for example, pasta gets fortified with folic acid to increase the level of vitamin B9 in it. Foods also get enriched or fortified to reduce the risks of diseases caused in the body by a nutrient deficiency. Most fortified foods include breakfast cereals and infant cereals, milk and milk products as well as fat and fat products. How are nutrients lost in food?
HOW NUTRIENTS ARE LOST IN FOODS
Nutrients are lost based on the nature of the food substance and through processing. Most beneficial nutrients contained in foods cannot withstand the temperature and pressure of processing. Processing of most food substances requires the application of heat at varying temperatures, so in the process, nutrients are lost.
Nutrients can also be lost to varying degrees by other factors, depending on whether the food is exposed to environmental factors such as air or by dissolving in water that is later thrown away. The presence of acid (from other foods or addition of vinegar) or alkali (from other foods or added sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) can cause the destruction of some vitamins too.
Generally, the losses of carbohydrate, fat, protein, vitamin K, niacin, biotin and elements are small during processing and storage. But vitamins B, C, D are usually lost in great quantities which is why vitamins, iodine folic acid and so on are used for fortification.
Also, food preparation practices and unit operations such as cleaning, sorting, peeling, size reduction and fermentation before processing can lead to loss of certain beneficial nutrients in food.
Generally ,heat processing is a major cause of changes in nutritional properties of food. Changes however maybe positive or negative, for instance, gelatinization of starch through heating and coagulation of proteins by heating improves digestibility and destroys ANTF(Anti-nutritional factors) compounds but heating also destroys heat-labile nutrients and the biological value of proteins. Hence the need to fortify.
WHY FORTIFICATION CAN BE HARMFUL
some micronutrients added for fortification
source
As much as fortification is meant for good purposes, it unfortunately, has side effects. Some fortified foods are strongly processed and packaged. They are produced with a high level of nutrients,fat and sugar especially. To crown it all the vitamins or nutrients these food products are fortified with are not in the natural state but synthesized and are sometimes added in heavy doses. So basically, fortification doesn’t necessarily make these food products healthy for you.
Young children especially babies are at risk of overdose. Some fortified foods contain vitamins in doses that are not appropriate for children. Many children exceed their daily recommended dose of vitamins and zinc because they consume too many fortified foods. (source)
You cannot go about checking packs for quantity of vitamins present in them, besides how many of us know the daily recommended levels for us of this nutrients? this is why we may be consuming harmful stuff and we do not know it.
In pregnant women, consuming heavily fortified foods can cause birth defects. High levels of vitamin A has been linked to fractures in adults, reduction of bone density and increase in the risks of birth defects and liver damage. Too much vitamin E can increase the risk of bleeding and stroke, and exceed recommended amounts of beta-carotene is associated with higher overall mortality risk.(source)
Too much folic acid can hide the signs of real anemia as well as facilitate the growth of existing tumors. We have already established that calcium in large quantities is doing more harm than good to the body, yet most dairy products are fortified with calcium in doses we are not aware of.
In most soft drinks, manufacturers try to make the drinks more nutritious and healthy by fortifying with vitamin C without checking the nutrient reaction with other ingredients in the drink. Some time ago in Nigeria, some cases of poisoning were reported after people had consumed a particular soft drink(Fanta). The Fanta had been preserved with sodium benzoate and fortified with vitamin C. Two ingredients which we are exposed to on a daily basis, whose mixture can cause cancer.
All in all, a lot of people have the school of thought that fortified foods are better and healthier, however, consider the lab synthesized vitamins you are consuming in packaged fortified foods instead of the natural vitamins found in fresh fruits and vegetables. Wouldn't it be better if we got our essential nutrients from natural sources, fresh fruits and vegetables? it is certain that all of us can not become vegetarians but we can incorporate more fresh fruits, and vegetables into our diets. We can cook or process our vegetables with little application of heat in such a way that nutrients wouldn't be lost.
source
Next time you pick up that breakfast cereal or milk, remember that it is fortified and you should not consume in large quantities over time. Generally, eating too much of anything can be harmful, watch and learn to control your food cravings, also make it a habit to always check the ingredient label and eat safely!
Author:@ponmile
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Because we were taught to trust the people that sell us food, and they have betrayed us in the name of profit.
The best thing is to quit the city to the countryside .. having ones own farm or garden .. going organic and primitive lol 😂 ( it seems ajoke .. but I have been thinking seriously to do that myself for the last couple of years.. and I think 2018 is the year to start my 5 year plan ending in doing so ) 😎😍✅
i am so with you. my dream has always been to move to the countryside, away from all the pollutants, fast-paced go go go and never-ending materialism. i'd love to grow my own food, raise animals and truly be one with nature. baby steps though...i don't know the first thing to growing anything..
modern society has really screwed us up by conditioning us to be 100% reliant on them for everything. it's time we take a stance and take our control back.
You are really true about” modern society screws us up” ... that’s an increasing volume every day ..I know it’s not easy for everyone to decide to move to the countryside ( due to dependent job or children’s school or whatever financial reasons) . However, even living in the city .. you can still try to rent a small faraway garden to do your own stuff in it. I am just encouraging who cannot do the move 100% right away .... but sure anyone can plan to achieve this over few years ... or after pension ... but they need real planing and taking first few simple steps ... even by visiting the countryside every now and then to see what they really miss and encourage themselves for more serious steps towards the natural healthy happy life 😍
Funny but people who don't live in the city, eat healthier than we do
It’s pity more than it’s funny though . So that’s My call for Whoever is able to make the move for healthier and longer srtonger life With more fun. It was difficult in the past due to the big gap between city and cointrysidevdue to the difference in the infrastructure. But nowadays you can have a modern house with internet and all modern life style in the countryside. However who cannot afford to do... they still can live in the city but rent a small garden where they can plant it with all kinds of organic food .. to supply their families who live in the city. It’s not only health but economically wise too on the long run ! Even 2 or 3 friend families can share to make one garden together !
Cheers 🥂
Aquaponics is a good way to provide a sustainable food souce.
Yep ! Certainly. Could be done even in a home garden.
Great comment! Interesting point!
You might be miscalculating, look to what plants you can grow indoors and tp facilitate those as much as possible.
Everything in plan friend. I ve visited friends living there in reality lol they live in paradise like ... different trees of tropical fruits for sale , different vegetables for home use .. chicken farm .. even small fish farm inside the farm .... simple happy people .. simple happy life .. and guess what the internet is there !! So we can keep steering and all the online work too 😳😝
Thanks for the advice though 👍🏼
😍😎
Then I'll come and stay with you and your family... Just let me know when it's set 😀😀 lol
You think it’s a joke ?! 😝 I live in Sweden 🇸🇪, but I am going to make a second home with an organic fruit farm ( as cheap as buying 1 or 2 room apt in stockholm ) in the countryside of Thailand 🇹🇭
And sure you r welcome to visit
I'll be anticipating for a trip to Sweden
Welcome 🙏🏼
I'll send you a mail
Received and replied to 👍🏼😉
Thanks for your nice comment! I hope you have a wonderful day!
It is incredible what kinds of extra garbage is acceptably put into our foods these days. We are barley eating real food anymore. Thank you for sharing your insights and bringing some awareness to the unaware @adsactly
so true, what we think is food is really a factory-produced, chemical-laden product. getting back to just eating real food, nothing packaged or processed is the way to go!
Yes...try to incoporate more chemical free foods into your diet.
Let’s break this down a little. The food itself is 100% chemical. Carbohydrates, fats, proteins, minerals - all chemicals.
If you see allyl isothiocyanate in the ingredient list would you be concerned? That’s the “hot” flavour in horseradish, mustard and wasabi. Remove that and you have no taste at all. Alpha-tocopherol? That’s the strongest of several forms of tocopherol that you may know as "vitamin E" and found naturally in a variety of whole grains. Folic acid, niacin, nicotinamide, ascorbic acid, beta-carotine, - these are all essential vitamins. So far, these materials already exist in the food. Salt is frequently added (sometimes a bit too much), and sucrose, maltose, glucose, fructose are all sugars (we are worried about too much sugar).
We add colors of course because nobody would buy grey smarties or M&Ms, and we sometimes add preservatives such as potassium sorbate, citric acid, and vinegar. Sodium benzoate is a generally-recognized-as-safe preservative that prevents bacterial growth and also seems to be therapeutic for several conditions.
Nitrites (and nitrates which become reduced to nitrites) have been added for hundreds of years to meats to discourage bacterial growth and extend storage life in hams, bacon, salami, corned beef, etc. They can combine with amino acids from the protein to form nitrosamines which can increase the risk of cancer. But it is important to know that our daily intake of nitrites from green vegetables far outweighs the intake from preserved meats. And here’s the interesting finding: we do not see formation of nitrosamines from all this kale, celery, spinach, etc., because of the reducing effect of the ascorbic acid (vitamin C) that’s also present. So best advice it to take juices or fruits (vitamin C) when you eat ham, bacon, etc.
We can go through the ingredient list for hours: texturizing agents for salad dressing, anti-mold agents in bread, thickeners, gums, emulsifiers.
The permitted additives do change - and this is an indication that regulators do respond to research findings and adjust the permitted materials list accordingly. For instance, the bright colors that were due to the “coal tar dyes” up to the 1970s have all been removed and replaced with safe colors.
Great addition..only if every manufacturer takes this bits of information about ingredients to use.
Great Comment!
you're making steemit a great community with your content ! keep it up!
@ponmile great article.You are on to something here. After reading through your post,i decided to do some further reading on the subject. This is what I stumbled onto https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3932423/
I found out that vitamin B especially found in fortified baby formulas leads to high rate of infant obesity and diabetes .
Thank you for your addition
it is everyone's own responsibility, like everything else in life. don't blame others.
if you're not sure something is safe to eat - don't buy, don't eat!
good tip to always check the ingredient label, I made this a habit a long time ago.
in europe, the ingredient labels are mandatory and the daily recommended levels of nutrients are on the label.
My wife has been heavily reading up on GMOs and such to the point where we now have to read pretty much every label (including water) to make sure it hasn't been modified. Or look for the Non-GMo stamp on the packaging. We went vegan abound more than a year ago, our baby daughter is full vegan and we plan to get even more strict by shutting all gmo foods out. I'm picturing my house with a nice full backyard to grow all my own vegetables, the only way out of this I can only see . ✊🏾
Good post for our physical health!
We'd been hearing these chemicals that're bombarded in our daily lives, ever since these were created long time ago. There are many aspects in our lives aside from our physical health. Sometimes we don't realize, we focus more on our physical body, thus sometimes it makes us stressful, especially when we try something we want to achieve in our body and maybe we fail even a little mistake, we regret, thus we're getting more and more worried, and our psychic being or maybe spiritual to some, would also be affected. Everyone has faith in something or being, has faith to a living or a thing or non-living. Even an atheist, who we refer as non-believer, in a deep analysis is also a believer in something. An atheist could not exist or survive if he/she doesn't believe on something.
Am I still on tract?
Our physical bodies will eventually turn into a substance when the certain time comes. If we keep on focusing on something too much ignoring the other aspects of our lives, we will fall out of balance.
With too much of a concern on our health (ourselves), we sometimes fail to see the needs of others, especially the least and unfortunate ones.
Its not a matter of how long we have lived. Its how long we have served.
I guess we have to review ourselves.
Am I living my purpose?
Thank for this information. Am pregnant now so i will take note of this ,and also pass this to other...
That is realy scary. I always say our generation is a generation of mutants. Whatever we are fed now with, just a few decades ago people would get literally poisoned. I and my family are trying to eat as healthy as possible, but it’s non realistic to avoid every poison they mix in our food. Along with fortified food, there is other kind of food most people may not know is harmful, it’s GMO. I try to avoid these, but as I mentioned, it’s impossible to avoid all of it. Scientists say GMO is not harmful and is safe to eat, but common really? Do they really think we are so stupid? Why would organic companies label their product as non GMO? That’s what they do, just like in Belarus with alcohol, they feed us with this poison for population to become impotent and obedient. But that’s my opinion.
Thank you for this educational and informative post!
Great job @ponmile!
Its pretty simple now, one opens a brand of food or beverage, puts his best quality in the product just to lure the people.As Soon as they get in demanding, then the actually mission starts, that's to kill people,.I its very hard on a company to meet the demands of people which are always larger than the no. Of products, so when the manufacturer cant meet the demands, he resorts to easy but deadly ways..There are many chemicals which have got similar properties with natural ingredients, for their time management and product demanding, they simply put that ....Its very unfortunate that adulteration is now the basic point in all food processing units.. put ethylene in banana make it ripen early, put tastening flavours in food which are carcinogenic in nature..Make chicken grow with an injection etc..hell n countless things happen in market and the best part is its human who wants other human to different just for money
What else is new in today's society. The rich buy animals while the poor buy fancy cars. What's the biggest thing in a rich man's home, a fuckin Library. What's the biggest thing in a poor man's home, a fuckin tv. Readers are leaders my friends
yes We should be complaining about harmful chemicals and hidden added sugars in our food, not the odd harmless creature..
Thanks for all your activities.
Thank u for this uselful Information, its so priceless
You have rounded it up in the best way by saying "make sure your meal is fortified."
Whenever you work against the law of nature, you do something wrong.
Adding chemicals to regain something which was already taken by the nature could add more harm then the good we are expecting.
I second your point that we need to take extra care in taking fortified food.
Good addition, reduce your intake of packaged foods...it shoukd be taken minimally if we can't totally avoid it.
It's sad that something that gives you energy and strength also poisons you
articles that are very useful, a lot of knowledge that we can get from the articles that you create,
good luck always come to you
Knowing your sources and food independece is what its all about. Never having to ask some one else to make your food is what real freedom is.
Very informative. This was so important for me. I just realized that nothing in this world is easy. We are at war almost every day. Very well written and researched. :)
Now a days food safety if a big concern for all over the world.Recently verious chemical found in different kinds of food.You described nicely why is this happed.Thanks for the post.@upvoted and resteemed
Wow good post.
that's the most hawker I hooked
Very nice food Post I like this your Post health.
Thanks for sharing this Post.....
The American Academy of Pediatricians advises doctors to recommend that parents feed their baby iron-fortified formula and iron-fortified cereal between the ages of 6 – 24 months old.
This is because:
Iron is absolutely necessary for the adequate movement of oxygen to all the tissues in our body.
Iron helps to form hemoglobin, which is the oxygen transport system in our blood.
Iron is necessary to prevent anemia.
This issue cannot be overflogged, people are dying everyday.. we cant overlook this. thabks for reminding us
Wow good post I like this fast food thanks for sharing
Follicle acid exists in so many foods. Thank God I know them now.
This is very educative. Down here in Nigeria many people still have the heart to sell expired fortified foods. I think government bodies responsible to check on food and food packaging should double up efforts to do checks on foodstuffs to be sold. Personally I like organic foods stuffs I prepare by myself.... Alacart rocks!! Thanks @adsactly I've been following your food posts very educative I must say.
Yes, there are government agencies responsible, there are health bodies but corruption is everywhere...thanks for your addition
It is scary to honk about the stuff that is in our foods that we have no idea about let alone to think we are buying foods with the idea that it is healthy and it’s not. The reality is that every time you buy pre packaged food you are putting yourself at the mercy of the food manufacturers. Half the ingredients we have never heard of and even those we rarely know what they are or and impacts. If you want to be safe you need to eat fresh and all natural. Clean eating is a good option but requires a lot of dedication and can be expensive. There are other options and at the end of the day we can’t be naive and assume we are making good choices.
Yes, truly it can be expensive to eat healthy, but if we don't try, maintaini g our health may become more expensive.
Hello . very good post! unfortunately, from year to year more and more we meet on our food a variety of new ingredients ... which really devastate our body and weaken ... unfortunately, it's time to realize and carefully read the labels what we eat. I think that today's world has changed a bit, they do not have time to prepare a healthy meal full of vitamins, they only exchange ready-made canned food, plastic packaging.
My guardian dad is forever saying that anything in moderation is good for you..
Nice post @adsactly..
Thank you for share..
Follicle acid exists in so many foods.
i unvote you
Adsactly,, what a lovely name
So the best thing is to live on your own. :3
Very useful information!!! Thank you a lot..
Food fortification is not always good for us. It is better we eat stuffs natural than to consume products fortified.
I cannot answer for foods as such.
However, with water, where any distilling of the water is done, there is a loss of nutrients in the end product filtration will also remove some nutrients. For drinking water after distillation, The loss of nutrients can be replaced with additives such as the gel from the leaf of Aloe Vera. the percentages of which I am unsure.
have to try to eat as clean as possible. Biological food and milk straight from the farmer... and try to make as much a possible yourself. Instead of eating fabric maded cookies etc. Anddd.... this advice is to myself as first lol i'm guilty of eating and drinking all of the crap!!
Really helpful post. Thanks
My upvote is small, but you've got it,my friend. Please checkout my animation videos if you have time. I'm the only one animator on dtube! Thank you.
I am fortunate to live in a small area surrounded by olive groves, almost everything we consumes is local and biological (at least this is what they claim, we can never know) as well as we are still clinging to home made food .
so what I’m about to say it that you are all welcome in my town and I will keep you safe from harmful substances . never worry !
Farm products may be the healthiest but they are having trouble scaling their goods in urban areas.
Thanks for the advised given us concerning our diet ,i agree with you 100% ,from now going i will be conscious about the variety of food I take.
Instead of fotified food, it is recommended to consume hight-fiber foods, such as vegetables, whole grains, fruits with their pulp and if possible with the shell, especially the banana and orange; vegetables like auyama, occumo; cucumber, beet, oats, raisins, flaxseed, etc; Drink enough water and perform physical activity.
Avoid refined flours, fortified cereals, dairy products, sausages, sweets and junk food.
Thanks to @ponmile @adsactly for sharing
Thank you for your addition
A very good insight to what happens during processing of foods. We have recently moved to grow our own, or as much as possible, foods. We are using what is called a waterless raised garden. It requires minimum attention, important in todays rat race, and can supply enough for 4 people in an 8foot by 4foot area. We intend to construct a second garden to provide for vine vegetables. If I had the luxury of space I would likely have more but I can dream can I not?