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The Scary Truth About Halloween Candy
We don’t say this lightly… your “classic” candy brands are literally killing you.
They have artificial flavoring, absurd amounts of all kinds of sugars, additives, and harmful dyes like Red 40, Blue 1, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6 just to name a few.
Color additives found in almost all your classic candy and many foods ARE NOT SAFE.
Let’s take a look at some common additives:
Red 40 is synthetically derived from petroleum, which is not fit for human consumption. While Red 40 is considered safe by regulatory agencies, some animal studies have suggested that it may have potential genotoxic effects on the brain and gastrointestinal tract. Additionally, artificial food dyes including red #40 may exasperate symptoms of hyperactivity in some children.
Yellow #6 contains benzidine, which is a carcinogen. Yellow #6 can also induce inflammation, and some people are hypersensitive to Yellow #6. An animal study also showed that rats eating Yellow #6 had their liver and kidney function negatively affected when consuming Yellow #6 compared to the control group.
Concerningly, the amount of blue #1 in a commercial product is often proprietary. Blue #1 can have cytotoxic/genotoxic effects and also has the potential for neurotoxicity. It has been linked to skin irritation and bronchial constriction in rats. Animal studies have also shown that blue #1 inhibits mitochondrial activities and can shut down the mitochondria at high doses.
Blue #1 is also used in hospitals to identify aspiration. In one case study, blue #1 was added to a feeding tube and caused severe side effects such as acidosis and blisters with green fluid. After the patient died, an autopsy was performed where it was noted that her internal organs had a greenish-blue discoloration.
It’s disturbing that these are allowed in our food. Children have lower tolerance levels than adults to chemical exposure, and their developing bodies make them especially vulnerable to harmful chemicals in their food… i.e. they should not be consuming any of this!!!
While we don’t condone funneling large amounts of candy and sugar to the face.. you CAN make better choices even around candy for you and your children. See some cleaner swaps below.
What can you do to protect yourself from these harmful ingredients?
Read the food ingredients of all goods before purchasing. If you don’t know what certain ingredients are, use caution.
If you can’t find a cleaner alternative, go without.
Sign petitions for these foods to get banned, NGOs like EWG send out petitions regularly and are active in the fight to ban harmful substances from our food supply.
Remember, you vote with every purchase you make. The less goods we buy that have these ingredients, the more we send a message to the food industry that we won’t accept harmful ingredients and chemicals in our food supply.
Curious about some of the ingredients in your food? Look them up HERE!
Good News
California is the first state to enact a ban on four harmful chemicals in food!
In a major victory for safer, healthier food, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the California Food Safety Act, the first law in the U.S. to ban four harmful chemicals from candy, cereal, soda and other processed food sold and produced in the state.
Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel (D-Woodland Hills) authored the law, which ends the food uses of brominated vegetable oil, potassium bromate, propyl paraben and Red Dye No. 3.
These chemicals are linked to serious health problems, such as hyperactivity, nervous system damage and an increased risk of cancer.
All four additives have already been banned by European regulators, with the narrow exception of Red Dye No. 3 in candied cherries.
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Big love from Ally, Christian, and the IsItClean Team