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食品添加物 (Food Additives)
食品添加物指食品生產商在生產食品的過程中,在食品中加入一些化學製品,用來改變食品的色澤、氣味、或調整食物口感及延長保存時間(防腐劑、抗氧化劑),但有些則會導致癌症,例如許多肉類食品所添加之部分物質,在胃中由於蛋白質、胃酸、添加物相互作用產生之亞硝酸鹽類,可導致生理慢性的病變。這些化學製品被稱為食品添加物。 產業狀況 -- 據統計,全球食品業每年花在食品添加物商的投資高達200億美元。平均每人每年要吃進6至7公斤的食品添加物。 管理 -- 在20世紀50年代以前,食品添加物採用負面表列的方式,凡是不在明令禁止的名單上,就可以添加到食品中。現在大多數國家都規定,只有獲得許可的添加劑才能在食品中使用。 國際標準 國際標準組織曾針對食品添加物制定了相關標準於ICS 67.220。 國際食品法典委員會制定食品添加物的國際編碼系統 1983年,歐盟採用E-NUMBER編號(E編碼)系統,將幾百種獲得使用的添加劑列入許可名單。一種食品添加物只有在其對人體健康的影響經過測試後才能被列入E-NUMBER系統。 爭議性 作用 贊成方認為:使用食品添加物是為防止食物變質,保護消費者免遭食物中毒。 反對方認為:用於阻止食物變質的添加劑只佔食品添加物總量的1%。大約90%的食品添加物是裝飾性的,這其中有染色的,甜味劑,及食用香料。此外還有乳化劑,穩定劑之類的食品加工助劑。 安全 在允許使用的添加劑中,有很多人有異議。如在歐盟,有人認為歐盟對食品香料的管理不如對其它食品添加物那樣嚴。目前多數國家因在食品中香料加入非常少,所以對食用香料不採取逐個檢測安全性的做法。這引起了一些人的不滿。 對於國家衛生部門的檢測方法也有人批評,他們認為幾乎所有的檢測都是在老鼠身上進行實驗,但實驗結果是否同樣適用於人還是個未知數。 另外還有人對大多數相關研究是由生產食品添加物的公司進行的,這一狀況不滿,懷疑研究結果的公正性。 食品成份爭議 奶茶裡不含任何的牛奶製品?裡頭用的奶精,主要成分是氫化植物油、玉米糖漿、酪蛋白、香料、食用色素等。 水果月餅裡沒有水果?裡頭狀似水果的餡料,主要成分是冬瓜、香精、食用色素等。 果凍裡沒有任何的水果成份?主要成分是海藻酸鈉、洋菜、明膠、起雲劑、卡拉膠等增稠劑,香精、食用色素、甜味劑、酸味劑等。 保久乳 -- 需要添加 防腐劑 這是錯誤的觀念...他是屬於高溫滅菌 方式 加工而成的 乳品 -- 飲料或零食(洋芋片、玉米片……等)強調低熱量、低卡路里,為保持甜味而濫用代糖(人工甘味劑)。 食品添加物的種類 食品添加劑的目的主要為:延長保存期限用、視覺調整、味覺調整、改善食品品質、提高營養價值及方便製造等。其按照功能性,可大致分為十七種: ● 防腐劑(在部分情況會稱為品質改良劑,常被添加在即食類食品,例如便當) 例如:亞硝酸鈉、亞硝酸、己二烯酸鉀、己二烯酸、丙酸鈉、對羥基苯甲酸酯(尼泊金酯)殺菌劑 ● 抗氧化劑 ● 漂白劑 ● 保色劑(限用於魚類或肉類的加工品) 例如:亞硝酸鈉、亞硝酸鉀、硝酸鈉、硝酸鉀 ● 膨鬆劑(膨脹劑)-- 例如:銨粉、小蘇打、酵母粉 ● 品質改良用、釀造用及食品製造用劑 ● 營養添加劑 -- 例如:各式維生素 ● 著色劑 -- 例如:食用色素 ● 香料 ● 調味劑 甜味劑 -- 例如:葡萄糖、寡糖、果糖、麥芽糖 人工甜味劑(或稱人工甘味劑)-- 例如:阿斯巴甜、糖精、蔗糖素、醋磺內脂鉀、甘草醇 酸味劑 -- 例如:檸檬酸、蘋果酸、乳酸苦味劑 常用於可樂和瓜拿納飲料,例如:咖啡鹼、柚苷 胺基酸系統(鮮味劑)-- 例如:味精、L-麩胺酸鈉 ● 黏稠劑 -- 例如:澄粉、蛋白、卡德蘭膠、羧甲基纖維素(CMC)、海藻酸鈉 ● 結著劑 ● 食品工業用化學藥品 -- 蛋白質分解劑 例如:鹽酸 ● 溶劑 -- 例如:丙二醇、甘油 ● 乳化劑 -- 起雲劑 ● 其他 化製澱粉(常被歸類為粘稠劑) 例如:酸化製澱粉、糊化澱粉、漂白澱粉、氧化澱粉、醋酸澱粉、磷酸澱粉酸度調節劑(PH值調整劑) 水分控制劑 例如:山梨醇、乳酸、甘油、己六醇、丙二醇 |
10 Worst Food Additives
By Kay Klumpyan Jun 14, 2011 Americans spend roughly 90 percent of their food budget on processed foods. Food additives, for preservation of foods, have been used for centuries. Before refrigeration, salt preserved meats, fish and poultry to prevent spoilage. Over the years the food industry has extended additives' purpose, making convenience foods a part of daily life in the United States. Although most of these products could not exist without them, additives could be negatively affecting public health. Additives are defined by the Food and Drug Administration as any substance that may be directly or indirectly added to foods to affect the characteristic of a food. Food additives function as emulsifiers, stabilizers and thickeners. They are used to modify taste, texture, color, nutritional value, as well as improve flavor and prevent spoilage. Additives to Avoid There are more than 3,000 substances used as food additives that can either be natural or synthetic. To ensure safety standards of any substance added to food, manufacturers must prove to the FDA their product is safe before it is put on the market. Although, additives are pulled from the market when proved to be a health threat there are many additives worth avoiding. Artificial Sweeteners Acesulfame potassium is a non-caloric sweetener that is about 200 times sweeter than sugar, so only a little is needed to get a sweet flavor. Tests done in the 1970s indicated that acesulfame potassium may cause tumors in rats. Artificial Colors Blue 1, Blue 2, Green 3, Red 3, and Yellow 6 are all suspected carcinogens. They can be found in a wide range of products to include beverages, baked goods, candy, gelatin, certain cereals and sausage. There is concern that insufficient testing has been done on these additives. Use of artificial colorings in beverages indicates that natural ingredients or real fruits are not used. Preservatives Sodium nitrite is used to preserve meats and can be found in lunch meats, bacon, hot dogs and canned meats. Sodium nitrites pose a concern because when they mix with stomach acids, they are converted to nitrosamines which have carcinogenic properties. Butylated hydroxyanisole, or BHA, is used in many processed foods such as potato chips, chewing gum and certain cereals. This preservative is used to prevent oil from becoming rancid. BHA has been shown to cause cancer in mice and rats and also seems to affect sleep and appetite. Fat and Fat Substitutes Partially hydrogenated vegetable oil is used in many baked goods, margarine, crackers, snack foods, salad dressings, fried foods and microwave popcorn. Trans fat is formed when vegetable oil is converted into a solid by adding hydrogen. The newly created trans fat raises cholesterol levels. Trans fats are also associated with heart disease, breast and colon cancer and atherosclerosis. Oxidizing Agents Potasium bromate is an oxidizing agent used in the bread-making process to make the bread stronger and more elastic. Bromate has been shown to cause cancer in animals and has been banned in several countries to include Canada and the European Union. In California a warning label is required when bromated flour is used. Conclusion Many food additives are used purely for cosmetic reasons and several throughout time have been shown to be toxic or carcinogenic. Although the FDA sets safety standards to determine whether a substance is safe for its intended use, it is still wise to avoid foods containing nonessential additives. The only way to truly avoid additives is to stay away from processed foods. Eating fresh, unprocessed foods is the best option; shop the perimeter of the grocery store where whole foods are found. If you can't pronounce an ingredient on the food label it is probably a chemical additive and it is best to avoid it. |