Unfortunately, gross food has become the norm in most supermarkets, with packaged food ingredient lists reading more like chemistry homework than something you'd want your family to eat.
Flame retardant-laced soda
The toxic flame retardant chemical brominated vegetable oil, or BVO, was initially used to keep plastics from catching on fire. For decades, the food industry has been adding it to certain sodas, juices, and sports drinks, including Mountain Dew, Fanta Orange, Sunkist Pineapple, and some Gatorade and Powerade flavors. BVO's purpose is to keep the artificial flavoring chemicals from separating from the rest of the liquids—but scientists have linked too much BVO to bromide poisoning symptoms like skin lesions, memory loss, and nerve disorders.
Paint chemical in salad dressing
Titanium dioxide is a component of the metallic element titanium, a mined substance that is sometimes contaminated with toxic lead. Commonly used in paints and sunscreens, big food corporations add it to lots of things we eat, too, including processed salad dressing, coffee creamers, and icing. The food industry adds it to hundreds of products to make dingy, overly processed items appear whiter. "White has long been the symbolic color of clean," explains food industry insider Bruce Bradley, who shares the tricks, traps, and ploys of big food manufacturers on his blog, BruceBradley.com.
Maggoty mushrooms
Photograph by IGOR CHESNOV/SHUTTERSTOCK
Maggots are fly larvae—tiny rice-shaped creatures that feast on rotting foods. The Food and Drug Administration legally allows 19 maggots and 74 mites in a 3.5-ounce can of mushrooms. While maggots do have their place in the medical world—they can help heal ulcers and other wounds—most people think it's pretty gross to eat them. If you need another reason to ditch canned goods, consider this: Most are lined with bisphenol A, or BPA—a plastic chemical that causes unnatural hormonal changes linked to heart attacks, obesity, and certain cancers.
Cloned cow's stomach
SMEREKA/SHUTTERSTOCK
Traditionally, cheese makers used rennet derived from the mucosa of a veal calf's fourth stomach to create the beloved, versatile dairy product. But Bradley notes that cost and the limited availability of calf stomachs have led to the development of several alternatives, including vegetable rennet, microbial rennet, and—the food industry's rennet of choice—a genetically modified version derived from a cloned calf gene. It's used to make the vast majority of cheese sold in the United States. Since GMO ingredients aren't listed on the label, it can be tough for consumers to avoid rennet from this source. "With all these rennet varieties often listed simply as "enzymes" on an ingredient panel, it can be very hard to know exactly what kind you're eating when you buy cheese," says Bradley, author of Fat Profits.
Flesh-eating bacteria
Photograph by LEIGH PRATHER/SHUTTERSTOCK
Grocery store meats are commonly infused with veterinary medicines, heavy metals, and staph bacteria, including the hard-to-kill, potentially lethal MRSA strain. Unfortunately, the problem is far from rare. A study published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases found that half of grocery store meat tested harbored staph bacteria. Researchers ID the overuse of antibiotics in industrial agriculture as a major cause in the rise of superbugs in our grocery store food. MRSA kills about 19,000 people a year in America—that's more annual deaths than from AIDS in the U.S. Purchasing grass-fed meat and eggs from organic farmers is a more sustainable choice.
Herbicide-flavored food
Photograph by DEFOTOBERG/SHUTTERSTOCK
Glyphosate, the active chemical ingredient in the popular weed killer, Roundup, is a hormone-disrupting chemical now used primarily on corn and soy crops genetically engineered to withstand a heavy dousing of the chemical. Roundup is so heavily used around homes and in farm fields that it's now being detected in streams, the air, and even rain. Because it's a systemic herbicide, it's actually taken up inside the plant—meaning we eat it—and it's legally allowed in our food and in an amount that worries scientists. It's found in most nonorganic packaged foods because most contain corn- or soy-derived ingredients, the crops that are most often heavily doused with Roundup. Glyphosate exposure is linked to obesity, learning disabilities, birth defects, infertility, and potentially irreversible metabolic damage. To avoid pesticides in products, eat organic and avoided processed foods as much as possible. And use caution—"all natural" foods often are chockfull of pesticides and genetically engineered ingredients.
Beaver anal gland juice
It's a bitter, smelly, orange-brown substance known as castoreum, explains Bradley. "In nature, it's combined with the beaver's urine and used to mark its territory." It's used extensively in processed food and beverages, typically as vanilla or raspberry flavoring. This gross ingredient won't show up on the label—instead, companies using it in making processed food list it as natural flavoring. This poses a dilemma for vegans, vegetarians, and anyone who wants to avoid eating any creature's anal excretions.
11 Back-to-School Lunches That Nutritionists Give Their Kids
By Dana Leigh Smith
It’s back to school season, so a pop quiz is only fitting. What’s more challenging: Training for a marathon or packing a healthy lunch that your kid won’t trade for a Fruit Roll-Up?
Whipping up creative and nutritious meals that will please the picky little ones can be tough—especially when they see alluring vending machine treats and less-than-healthy snacks in other kids' lunchboxes. To help take the stress out of your back-to-school packing, we had diet experts fork over their creative lunchtime ideas. Read on to learn how to piece together exciting and healthy lunchbox meals for your little one all year long. And be sure to steer clear of packaged products that are hiding harmful additives, which we reveal in our report on the 13 Scary Ingredients in Your Kid’s Lunch Box, Exposed!
Fresh meat
With fresh meat you’re usually dealing with a 'sell by' date, which tells the store the last day it can keep that product out for sale. What does this mean for you? You either need to eat it or freeze it when you get home. 'The ‘sell by’ is telling the store when it should be the last day to have it on their shelf. They may even be discounting the food to try to get rid of it if it’s the last day they can have it on their shelves,' says Crandall. A lot of fresh raw meat is also contaminated with Salmonella, E. coli, or other bacteria. With that in mind, it’s very important to cook the meat at the proper temperatures as a greater defense against bacteria
Water with lemon
You Should Never Order When You Eat Out
Order the water—but you may want to hold the citrus. In a study published in the Journal of Environmental Health, researchers tested 76 lemons from 21 restaurants and found that 70% of them were contaminated with bacteria. Ick. The Family Health Team at the Cleveland Clinic recommends that unless you actually see the bartender prepare your lemon wedge safely—meaning, she’s wearing gloves and using tongs—stick to plain H2O. Save the lemon water trend for home, when you can be sure your lemons are properly washed
Health and Nutrition
Refined sugar, it’s been affectionately known as “Poison” and “Leach.” It earned the nickname “Poison” because this sweetener is totally and completely bereft of any nutritional value. The pet name “Leach” comes from the vitamins and nutrients it saps from the body in order to be digested. Refined sugar, like the kind you pour in your coffee, eat as sweets, or that’s in store-bought tomato sauce you pour on your spaghetti, has been credited with feeding cancer cells. Now research says refined sugar might actually cause cancer
2. Soda Pop Image source: www.todayifoundout.comSoda pop might taste good, but that taste is the result of lots of sugar, colors and chemicals that add acid to the body that can spawn the growth of cancer cells. One study linked fructose, a type of sugar used in sodas, with pancreatic cancer. Another study found that the 4-methylimidazole in soda is a potential carcinogen. (4-methylimidazoleis a bi-product of caramel color which is used to turn colas and soft drinks that delicious brown hue.) The study stated that drinking just one can a day routinely could be enough to cause cancer cells to develop. Oh, let’s not forget the sugar, typically in the 40 grams per 12oz can neighborhood. Psst: that’s 10 teaspoons of sugar—in one can of pop! With so many other beverage options, maybe leave soda on the shelf…in the store.
3. Processed Meats
Image source: www.naturalwellness.com“Get you hot dogs!” That’s the familiar cry heard at ballparks all over, but wait just a minute. Hot dogs are a processed meat—they’ve been treated in some way to preserve their shelf life or to improve their flavor. This “processing” can be done by salting, curing, fermenting, smoking, or preserving in some other way. After reviewing 800 studies, The World Health Organization announced that process meats are a carcinogen (i.e. they can cause cancer). They reported that eating the equivalent of four slices of bacon daily (or eating four slices of bacon daily) raises the risk of getting colorectal cancer by 18 percent. The risk is low but present. Meats that fall into this category are not sold fresh and include ham, turkey, some deli, bacon, sausage and of course, hot dogs.
4. Red Meat
Image source: www.dailymaverick.co.zaDo you remember the World Health Organization (WHO) from #3? They also looked at red meat studies and concluded that red meat is a “probable” cause of cancer in humans. They found links between eating red meat and colorectal, prosatate and pancreatic cancers. Enjoying small amounts of grass-fed red meat occasionally is very different from eating quantities of red meat daily, and the WHO parks pork in the red meat category.
5. Microwave Popcorn
Image source: www.sodahead.comWhat could be easier than tossing a bag in the microwave, pressing a button and then voila: delicious popcorn?! Popcorn is a healthy snack offering potassium, iron and fiber. But microwave popcorn comes with some risks, cancer being one. A chemical that lines the microwavable bag decomposes and forms a compound that has been linked to liver and pancreatic cancer. A separate chemical used to flavor the popcorn can cause the lung condition called bronchiolitis obliterans. One way to decrease your chances of developing this is to let the bag of heated popcorn cool before opening it. One way to avoid all the ailments is to use a hot air popper or the stove top to pop your kernels. Remember to go easy on the butter!
6. Dirty Fruit Image source: www.gbtimes.comCan we offer you a bowl of delicious pesticides? How about poison in a peel? Actually, the peel is good because it shields the edible fruit from the plethora of pesticides that shower the crops. 165 pesticides to be exact. Some of them have been linked to cancer. In the effort to make fruit unappealing to insects, we make the fruit unhealthy for humans. The bugs might pass because of the pesticides, but then the poisoned fruit winds up in your market and then on your table. Uh-oh. In the Environmental Working Group’s Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce, apples, peaches, grapes and strawberries made it to the list of the “Dirty Dozen” fruits that contained the highest concentrations of pesticides. Healthy? We think not. Best to spend a little extra on organic. Otherwise, you might pay for it later.
7. Potato Chips
Image source: www.ideas.darden.virginia.eduIt seems you can’t even kick bag with a bag of chips without biting your nails with worry. Potatoes contain a chemical that’s activated with high-temperature cooking. The chemical, acrylamide, is found in plastics and papermaking as well as in cigarette smoke. Does it cause cancer? In rodents, yes. In humans, probably. The National Toxicology Program and the International Agency for Research on Cancer consider it to be a “probable human carcinogen.” Hmm. Can somebody pass the air-popped popcorn, please?
8. French Fries Image source: www.yataforluda.comSince French fries are potatoes, and cooking potatoes in high temps activates acrylamide (remember potato chips?), this makes French fries a hazard. It doesn’t stop there. Potatoes are on the Dirty Dozen list of fruits and veggies with because of the high quantity of pesticides they retain. Then there’s the obvious danger: frying. But that’s more a heart-related risk than a cancer risk. So, whew. Go organic and save yourself a lot of potential health problems.
9. Farmed Salmon
Image source: www.h2tuga.netIf you enjoy eating salmon for the taste, or you eat it for the omega 3s, choose the canned kind. Farm-raised salmon are overcrowded in order to raise enormous numbers of fish, and that leads to health issues. For one, their color is not what it should be, so they’re fed chemicals to ensure their meat is the reddish-pink hue you’re used to seeing. They’re also treated with antibiotics and pesticides that are well-known carcinogens. Check the label when you’re fishing for salmon in your supermarket. Over 60% of the salmon consumed in the U.S. is from a fish farm.
10. Canned Tomatoes
Image source: www.eatlocalaustralia.wordpress.comThe lining in the cans of tomatoes contains a chemical known as bisphenol-A, or BPA. It is toxic, and it lines other canned foods as well. Tomatoes, however, due to their acidity, cause the BPA to leech from the lining of the can and enter the actual tomatoes. Not good. BPA in cans has been linked to several health issues including heart disease, diabetes and cancer. The danger is multiplied when tomatoesn are in the can. Glass jars may not solve the problem because the metal lid often has BPA. The safest choice might be to buy fresh, organic tomatoes.
11. Hydrogenated Oil
Image source: www.abc7.comHydrogenated oil is liquid oil that was chemically processed to turn solid. Partially hydrogenated oil, also called trans fat, has become known as the worst fat you can put into your body. Typically, hydrogenated oils are used to preserve processed foods to increase their shelf life. . .by a lot. These oils, when ingested, can alter the structure and integrity of human cell membranes. This can lead to several health issues, one of which is cancer. A study showed that the risk of breast cancer almost doubled among women carrying around high levels of trans fats. Foods to be wary of include baked goods, snack foods, deep-fried foods and some margarines.
12. White Flour
Image source: www.ledyardfair.orgFor flour to become white, it has to be refined (which strips it of all nutritional benefits) and then bleached, typically using chlorine gas. If you eat white bread, for example, you are eating bread that is devoid of nutritional benefit, even if nutrients were put back in, called “enriching.” Thus, you’re not getting any disease-protective properties you would get from other foods. Also, white flour is high on the glycemic index which means your blood sugar and insulin levels spike after eating it. There is evidence that the process that ensues may have cancer-promoting effects. There was a study stating that refined carbohydrates were linked to a 220% increase in breast cancer among women. Whole wheat bread might be the better choice for women. . . and for men.
13. Alcohol
It should not be a surprise that drinking too much alcohol can lead to liver poisoning or liver cancer. The International Agency for Research into Cancer (IARC; part of the World Health Organization) has listed alcohol as carcinogen since 1988. And scientists have found that some cancers are more common in heavier drinkers. Mouth, throat, breast and bowels are susceptible to developing cancer as a result of drinking too much alcohol. The type didn’t matter. The quantity consumed over time did matter.
14. Pickles
Image source: www.playbuzz.comThere’s good news, and there’s not-so good news. Pickles, which are cucumbers that underwent the pickling process of fermenting in salt, vinegar and seasoning, contain probiotics. That’s good news. However, they also contain a high amount of sodium, and pickles that are highly salty have been linked to stomach cancer. A team of doctors in Turkey discovered that gastric cancer patients ate a lot more pickles than cancer-free patients. In general, one large standard pickle is more than enough each day.
15. Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)
Image source: www.feastpb.blog.palmbeachpost.comOne study (that was later retracted for unknown reasons by the journal that published it) showed a link between genetically modified corn and cancer. Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) are living organisms that have had their genetic material artificially manipulated to deliver a benefit. They are becoming more prevalent in markets around the country, and although the health effects of these modified foods on humans have not been conclusively determined, strong sentiment is that they are very harmful over time.
16. Artificial Sweeteners Image source: www.medicaldaily.comIn the 70s, saccharin studies on rats showed that high doses of the sweetener caused cancer—in rats. It was later proven that the cancer was specific to rats because of their biological make-up, and high doses of saccharin led to bladder stones and bladder cancer. Aspartame is another popular artificial sweetener. In the 90s, a report linked an increase in brain tumors to the powder. However, according the the Cancer Council NSW’s website, upon further investigation, this link was found to be no link at all, just coincidental. Then, in 2005, a study showed that rats that ingested aspartame developed lymphoma and leukemia. However, the rats ingested the equivalent of between eight and 2, 083 cans of diet soda a day! But the damage was done and the public accepted the notion that artificial sweeteners lead to cancer, even though expert agencies in the U.S. (like the National Cancer Institute and the Mayo Clinic) and elsewhere say it’s safe for use.
Cancer is one of the leading causes of deaths worldwide, claiming millions of lives every year. It is estimated that more than 8 million died of cancer in 2012 alone – and it’s not going to get better. The number of people diagnosed with this fatal disease is expected to rise by 70 percent in the next 20 years.
Non-organic produce
Eating fruits and vegetables is highly encouraged by nutritionists because of their cancer-fighting ingredients which include vitamins, minerals, polyphenols, and antioxidants. What they forget to mention is how you should be careful NOT TO BUY non-organic, meaning they were grown witch chemical fertilizers and treated with toxic pesticides. It maximize your cancer risk.
Nitrogen, atrazine, thiodicarb, and organophosphates are some of the harmful components of pesticides and chemical fertilizers. Studies show that they contaminate fruits and vegetables by either sticking on their surface or leeching into them. According to a survey conducted by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), about 98 percent of sold produce is contaminated with cancer-causing fertilizers and pesticides, with apples as the biggest offender. Other fruits that had increased levels of pesticides include grapes, strawberries, and oranges
French fries and potato chips increases trans fats. Recent studies show they may contain acrylamide, a chemical with industrial applications and a known carcinogen.
The National Cancer Institute states that food is one of the top sources of acrylamide that both the World Health Organization and United Nations consider it a “major concern”. Acrylamide is often produced when food is exposed to high-temperature cooking methods such as baking, frying, and broiling. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) adds that cooking French fries to a crisp increases their acrylamide content.
Microwave popcorn
Too bad it causes cancer.The bags used to contain microwave popcorn are lined with a carcinogen known as perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) which is linked to an increased risk for various cancers affecting the liver, pancreas, kidneys, bladder, and testicles. Its buttery smell is NOT BUTTER but diacetyl. Factory workers exposed to diacetyl have been found to develop bronchiolitis obliterans or “popcorn lung”.
Farmed Salmon
Farmed salmon live off an unnatural diet contaminated with carcinogens. They are fed chemicals to make their meat turn into a reddish pink color similar to that of wild salmon. A scientific study suggests they contain too many pollutants that it is only safe to eat them three times each year. 14 toxins including dioxins, toxaphene, PCBs, and dieldrin were found to be significantly higher in farmed salmon than wild salmon. And it just so happens that these chemicals cause cancer.
Canned tomatoes
Canned tomatoes, like all canned goods, are lined with bisphenol-A (BPA). BPA is the same toxic component found in plastic bottles. Exposure to bisphenol-A disrupts the hormones and maximizes a person’s risk for breast cancer and prostate cancer. Because tomatoes are highly acidic, they tend to contain higher amounts of BPA compared to most canned goods – the acidity causes the carcinogenic compound to leech into the contents.
Processed meats
Bacon, sliced ham, hotdog, salami, bologna, meat loaf, and sausage,for a lot of people, they are part of their everyday lives .Processed meats are loaded with preservatives such as sodium nitrate to extend their shelf life, as well as chemicals to keep them looking fresh. scientists say, are carcinogenic and have been known to increase a person’s risk for colorectal cancer in several studies. Nitrates, when ingested, turn into N-nitroso, a cancer-causing chemical compound. Smoked meats pose the highest risk for cancer because when they are cooked at high heat, the nitrates are converted to nitrites which are more dangerous.
Refined grains
Refined grains pose even greater threat to your health because they contain chlorine gas, a toxic chemical which mills used to bleach the flour. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considers chlorine gas as unsafe for human consumption.
Soda
Soda are full of artificial sweeteners like aspartame,is also a known carcinogenic. One study has shown that it can increase your risk for developing cancerous tumors in the brain. A more recent scientific investigation of 125,000 people revealed a link between soda intake and increased risk for leukemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma in men – all variants of cancer
Besides artificial sugar, soda also contains chemicals and food coloring that can maximize your cancer risk. Its caramel color, derived from 4-methylimidazole (4-MI), is thought to be a cancer-causing agent.
Red meats
The World Cancer Research Fund and American Institute for Cancer Research have found that people whose diets consisted mainly of red meats were more likely to develop pancreatic, stomach, lung, esophageal, breast, and endometrial cancers.
The way red meat is cooked influences its cancer-causing effects. When exposed to high temperatures such as in charring, it creates heterocyclic amines (HCAs) – 17 of which are carcinogenic. saturated fats which can increase your risk for breast and colon cancer. A more recent study published in Discover Magazine suggests that red meat contains Neu5Gc, a sugar molecule that speeds up the development of cancer.
Alcohol causes cancer by damaging healthy cells in the body and replacing them with cancerous cells. It also breaks down into carcinogenic chemicals when digested. In women, it alters the hormones in a way that raises their stakes for breast cancer. Both heavy drinking and long-term alcohol consumption have been linked to various types of cancer including colorectal, pancreatic, and liver cancer.
1.Microwave popcorn is certainly convenient, but the bags have perfluoroctanoic acid, a chemical that can be toxic to the body including bladder, pancreas, kidney, liver, and testicular cancers.It may also increase the risk of infertility.
2.Non-Organic Fruits -Tainted with pesticides, such as thiodicarb, nitrogen fertilizers, atrazine, and organophosphates.
3.Canned Tomatoes-These cans have a lining in them that contain BPA, or bisphenol-A.It could cause variety of cancers and changing how the genes in the body work.
4.Processed meat-These meats contain sodium nitrates and other potentially dangerous preservatives and chemicals that scientists say are carcinogens.
5.Farmed Salmon -It contains chemicals, pesticides, antibiotics, and other carcinogens that are potentially dangerous to the body.
6.Potato Chips -Potato chips certainly offer no health benefits, but they may actually have a negative impact on your health that goes beyond the high level of calories and fats.
7.Hydrogenated Oils -They contain an excessive amount of Omega-6 fatty acids and when someone consumes too much of this nutrient, it can increase the risk of cancer.
8.Highly Processed White Flours-To make the flour as white as it is, is has to go through a bleaching process and this involves the use of chlorine gas.
9.GMO Foods-Will certainly change ur genes of offsprings if not you.
10-Refined sugars-QUIT NOW-White poison. Use stevia or BVrown molases or Indian Jaggery.
Image source: www.flickr.com 
