With all the recent buzz on food safety, we posed the following questions to our nutritionist Ms.Ramya Ramachandran.
Here is what she has to say:
1.
Is MSG a
naturally occurring salt? Why is MSG added to foods and has it been proved to
be detrimental to health?
Monosodium
Glutamate (MSG) is naturally found in certain foods and acts as a taste
enhancer. It is commonly used in the Chinese cuisine. Fact is that MSG in
reality doesn’t have any taste but it triggers our tongue through the fifth
taste called Umami (savory flavour). It is added to the food, soup, noodles and
processed meats. The Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) recognizes MSG as generally safe and states that all foods
containing MSG should be listed on the label. Although FDA claims that using
MSG has no harmful effects on human health still experts and other medical
professionals say that it triggers the cells and may cause brain dysfunction to
varying degrees. Not all food products directly display MSG on the label. There
is a wide range of ingredients containing MSG and these include: Glutamate,
glutamic acid, gelatin, hydrolyzed protein, yeast extract, soy protein isolate,
malt extract, soy sauce, flavourings, corn starch, citric acid etc. Having
spoken about its pros and cons, yet there is no well established scientific
evidences to strongly support that MSG has detrimental effect on health. A
person with food allergy can show out symptoms and hence they have to strictly
avoid packaged foods. However in day to day life all of us are consuming MSG in
its natural form as well. It is found in tomatoes, cheese, mushroom, protein
rich foods etc. It is either present naturally or added artificially.
2.
How does lead find its way in our food cycle?
Lead is a toxic metal which is not meant for
human or animal feed. According to the
USFDA, Lead, once it enters into the food, it is very hard and impossible to
eliminate or wash out completely. Lead is not purposely added to foods but
during several stages of food processing and packaging it can be
contaminated. Lead is found in soil and
water through lead pipes and paints. It is not only through food but also
through industrial emission. Lead find its way right from baby foods, read to
cook soups, flavouring mix, fruit juices and many more. Even if the food looks
clean, it can be contaminated by the packaging material used. Worldwide it has
been estimated that, in a year around 1, 43,000 deaths occur due to lead
exposure.
3. How can we ensure that the food we eat is
free of harmful components?
Most parents ask me “There are lots of organic
cookies, real fruit juices and pureed vegetables available in the market and
can we buy them for our kids?” My Only answer is NO. Please give a thought before you get into action. Take a fresh
orange, blend it in a juice mixer and try storing it for at least 3 weeks. Will
it be as fresh as it was at day 1? Then how do you say a canned fruit juice
labelled as real can stay fresh for months? The foods available in the
market today are laden with salt, sugars, artificial colours, and preservatives
which are harmful to health. Moreover children tend to consume these kinds of
snack items in large quantities and a single serving of these snack items
contains more than the recommended allowance for salt and sugars. My very own saying “Anything that has an expiry date is not good for health”. Well change has to come within ourselves.
Don’t get carried away by the attractive packaging. Instead look into the
ingredients, read the nutritive value carefully (sugars, salt, Trans fat etc.)
and of course the expiry date. Avoid fast foods too. It is quite difficult for
us to stay away from these foods. However, my only suggestion is eat it
occasionally and don’t replace it with our nature gifted fresh fruits,
vegetables and grains. Nowadays even natural foods are being grown chemically.
Then how do you even think packaged foods are safe? It’s high time to think and
awake.
4. Are packaged foods safe? There is too much
talk about food these days, balanced diet, Trans fats now the scare of
toxins. How much do we really have to care about all of this?
Synthetic chemicals and colours used in the making and preservation of
foods pose a long term danger to our
health. In today’s fast moving world where people find no time for cooking,
these processed foods are considered to be more convenient. Almost all foods
are being packaged now. Certain additives are permitted to by the Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) whereas certain chemicals are strictly banned.
Formaldehyde, the potent cancer causing chemical is being added in fizzy drink
bottles, melamine ware etc. Another harmful chemical is the Bisphenol A which
is added to foods and drinks. This particular chemical may cause hormonal
imbalance. There are almost 400 such chemicals being added to different food
items. None of us know how safe we are from eating these packaged foods. To
make the long story short, save your health and wealth by eating and
choosing foods wisely.
REFERENCES
8. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/19/chemicals-leaching-food-packaging-safety-bmj
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