US food additives banned in Europe: Expert says what Americans eat is "almost certainly" making them sick

[SBFNews]

US food additives banned in Europe: Expert says what Americans eat is "almost certainly" making them sick​

BY HOLLY WILLIAMS, ERIN LYALL
FEBRUARY 20, 2023 / 7:13 PM / CBS NEWS


London — From baguettes to focaccia, Europe is famous for its bread. But there's one ingredient conspicuously missing: Potassium bromate. It's a suspected carcinogen that's banned for human consumption in Europe, China and India, but not in the United States.

In the U.S., the chemical compound is used by some food makers, usually in the form of fine crystals or powder, to strengthen dough. It is estimated to be present in more than 100 products.

"There is evidence that it may be toxic to human consumers, that it may even either initiate or promote the development of tumors," professor Erik Millstone, an expert on food additives at England's University of Sussex, told CBS News. He said European regulators take a much more cautious approach to food safety than their U.S. counterparts.

Asked if it can be said with certainty that differences in regulations mean people in the U.S. have developed cancers that they would not have developed if they'd been eating exclusively in Europe, Millstone said that was "almost certainly the conclusion that we could reach."

It's not just potassium bromate. A range of other chemicals and substances banned in Europe over health concerns are also permitted in the U.S., including Titanium dioxide (also known as E171); Brominated vegetable oil (BVO) (E443); Potassium bromate (E924); Azodicarbonamide (E927a) and Propylparaben (E217).

Millstone, who's spent almost half a century researching food and agriculture science, said most Americans were likely completely unaware that they were being exposed on a daily basis to substances in their food viewed as dangerous in Europe.

"They probably just think, 'Well, if it's available or it's in the store, it's probably fine,'" he said.

In a statement to CBS News, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said all food additives require "pre-market evaluation" and "regulations require evidence that each substance is safe at its intended level of use before it may be added to foods."

"Post-approval, our scientists continue to review relevant new information to determine whether there are safety questions and whether the use of such substance is no longer safe," the agency added.

Stacy McNamara is from upstate New York, but she has lived in London for a decade. She said raising children in the U.K. had opened her eyes to what's allowed in foods in the U.S.

McNamara has no plans to ever move back home, and she told CBS News that food safety was "for sure" a part of that decision.

In a statement to CBS News, the FDA said that when used properly, potassium bromate converts into a harmless substance during food production.

The FDA acknowledged, however, that not all of the compound used in any given recipe may convert during the production process, but that control measures were utilized to minimize the amount in final products.

U.S. food additives banned in Europe: Expert says what Americans eat is "almost certainly" making them sick​

One expert says most Americans likely don't realize how many additives they're eating that European regulators shun — and it's "almost certainly" making them sick.

www.cbsnews.com

Source:https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-food-additives-banned-europe-making-americans-sick-expert-says/

 

[SBFNews]

This cancer-causing chemical may be lurking in your bread
www.ewg.org
By Iris Myers (EWG)
MAY 4, 2022


Many packaged baked goods are made with flour that may contain potassium bromate, an additive linked to cancer. The chemical is added to flour to strengthen dough and allow it to rise higher, benefits that have led many U.S. companies to embrace it.

EWG has identified over 130 different products that contain potassium bromate, including Best Choice Wheat Sliced Bread, Gomez Flour Tortillas, Hy Vee Blueberry Crisp and Balducci's Sugar Cookies, among others. The use of this additive in the U.S. is widespread and legal, even though it’s been banned in other countries because of health concerns.

In 1999, the International Agency for Research on Cancer, echoing findings in several studies, determined potassium bromate is a possible human carcinogen.

In lab tests, animals exposed to it had increased incidences of both benign and malignant tumors in the thyroid and peritoneum, the membrane that lines the abdominal cavity. Later research found that ingesting potassium bromate resulted in significant increases in cancer of the animals’ thyroid, kidneys and other organs.

Because of these health concerns, potassium bromate is not allowed for use in several countries, including the United Kingdom, Canada, Brazil and the European Union. California requires food with potassium bromate to carry a warning label.
Even with plenty of evidence showing potassium bromate’s potential to harm human health, it’s still legal for use in food sold in the U.S.

The food industry has long argued that potassium bromate isn’t a concern in baked products, because in theory the baking process fully converts it into potassium bromide, a similar yet non-carcinogenic chemical. But tests in the U.K. found that potassium bromate remains detectable after baking, with all six unwrapped breads and seven out of 22 packaged breads tested found to have measurable levels.

Potassium bromate was first approved for use in the U.S. by the Food and Drug Administration in the 1960s. In 1973, the FDA announced a planned literature review of the additive, but it’s unclear whether the review was completed, and the chemical hasn't been assessed since.

Absent federal action, California has taken measures to warn residents of potassium bromate’s dangers. The additive has been on the state's Proposition 65 list since 1990, so products containing it must carry a cancer warning. But no other regulatory agency has acted to regulate or remove potassium bromate from grocery store shelves.

Our broken food chemical review system​

The U.S. food additive review system fails repeatedly to keep Americans safe and needs an overhaul if it is to protect us from potentially cancer-causing chemicals like potassium bromate.

Congress is considering legislation that aims to break through the regulatory standstill. The Food Chemical Reassessment Act of 2021, introduced by Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), would help bolster our food regulatory system. If enacted, the bill would create an Office of Food Safety Assessment within the FDA to confirm that chemicals that entered the food supply chain through legal loopholes, or were reviewed by the FDA decades ago, are still safe to eat. The bill identifies 10 chemicals for immediate reassessment, including potassium bromate.

While we await the passage of this bill or new federal action, consumers can minimize exposure to potassium bromate by checking food labels and avoiding products that use it. You can also check our Food Scores database to find alternatives without potassium bromate.

 

[saynotomsm]

Yes, it's a well known fact that the US government is poisoning the American left, right and center. Starting with their childhood vaccination programme to food and water and chemtrail.