Food Additive Sensitivities

Food additives are ingredients added to foods to preserve flavor, enhance texture, provide color, maintain or improve their safety, or improve or preserve their nutritional value. Food additives include any and all substances used to produce, process, treat, package, transport, or store foods.

Thousands of ingredients are legally added to foods, and the FDA has created a database called “Everything Added to Food in the United States” that lists 3,000 ingredients that have been approved as food additives by the FDA or that are listed as generally recognized as safe (GRAS).

All food additives must be considered safe at their intended level of use before they can be added to foods, and are subjected to ongoing safety reviews. They must also meet Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) that limit amounts of a food or color additive that can be used to the amount needed to achieve the desired effect.

Monosodium Glutamate

Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is a salt of the amino acid glutamic acid. It’s used as a flavor enhancer and is found in a variety of foods including processed foods such as canned vegetables, canned tuna, salad dressings, and many frozen foods and in many restaurant foods including Chinese food. Glutamate is also found naturally in some of foods (including tomatoes and Parmesan cheese), although no adverse symptoms have been reported from consumption of these foods according to the Centers for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI).

The FDA and the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology have reviewed the scientific data on possible adverse reactions that can occur in response to glutamate. Although most people can safely consume MSG, a GRAS substance, a small number of people can experience negative side effects quickly after consuming MSG-containing foods. Symptoms can include …

• Flushing
• Warm sensations in the back of the neck for forearms
• Headache
• Nausea
• Chest discomfort
• Feelings of detachment

Those who think they are sensitive to MSG and those who follow low-sodium diets for hypertension or other diseases or conditions should avoid MSG. It will be listed on the ingredient list as “monosodium glutamate”; glutamate can also be found in “hydrolyzed protein” or “natural flavorings”. If in doubt, you can call the food manufacturer to see whether the product contains MSG.

Sulfites

Sulfites are preservatives used primarily as an antioxidant in a variety of foods to prevent browning and to maintain the color of foods such as dried fruits, “fresh” shrimp, golden raisins, and processed potatoes. They’re used to inhibit the growth of bacteria in fermented foods such as wine and can be added to medications to increased shelf life.

Although most people can safely consume sulfites, the FDA acknowledges that about 1 of every 100 people in the United States, especially those with asthma, is sensitive to these additives. Sulfite-containing foods give off a gas called sulfur dioxide. When a person with asthma eats such foods, she inhales the gas, which irritates and constricts her lungs, making breathing very difficult.

Sulfite ingestion can cause the following symptoms in those who are sensitive:

• Anaphylactic shock
• Hives
• Angioedema (swelling beneath the skin)
• Nausea
• Abdominal pain
• Diarrhea
• Seizures

Since 1996, the FDA has prohibited sulfite use on fresh produce sold or served raw to consumers. Although still used in a variety of processed foods, sulfites must be listed on food labels. If you see any of the following terms in an ingredient list, it means the produce contains sulfites:

• Sulfur dioxide
• Sodium sulfite
• Sodium or potassium bisulfate
• Sodium or potassium metabisulfite

FD&C Yellow #5

FD&C Yellow 5, also known as tartrazine, is a widely used synthetic additive that colors beverages, gelatin dessert, candy, baked goods, ice creams, custards, and some medications. Although the FDA regulates color additives to ensure they are safe to consume, a very small proportion of the U.S. population (about 0.1-0.1 percent) is sensitive to this food dye, especially those with asthma, those sensitive to aspirin, and those who take aspirin regularly.
Individuals with this sensitivity can experience symptoms such as the following:

• Hives
• Purpura (purple skin bruising)
• Anaphylaxis or anaphylactic shock