E number guide

Another can of fruit, another artifical colouring… why? This time it’s a tin of chunky fruit salad from Tesco. Not one of my usual food choices but I thought I’d try it. The list of ingredients goes well until we get to “Erythrosine”. Why a tin of fruit needs to be coloured I’ll never know?!

Unlike the last colouring, this one has a list of health issues (which I haven’t found proper references for) that include:

• Causing photosensitivity
• It may be carcinogenic
• Possible a xenoestrogen (whatever that is)
• Has been associated with other colours that be responisible for ADHD

What it is, is a bright red synthetic coal tar dye. You’ll find it in tinned cherries (like in this fruit salad) and also biscuits and some cooked meats. If you ever chewed one of those red pills from a dentist that shows where the plaque is on your teeth then you’ll almost certainly have taken it.

Every time I’ve sat down to eat a tin of Tesco Strawberries I’ve looked at the label and seen Allura Red AC on the list of ingredients.  Naturally I’ve assumed that it isn’t an E Number. A quick search proves this assumpion wrong.

Allura Red AC has the numer E129 which makes in a colour (obvious, I guess) and is known in the US as FD&C Red 40. It has the approval to be used in food, cosmetics and drugs and is generally seen to be safe.  Some comparisons have been made to the recently banned Sudan 1, but apart from a few cached pages in google I can’t find a firm place to confirm this.

You were right, mother
Times Online - UK
One of the abiding memories of my childhood is of my mother banging on about the evils of processed foods, E numbers, additives, apples sprayed with chemicals…

Chemical stories can make you blind
Spiked - London,UK
by Helene Guldberg. Do you know what ‘E-numbers‘ are? Like me, you may have been led to believe that they are hazardous food additives…

Fishing Lines: The small fry escaped - find the villains
Independent - London,England,UK
They were being given food all e numbers and artificall colours, now they can eat healthy, and fishermen wont be able to catch them and they will have to eat.

Over on the Guardian’s blog is an interesting pint, I mean post, about the chemicals in our drinks, and how EU directive 2000/13/EC means we don’t have the right to know what’s in our drinks.

Seasoned drinkers have long argued that the thumpingest hangovers are the byproduct not of alcohol, but of the chemical additives that are added to drinks to improve their shelf-life, appearance, taste and scent

Read more

Bill Britt (Surely not Amway’s Bill Britt?) writes a Brand Health Check column and starts of “With an image stuck in the 70s and a reputation for E numbers, Findus is suffering more than other frozen brands.”

It seems that ready meal companies are taking a hit as customers strive for healthier alternatives.

“Findus is facing an array of challenges. The frozen-food market is in decline, while Findus’ brands, such as Crispy Pancakes, hark back to a bygone era, when convenience meals were seen as fresh, progressive and exciting.”

Read more over a Brand Republic

Calcium Sorbate (E203), like E202 is a preservative with antifungal and antibacterial properties. It is the calcium salt of sorbic acid.

Again, like Potassium Sorbate there isn’t a lot of information about positive or negative effects.

(Unfinished entry)

Further reading:

• Chem Online

Citric Acid (E330) isn’t often labled as an e-number on food labels, it is usually simply put as “Citric Acid”. It is an acid which occurs naturally in fruits such as lemons and limes. The additive found in today’s food, however, is manufactured from cultures of the mold Aspergillus niger. The mold is fed sucrose to then produce citric acid.

It is used most commonly as a preservative and acidity regular in soft drinks, yoghurts, fruit juices, cheese, margarine and salad dressings. It is chosen often over other preservatives for it’s distinctive flavour.

In the quantities used in food I can find no evidence that Citric Adic can be bad for you. However in it’s raw ingredient state it can cause skin and eye irritation. In pharmacutical doses symptoms could include chest pain, difficulty breathing, heart palpitations, diarrhea and vomiting - but again, you’re not going to reach these levels in your food.

Further Reading:

• Citric Acid
• WikiPedia
• CNN In-Depth food additives table

This article is a fantastic summation of MSG issues. I like it mainly because it lists a whole load of “hidden” places MSG can be found on food labels, which whilst US based I’m sure is relevant globally. Also great is a list of possible symptoms that MSG has been related to.

Monosodium glutamate, commonly known as MSG, was thought of as a “miracle food enhancer” when it was first introduced to the public over five decades ago.

More than just a seasoning like salt and pepper, MSG could actually enhance the flavors of foods, making processed meats and frozen dinners taste fresher and smell better, salad dressings more tasty, and canned foods less tinny. Read the rest of this entry »

I thought I’d look into Sulphur Dioxide after eating a bag of dried fruit and feeling short of breath. Scanning down the ingredients I see “E220″. A quick look into Sulpur Dioxide doesn’t yield very impressive results, in fact is it on AltMedAngel’s top 20 food additives to avoid!

The International Labour Organization says to avoid E220 if you suffer from conjunctivitis, bronchitis, emphysema, bronchial asthma, or cardiovascular disease and the UK Food Guide doesn’t recommend it for consumption by children.

Foods to look out for containing this include: beers, soft drinks, dried fruit, juices, cordials, wine, vinegar, and potato products.

Further Reading:

• E220 - Sulphur Dioxide
• AltMedAngel
• Fed Up With Food Additives.info
• UK Food Guide.net

Potassium Sorbate (E202) is a preservative with antifungal and antibacterial properties. It occurs natrually in fruit and for the food industry is manufactured by neutralising Sorbic Acid (E200) with potassium hydroxide.

Most places list it being many many foods, Examples include candied peel, cheese, cider, concentrated fruit juice, dessert sauces, dried apricots, fillings and toppings, fermented milks, frozen pizzas, fruit salads, gelatin capsules, glacé cherries, jams and preserves, margarine, pickled cucumber, processed cheese spreads and slices, salad dressing, seafood dressings, soft drinks, soup concentrates, sweets, table olives, tinned fruit pie fillings, wine and yoghurt.

There isn’t a lot of information about Potassium Sorbate around, positive or negative, so it’s hard to tell about whether to watch out for this one.

Further Reading

• Potassium Sorbate
• UK Food Guide