Are chemicals in food bad for you?

I like to keep a level head with feet firmly planted in the ground so I try be realistic and steer away from telling people to cut things out completely.  However, chemical food additives are a bit scary really.  We are basically all lab rats in the governments badly executed attempt to create a well balanced economy with food companies/pharmaceutical companies and the rats.


For decades food companies have been testing all sorts of chemicals to make food look nicer or last longer.  Some foods are pretty much made of nothing but chemicals and sugar (coke/sweets).  There is such limited knowledge about the long term affects of the chemicals that are put in packaged foods to preserve them and make them taste more pleasurable.  Due to these distortions in the diet we are getting an increase in metabolic syndrome which is an umbrella term for a group of symptoms that lead to diabetes, strokes, heart disease and other degenerative illnesses. 


The chemicals in the foods we eat make us want to eat more than we would normally, and they could distort the way our body absorbs nutrients and block certain pathways in the body... look at the health of the societies we live in now for the proof.  Trans-fats and sugar loaded diets can actually change the way our genes are expressed, so who knows what the chemical additives are doing long term?

The thing is, how can we possibly know yet what these chemicals are doing to us at a metabolic level?  They simply have not been around long enough to know.  It is clear that there is so much going wrong in our bodies so it is wise for us to do something about it with the freewill we have.  Making the best choice about what we put in our own body is crucial, even more so if you are pregnant. 


The other factor is mood.  These chemicals that are infiltrating our systems are bound to have an affect on our state of mind and decision making; the way we view the world.  It makes total sense to avoid these chemical packed foods which are usually loaded with sugar and trans-fats to add insult to injury.



Food is great without chemicals, there is an abundance of wonderful food out there.  Make the best decision you can and if you cannot realistically cut out chemical foods completely, just try and avoid them when you can. 


Check out these websites for more information about specific chemical additives:


http://www.cspinet.org/reports/chemcuisine.htm


http://www.gaianaturopathic.com/docs/Food_Additives.pdf


Josie.