Have you ever thought about the difference between products you "need" and products you've been trained to "want"? Have a look at our constantly updated and really informative segment below, and be aware!

- Consumers want to know they're eating healthful food. But most of them don't even know it's legal for food manufacturers to add cancer causing substances to their food. It's true! Political pressure during the Reagan administration caused the FDA to allow cancer causing substances to be used in foods - even though the Delaney Clause of the 1958 Food Additives Amendment specifically states that cancer causing additives are not permitted in foods for humans.

- Almost all packaged foods - even so called "health foods" - have additives in them, and many of them are harmful or inadequately tested. For example:
o Carrageenan, a seaweed derivative often found in "health food" products, is a suspected carcinogen.
o BHT, legal in the U.S. but banned in England, is associated with liver and kidney damage, behavioral problems, infertility, weakened immune system, birth defects and cancer.
o Sodium nitrate, a known carcinogen that may potentially cause death, is considered dangerous by the FDA, but is not banned because it prevents botulism.

- Who would expect that making a profit would be more important than people's health and their lives? Yet, this is exactly the case in many cosmetic products. Cosmetics and toiletries are laden with toxic chemicals, many carcinogenic. Makeup, hair coloring products, baby powder, shaving cream, mouthwash and toothpaste are just a few of the products that contain cancer-causing ingredients. Even products that are supposed to be gentle and mild for babies often contain toxic, irritating chemicals.

- Studies have found that nearly 50% of cosmetic products evaluated were contaminated with the cancer-causing chemical 1,4-dioxane. Cosmetics, toiletries and personal care products do not require FDA approval before they are sold to the public. A harmful product can only be removed from the market if the FDA can prove in a court of law that the product is harmful, improperly labeled or violates the law.

- Most products are labeled to "sell" rather than to provide accurate information about the product. Terms like natural and hypoallergenic do not have official definitions, so the manufacturers can use them to mean anything they want. This often leads to misleading information about the product on the label.

- Today more than ever before, you need to read labels and read them carefully! Because of increasing consumer awareness about healthy products, manufacturers are designing packaging to make it look like the product inside the package is healthy and made from natural ingredients. But if you read and interpret the ingredients on the label, there's a very good chance that you'll find that is not the case. According to John Bailey, Ph.D., director of the FDA's Office of Cosmetics and Colors, "Consumers believe that 'if it's on the market, it can't hurt me,' and this belief is sometimes wrong."

- What about Genetically Modified Foods?
Genetic recombination techniques consist in introducing into a plant or other organism a gene extracted from another organism that gives useful characteristics to the plant or other organism. Recently, the use of agrichemical tolerant or harmful insect resistant soybeans, rapeseeds, corns, etc. has rapidly spread.
Since genetic recombination technology is a sophisticated, state-of-the-art technology with only a short history of application in the food sector, a vague anxiety among consumers is increasing.

- Reading the ingredients on a food label might be like trying to read a foreign language.
Many of us are unaware of exactly what Acesulfame K is or what purpose Alpha Tocopherol serves for in our ice cream.
The following list of common food additives will inform you which ingredients are helpful or harmful and exactly what each additive does to our food:

• Acesulfame K is an artificial sweetener found in chewing gum, diet soft drinks, sugarless baked goods and frozen desserts. The only safety tests done on this additive were in the 1970s and not performed under very strict conditions.
  Acesulfame K may cause cancer. The amount you would need to ingest to get sick is unknown, but certainly limiting your intake would be wise.
  
  
• Alginate is made from seaweed (kelp) and thickens dairy products, canned frostings and other foods. Propylene glycol alginate thickens acidic foods such as salad dressings; it also can stabilize the foam in beer. This additive has been proven safe in lab tests.
  
  
• Ascorbic Acid (vitamin C) is an antioxidant, color stabilizer and common nutrient found in cereal, cured meat and fruit drinks. Besides maintaining the red color of luncheon meats and other cured foods, it prevents the formation of cancer-promoting nitrosamines (sodium nitrate).
  
  
• Aspartame (NutraSweet) is a common additive found in diet foods and artificial tabletop sweeteners (Equal). Tests on Aspartame show its link to cancer and should be repeated for more conclusive results. Some people report dizziness, hallucinations or headaches after drinking diet soda, but controlled studies haven't confirmed the link. If you think you react to aspartame or if you have the rare disease PKU (phenylketonuria), avoid it.

- Food dyes are a common additive in processed products and have little nutritional value. The presence of colorings usually signals the absence of fruit or other natural ingredients. Colorings might contribute to hyperactivity in some children.

• Blue 1, used in baked goods, beverages and candy, might create a small cancer risk.
  
  
• Blue 2, also used in the same foods, was tested in a study with mice and found that it caused brain tumors in the males. The Food and Drug Administration has concluded there is "reasonable certainty of no harm" to humans.
  
  
• Yellow 6, the third most widely used dye, caused tumors of the adrenal gland and kidneys in animal tests. Again, the FDA states there is little to no threat for humans who ingest this dye. To be on the safe side, limiting your intake of all heavily processed and dyed food would be a healthy choice.

- Caffeine serves the purpose of both flavoring and stimulant in food products.
Soft drinks and coffee are the most common products with caffeine added to them, but it's found naturally in cocoa, tea and coffee-flavored yogurts and desserts.
Caffeine is a stimulant and also mildly addictive. Insomnia, jitteriness, headaches, irritability, sleepiness and withdrawal symptoms are just some of the effects associated with abruptly halting caffeine intake. Completely eliminating caffeine from your diet would be the most health-conscious choice, but in reality, simply reducing your intake will go a long way toward reducing any side effects.

- Not all food additives are bad and some might even have health benefits. Calcium, Lecithin, Lactose and Erythorbic Acid are just a few of the additives that might actually improve a diet lacking in antioxidants.
It would be nearly impossible to avoid eating food additives entirely even if you were to cook your own food.
The best option is to start looking at the ingredients in certain processed foods and limit your intake. Processed foods also tend to be high in fat and low in nutritional value, so decreasing them would be a healthier way of eating.

- FLUORIDE
Fluoride is linked to 10,000 cancer deaths yearly

Industrial Use:
Harsh Floor Cleaners
Engine Degreasers
Car Wash Detergents
Laundry Detergents

Personal Care Product:
Toothpaste
Shampoos
Bath & Body Gels
Bubble Baths
Facial Cleansers
Baby Wipes
Baby Shampoos

- ALUMINUM
Found in deodorants, Aluminum is a metal, the third most common element in the environment and a toxin in the body. You'll find it in mineral solutions, processed foods, antiperspirants, antacids, paper products, beverage cans, foil and cookware.
"There is a suspected link between Alzheimer's disease and the toxicity of aluminum... autopsies have found high concentrations of the metal in the brain of people who had suffered from the disease."
Studies linking aluminum to Alzheimer's disease... "The evidence is strong enough that the prudent person will eliminate all food and cosmetic sources of aluminum and will use aluminum cooking utensils only if they are coated".

- DEA (diethanolamine) Do your shampoos, toothpaste, and bubble baths contain DEA (diethanolamine)? DEA, which is readily absorbed through the skin, is a potentially cancer-causing ingredient found in many mainstream cosmetics and toiletries

- PROPYLENE GLYCOL
Industrial Use:
Anti-Freeze
Brake and Hydraulic Fluid
Paint
Floor Wax

Personal Care Product:
Shampoos
Hair Conditioners
Hand and Body Lotions
Skin and Beauty Creams
Deodorants

* From Public Health Reports