Food additives are substances that manufacturers deliberately add to packaged food — to slow spoilage, improve taste and appearance, or maintain texture. In Estonia, they must appear on the packaging either with the group and substance name or with the European Union E number. In this article we look at what lies behind these codes, how safe the substances really are and why they are needed at all.
What are food additives and where do they come from?
Additives come from three sources. The first group comes directly from foods or other living matter: agar-agar (E 406) and carrageenan (E 407) from seaweed, lecithin (E 322) from soybeans, pectin (E 440) from fruit, sodium caseinate from milk.
The second group consists of substances that do occur in nature but are produced synthetically. These are called nature-identical. The best-known examples are ascorbic acid (E 300), used as an antioxidant, and the yellow colorant beta-carotene (E 160a).
The third group is substances with no natural counterpart. These include, for example, the artificial sweetener saccharin and the antioxidant butylated hydroxyanisole (E 320).
Are food additives dangerous?
Frankly, additives rank only sixth among the causes of food poisoning. Ahead of them come an unbalanced diet, industrial contaminants, toxic substances that occur naturally in food, and pesticides. That doesn’t mean additives go unchecked — quite the opposite.
The safety of every new substance is tested in animal studies. When a threshold is found above which a substance becomes hazardous, the amount permitted in foods is set at 100 times lower than that. For comparison: some natural foods contain these very same compounds in amounts only 5–50 times lower. Vegetables, for example, can contain more nitrites than are used as a preservative when they are grown with heavy nitrogen fertilization in a cool summer.
The food company itself pays for the testing of new substances. The work takes years and can cost tens of millions of kroons. That is exactly why the industry prefers substances that have already been tested and approved over new ones. Estonia follows European Union requirements, and authorization to use additives is granted by the State Health Protection Centre.
Why are food additives used at all?
Most additives do one of four things: preserve nutritional value and taste, suppress the growth of dangerous microbes, improve texture, or make the product more appealing to consumers. Artificial sweeteners form a separate group, needed by people with diabetes and by those who keep an eye on their body weight.
Since 1 January 1995, packaged food must list the additives used on the packaging, either by group and name or with the EU numerical code, i.e. E numbers. By function, additives are divided into:
- food colorings: E 100 – E 199
- preservatives: E 200 – E 299
- antioxidants: E 300 – E 399
- emulsifiers, stabilizers and thickeners: E 400 – E 499
- various others from E 500 onward
Some substances play several roles at once — they can act as both a preservative and an antioxidant.
Preservatives, antioxidants and food colorings
Preservatives. Food can be spoiled by bacteria, yeasts and molds, which cause foodborne infections or produce toxins. Some of the oldest preservatives are nitrites (E 249, E 250). They were originally added to meat products for their nice pink color — only later was it discovered that they also inhibit the growth of the bacterium that causes botulism. Today, however, it is known that nitrites can react with amines to form carcinogenic nitrosamines. Despite this, their use is permitted in most countries, because the antimicrobial effect outweighs the risk. Attempts are made to suppress nitrosamine formation by adding vitamin C and vitamin E. Sorbic acid, benzoic acid and their salts are also well-known preservatives — they occur naturally in some berries.
Antioxidants. These protect food from loss of flavor, color changes and fat going rancid. A typical example is the browning of a peeled apple or potato. Ascorbic acid (E 300) is widely used — in sausages, hams, beer and soft drinks. Another group is sulfites, which act as both preservatives and antioxidants; they are used especially heavily in processing fruit and vegetables and in the juice and wine industries. The use of sulfites must be stated on the packaging, because in some people they can trigger an allergy.
Food colorings. Colorants have drawn the most suspicion — and for good reason, since several colors that were once widely used have later proved hazardous. Colorants are found in confectionery, soft drinks, yogurts and ice cream. In some places it goes too far — in the US about half of canned cherries are dyed red (after first being bleached straw-yellow with sulfites), and in Britain canned peas and beans are dyed green. The yellow tartrazine can trigger an allergy in about 2 people in 10,000, so it is worth reading the ingredients on the packaging before you buy.
Flavorings and aroma compounds. There are some twenty artificial colors, but thousands of aroma compounds. They don’t have to be listed separately on the packaging, so when you drink blackcurrant-flavored tea, you often can’t tell whether the aroma is natural or synthetic. Kiwi, banana and pear aromas are synthesized very well — a “kiwi syrup” advertised as natural may consist of grape juice, citric acid, artificial kiwi aroma, green coloring and a preservative. One of the most widely used flavor enhancers is monosodium glutamate, which Chinese cuisine has used for millennia. In large amounts it can cause facial and chest flushing, a feeling of heat and headache in some people — symptoms that pass within half an hour, known as “Chinese restaurant syndrome”.
So how should you approach food additives?
The simple truth is that food safety in developed countries is better assured today than it was some twenty years ago. Each country draws up its own list of permitted substances, and these lists don’t necessarily overlap completely. Science can’t give a 100% guarantee — safety rests on current knowledge and analytical methods. That is precisely why some substances have dropped off the list over time. It’s worth reading the packaging, especially for children’s food, and paying attention to how you react — if a particular substance makes you feel uncomfortable, avoid it.
Frequently asked questions
What’s the difference between dietary supplements and food additives?
Dietary supplements (vitamins, minerals, protein powders) are taken separately to complement your nutrition. Food additives, on the other hand, are substances a manufacturer puts into prepared food — for shelf life, flavor or appearance. They are two different things, even though the Estonian terms sound alike.
Is a substance with an E number automatically dangerous?
No. An E number simply means that the substance has been evaluated in the European Union and assigned a code. Many E numbers also denote entirely natural substances — for example, E 300 is ordinary vitamin C and E 440 is pectin derived from apples.
How can you avoid unnecessary food additives?
Read the ingredients list on the packaging. The shorter the list, the simpler the product. Fresh vegetables, fruit, meat and fish don’t need an ingredients table at all. With processed products, pay particular attention to colorings and flavor enhancers — if a specific substance causes symptoms, note it down and avoid it.
Author: Marek Morozov
Source: Health Board – dietary supplements.
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