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Chemical masterpieces in the food industry

Georgi Obretenov, 11 IB

It is a well known fact that food today contains many substances that do not occur naturally. They have become a part of everyday nutrition long ago and today we don’t even bat an eye at this fact. But why are they this unhealthy? What should we do? What should we eat?

First things first – the things we are talking about are artificial sweeteners, coloring, preservatives and all the other chemical master-pieces made for the food industry. Many of the manufacturers say they are harmless, but they do not say what is the safe amount – surely there is a maximum amount of a particular substance that you can consume without risk for your health. But no one says anything about it, because it is a really small number. For example, one of the most dangerous things you can encounter are the hydrogenated fats.

They are regular fat with an artificial hydrogen atom attached. It is dangerous because the body cannot dissolve it. It is so hard, that most of it is stored in your body and later on leads to many diseases. You can find it in some candies, chocolate products and sweet stuff overall. Flavors and colorings are also quite the danger – most of them form strange by-products in your stomach and blood. It is just an invitation to diseases. We cannot even begin to explain all the artificial products used in the food industry, but you can do something about your food from this moment on.

Read the ingredients – and buy products with as many naturally occurring ingredients as possible. This small step will make your life really healthier!

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