Clipping Board » Illness Enters through Mouth ─ The information that has been made public is often just the tip of the iceberg...
Update Date: 2010/06/30 22:17
Earlier in the news, we reported on the excessive addition of coumarin, an artificial flavoring, in A-Hao Tea. In reality, naturally extracted essences are now quite rare, and many foods contain artificial flavorings. For example, seafood balls in fish ball soup may include seafood essence, braised pork rice might have pork essence, and fruit flavorings are even more common. While consuming small amounts of these chemically synthesized flavorings is harmless, excessive intake can burden the body.
Fragrant braised pork rice smells so good it makes your mouth water, but your nose might be fooled. Many braised sauces don’t even contain meat—the meaty aroma comes entirely from a bottle of pork essence. Looking at the ingredients, you’ll find yeast extract powder, natural flavors, salt, and sugar, but no pork. When poured out, it’s a yellow liquid. This specially formulated artificial flavoring is extremely high in sodium, yet when added to the sauce, customers can’t tell the difference.
Another example is Taiwan’s iconic fish ball soup. The balls taste sweet and fishy, but again, you’re being deceived. The deliciousness actually comes from a packet of seafood essence. Think seafood essence contains seafood? Wrong. Check the ingredients: monosodium glutamate, maltodextrin, scallop extract, and more—all artificial flavorings. Many restaurants even secretly add it to their broth, and some udon noodles contain seafood essence too.
It’s not just Chinese cuisine relying on artificial flavorings—Western pastries use them even more heavily. A trip to Dihua Street reveals a wide array of flavorings. On the shelves, you’ll find cantaloupe essence, apple essence, and mango essence. Though the bottles are small, the flavors are intensely concentrated. So, even if a fancy birthday cake lacks real fruit, or a popular summer fruit juice has no actual fruit, these artificial flavorings can easily compensate.
Beyond flavorings, there are also artificial colorings—red, blue, yellow, green—you name it. Want food to look more vibrant? Just add a dash of coloring. Take preserved fruits and plums, for instance. Their bright red hue comes not just from colorings but also sweeteners, giving them that addictive sweet-and-sour taste kids love.
Even chewy and bouncy coconut jelly contains saccharin. When consumed with drinks, it introduces a hefty dose of artificial sweeteners into your body. Experts say small amounts of these additives are harmless, but excessive consumption can lead to allergies or asthma in mild cases, and liver or kidney damage—even cancer—in severe cases.
Everyone knows "natural is best," but where can we truly find the real, unadulterated flavors these days?
Source: http:/ / tw. news. yahoo. com/ art……url/ d/ a/ 100630/ 69/ 28fj0. html
Beware of Harmful "Essence"! Overconsumption May Cause Cancer
Earlier in the news, we reported on the excessive addition of coumarin, an artificial flavoring, in A-Hao Tea. In reality, naturally extracted essences are now quite rare, and many foods contain artificial flavorings. For example, seafood balls in fish ball soup may include seafood essence, braised pork rice might have pork essence, and fruit flavorings are even more common. While consuming small amounts of these chemically synthesized flavorings is harmless, excessive intake can burden the body.
Fragrant braised pork rice smells so good it makes your mouth water, but your nose might be fooled. Many braised sauces don’t even contain meat—the meaty aroma comes entirely from a bottle of pork essence. Looking at the ingredients, you’ll find yeast extract powder, natural flavors, salt, and sugar, but no pork. When poured out, it’s a yellow liquid. This specially formulated artificial flavoring is extremely high in sodium, yet when added to the sauce, customers can’t tell the difference.
Another example is Taiwan’s iconic fish ball soup. The balls taste sweet and fishy, but again, you’re being deceived. The deliciousness actually comes from a packet of seafood essence. Think seafood essence contains seafood? Wrong. Check the ingredients: monosodium glutamate, maltodextrin, scallop extract, and more—all artificial flavorings. Many restaurants even secretly add it to their broth, and some udon noodles contain seafood essence too.
It’s not just Chinese cuisine relying on artificial flavorings—Western pastries use them even more heavily. A trip to Dihua Street reveals a wide array of flavorings. On the shelves, you’ll find cantaloupe essence, apple essence, and mango essence. Though the bottles are small, the flavors are intensely concentrated. So, even if a fancy birthday cake lacks real fruit, or a popular summer fruit juice has no actual fruit, these artificial flavorings can easily compensate.
Beyond flavorings, there are also artificial colorings—red, blue, yellow, green—you name it. Want food to look more vibrant? Just add a dash of coloring. Take preserved fruits and plums, for instance. Their bright red hue comes not just from colorings but also sweeteners, giving them that addictive sweet-and-sour taste kids love.
Even chewy and bouncy coconut jelly contains saccharin. When consumed with drinks, it introduces a hefty dose of artificial sweeteners into your body. Experts say small amounts of these additives are harmless, but excessive consumption can lead to allergies or asthma in mild cases, and liver or kidney damage—even cancer—in severe cases.
Everyone knows "natural is best," but where can we truly find the real, unadulterated flavors these days?
Source: http:/ / tw. news. yahoo. com/ art……url/ d/ a/ 100630/ 69/ 28fj0. html