As the world's most popular dietary supplement, you can easily find an extensive range of multivitamin supplements to fit any age, gender and lifestyle on the shelves of grocery stores, pharmacies and health shops alike. Multivitamins have become household staples in many parts of the world, and surveys have even found that more than one-third…
In April 2023, the California Assembly's Committee on Health officially approved a bill that would ban five harmful chemicals from processed foods, and it was approved by the California Assembly in May 2023. As relayed by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) — a co-sponsor of the bill along with Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel and Consumer Reports…
MSG, or monosodium glutamate, is one of the most controversial ingredients on the planet. While some claim that it's a totally safe and healthy food additive that can help ramp up flavor and minimize sodium intake, others have dubbed it a cancer-causing food and have tied it to side effects like headaches and high blood…
You may have heard of nitrates, but do you really know what they are? If you said that they help keep processed meats like deli meats and hot dogs full of color, you would be correct — but they also help prevent the growth of harmful bacteria. So what are nitrates, and are they bad…
Salt has been used as a natural flavoring for thousands of years, and it’s so vital to our existence that a portion of our tongues is even designated to taste saltiness. However, in recent years, salt has come under fire and been characterized as an unhealthy substance that we should cut out of our diets…
Titanium dioxide is a common food additive that is used as a white pigment that enhances brightness and opacity. It’s also used in plastics, papers, ceramics and paints. Although the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) considers it safe for consumption, other organizations question its potential adverse effects. For that reason, it’s best to avoid…
Have you heard of the amino acid phenylalanine? This crucial compound is absolutely vital for several aspects of health and plays a central role in maintaining normal growth and development. It's also important for the synthesis of certain hormones and neurotransmitters that are involved in regulating mood and body weight. So what is the purpose…
If you read your food labels, I’m sure that you’ve run across the ingredient "soy lecithin" because it's one of the most widely used food additives on the market today. Soy lecithin is widely found in both conventional and health food stores. It's often used as an ingredient in food products and is sold in…
When you hear “ultra-processed foods,” you probably pictures things like soda, cereal, cookies and frozen dinners — and you'd be right. According to a study published in the medical journal BMJ Open, these are considered ultra-processed foods, or “formulations of several ingredients which, besides salt, sugar, oils and fats, include food substances not used in…
Apart from the costumes, haunted houses, scary movies and spooky decorations, there's no doubt that Halloween candy is a key component of the festivities this time of year, but you want to avoid overdoing it on the worst Halloween candy out there. Whether you're watching your waistline, cutting back on sugar consumption or simply trying…
