Food additives

[PamT]

Did anyone see last night's Trevor MacDonald programme about food additives being the cause for allergies and bad behaviour in children?

It was certainly food for thought. They put a whole class of children on an additive free diet for a week and they all calmed down, behaved better and suffered less with asthma, eczema and other allergies. I'd love to know more about it and why we even have to have so many nasties in our food at all.

The ketchup as veg thing derives from the Reagan administration, in the early 80s, cutting back as much as poss on the cost of free school meals for families on welfare.

And, re Sunny D, I have been so pleased to note that the amount of space it takes up in the supermarket has shrunk considerably lately - which may be why they brought out the even more hideously coloured new ones! Resist! Resist!
Agree with all that's been said re unnecessary additives, especially the artificial sweeteners. We have a child from Belarus staying with us ("Children from Chernobyl" ) and he doesn't like milk so I needed to get milkshake stuff to put in it. There is a range of "real fruit" liquids, with 10% or so real fruit in, but when you read the labels they include artificial colours AND saccharine AND aspartame. Nesquik, on the other hand, has artifical flavouring (well, it just says flavour so I assume it's artificial) but is coloured with beetroot and sweetened with sugar and that's it.

Reading the labels is hard work if the print is tiny - but generally the tinier the print the greater the number of words so the greater the number of additives! (Worth taking a magnifying glass I think.)

Having admitted further down to my own addiction to junk food I have to add that over the last couple of months I've REALLY tried to eat the 'perfect' healthy diet - loads of fruit and veg and fish, no sugar at all except that in fruit, minimal red meat and dairy, loads of water etc etc all because I'm desperate to get pregnant again and various sources suggest it might help.

It's amazing how a motivation like that can succeed where EVERYTHING has failed in the past - I'm one of those 'daft' people who've always dieted by eating 'diet' foods full of rubbish etc etc...

I really think the kick this has given to me to change my habits - and especailly if I take a long while still to get pregnant ( boo hoo!)- combined with my desire to eat more healthily in order to set dd a better example as she starts to take notice ( she's 17 months)might actually be the saving of me!

Good on you Bayleaf, wish you luck with TTC and hope that you find the diet less of a trial soon.

By the way, a tip from the experts - don't stand up too soon afterwards!

Got interrupted by DH, sorry.

They suggest that you lie still for about 20 minutes and stick a pillow under your bum to raise it a bit, then none of the vital stuff escapes. But I suppose you know that already, you've obviously read up on it.

'Fraid so Pam - I think I've tried just about everythign at least once...I've become a ttc bore - well at least whilst online. In real life I'm alarmingly casual when all and sundry start on the''well are we to expect a little brother or sister soon???'' tack! The subtext of which is 'MIND YOUR OWN BISINESS'!! ( Given that they all know it took me 2.3 years and 3 miscarriages to get pregnant with dd you'd think they might twig wouldn't you???)

janh is right about the ketchup thing....but you've all missed the funny part....the primary ingredient in ketchup is tomato and tomato is a FRUIT!
Maize starch is a thickener (made from corn) and I try to avoid foods that have it, not because it's bad for you, but it gives you a full, bloated feeling. PamT, the emulsifiers you are talking about are what turns vegetable oils into solids (like marg). It's a process of homogenization that turns the unsaturated fats into saturated ones. They are NOT good for you if you are watching your cholesterol. The healthiest thing you can cook with is olive oil.
Also, rozzy, just because it is organic and additive free doesn't mean it's healthy. Granola bars are more fattening than a chocolate bar and not necessarily more nutritious. Stick to fruit and veggies or cheese for snacks for the kids if you are looking for healthy and nutritious.
Bayleaf, I've found the best way to shut nosey people up is to give them all the sordid details...ie. in fact, we are trying, we had sex last night in the following positions and ....etc. I bet they won't ask you again. It worked wonders with my parents when I was dating between husbands ...

While we're talking tomatoes and additives etc, did you know msg (monosodium glutamate) actually occurs naturally in tomatoes! It's also present in small quantities in mushrooms, parmesan cheese, garlic, walnuts and corn, among others! AND believe it or not, there is actually 10 times more glutamate in human breastmilk as there is in cows milk! BUT in it's natural form (an amino acid) it is broken down by the body much more slowly than in it's manufactured form, which is absorbed very rapidly (not a good thing). Which is why the label "No added msg" does not guarantee there is no msg in the product! And it can also be put on labels as hydrolysed (vegetable) protein (HVP) or whey protein. Interesting stuff, hey?!

Yes I am a compulsive label reader. Dd is allergic to egg and peanut (you would be amazed how many things have one or the other in that you wouldn't have expected) as well as tuna, mushrooms, strawberries, tomato and citrus. High sugar intake also aggravates her eczema. I also avoid msg along with nitrates and sulfates (although they seems to be added to so many things). I'm pretty careful, but I do admit to being a lazy cook, and have a pretty standard range of fare that I dish up for my poor family...it's hard to find things that everybody likes, without the things that dd can't have! (Mind you it used to be worse when she was also lactose intolerant - thankfully she can handle dairy in small doses now!) I do resort to packet and processed foods sometimes, but make sure they have no artificial nasties, or at least as few as seems possible these days. Some of the rubbish out there is amazing, and the fact that some people actually payout money for it is even more amazing!

SofiaAmes, LOL at the sordid details tactic!
Bayleaf, I think you should try it, but good luck and hope you hit the jackpot soon!

yes sofiaames, giving people a "little too much information" sure does shut them up!!

Mollipops, glad I don't have to cope with as many allergies as you do with your dd. Mine is just milk intolerant and that's bad enough. Do you subscribe to Inside Story? Its a magazine/support group for people with food allergies and is particularly good for multiple allergy sufferers - loads of help and recipes.

Just been to the health food shop for some more yeast so that I can hopefully make better bread (I think the last lot of yeast had died of old age). I've also been to the library for loads of books on E numbers and nutrition.

DS2 will not be pleased, everyday he asks if we are having vegetables for tea, when told yes he always replies "I don't like vegetables" not that he ever tries to eat them so how does he know?

2 things PamT

1. You could make sour dough bread... it doesn't require yeast (and is healthier for you... I am sure someone will disagree!)
2. One of my friends keeps telling me her son won't eat vegetables... but the new nanny has just gotten him to eat them. It's a lot in (but not only) in "your" attitude. Whenever her son eats at my place I always offer vegetables to him as DS eats them... she ALWAYS jumps in to say : Oh no, he doesn't like vegetables... - the boy is 3 and can speak for himself but she just pre-empts all attempt. Also at her own house she just does not offer him any vegetables... sorry had to rant - seems like you offer them... keep trying he may change his mind ! Does he like fruits ?

DS2 is a really faddy eater, he's nearly 6 and very stubborn. I always put a tiny amount of everything on his plate and he doesn't get any pudding/sweets/treats afterwards if he hasn't even tried them - which he won't. We've tried bribery, force, pleading etc but nothing works. I'm sure he will come round in time and start trying things like DS1 did, he's really good with food now and eats almost everything. These days, if they don't eat it we just take it away and don't worry about it, but they don't get an alternative or any snacks before the next meal.

Pupuce, I forgot to ask, what ingredients go into sour dough - is it milk free?

Yes - it's rye bread as well which is good if you try to not give too much wheat (I do). Jamie Iliver has a very easy recipe in his 3rd book.
What you need to do is prepare the basis for the bread and that's a week's process (not much work) but you have to let the dough rest.

Thanks pupuce, I'll have to look for a recipe for it. I have to admit that I like to do things straight away. I'm not good at planning ahead where food is concerned, I've got all on to set the breadmaker going 3 hours before I need it!