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Original poster

The Soft Drinks Association say....

20 replies

Blu · 02/03/2006 13:37

..they have a "DUTY" to produce soft drinks which have sodium benzoate and ascorbic acid in them, which react together to make carcinogenic benzine at levels 8 times higher than allowed in tap water.

When the interviewer challenged the fact that it was a 'duty', suggesting, rather, that it is a huge money-making business, the spokesman for the SDMA said 'our customers demand soft drinks with these ingredients, so we have a duty to meet that demand'!!

The level of scare may well be up for scrutiny, but apparantly the 'healthy' addition of ascorbic acid, aka Vit C, reacts with the preservative to create benzine.

Will this prompt you to avoid soft drinks with these ingredients?

OP posts:
Feistybird · 02/03/2006 13:39

yes.

Nbg · 02/03/2006 13:41

Well I have to admit, since I noticed that some of these "ingreadiants" are in things like Sudocrem and Anusol I have been more selective over what I drink.

It's pretty grim really.

jenkel · 02/03/2006 13:48

Another yes

NomDePlume · 02/03/2006 13:49

Is this just fizzy drinks ? If so, we don't drink them at all.

MrsBigD · 02/03/2006 14:14

does sodium benzoate have an e number? if so what is it? I'm a diet coke addict and shudder at the prospect of withdrawal!

LilaM · 02/03/2006 14:22

Benzine does occur in food every time we cook from what I understand. BBQ'd meat, toast etc. I don't think avoiding soft drinks will make a difference other than they are generally not good for one.

Original poster
Blu · 02/03/2006 14:25

NdP - no, not just fizzy drinks. Lots of squashes, and lots of ostensibly 'healthy' soft drinks are culprits, because of the Vit C content.

OP posts:
MrsBigD · 02/03/2006 14:27

and you'd think the Vit C bit is the healthy part!

WideWebWitch · 02/03/2006 14:29

Well, they would say this wouldn't they. Yes it will but we don't really buy soft drinks anyway, other than the odd smoothie. And organic apple juice.

NomDePlume · 02/03/2006 14:32

I'll certainly be checking labels more closely

sharklet · 02/03/2006 14:55

We don't drink fizzy drinks. However I'll be checking much more carfully the other drinks we buy!

Original poster
Blu · 02/03/2006 16:54

Ribena is a culprit.
And yes, MrsBigD - the E number for sodium benzoate is E211. It is in diet coke, but don't know if that has ascorbic acid / Vit C in it.

OP posts:
MrsBigD · 02/03/2006 17:04

Thanks Blue... yes coke has ascorbic acid in it and tartaric acid and some other kind of acid and then an acidity stabiliser LOL

guess I better wean myself of it slowly then

Thirtysix · 06/03/2006 22:11

Stick to fruit juice-as long as it has the word "pure" on the label then that is all it is...nothing added......

ruty · 06/03/2006 22:38

my ds has recently been on a calcium supplement which has benzoic acid in it. If he has this at the same time as having something high in vitamin C does this create the same risk? be grateful if anyone knows..

JanH · 06/03/2006 22:59

I never demanded a soft drink with sodium benzoate and ascorbic acid in it, Blu - have they done an actual poll??? With that specific question in?

How come things we really would demand (can't think of an example right now of course!) get withdrawn because there is no demand, eh, eh?

joelalie · 08/03/2006 13:06

Hi all,

I work for a fruit juice manufacturer. We make fruit based soft drinks too. I would echo what someone else said (sorry can't remember who) that 'pure' fruit juice should be OK. Anything that is a fruit-juice based drink may have other ingredients. It should also make you wonder why any drink that contains X% fruit juice needs added vit c....the reason is of course that the vit c content of fruit is greatly reduced by pulping, concentrating, heat-treating (and even chilled drinks are subjected to this) and then being stored for a period of time. And then of course you have to think about the shedloads of sugar that the juice contains....much more than you would get in the original fruit.

Personally I rarely use juice. I drink water and eat fruit...better combination. It's more problematic with kids and I will confess to letting them have fizzy drinks and fruit squashes from time to time but it's a treat. Mainly it's very weak tea, milk, fizzy water and plain water.

kate

ruty · 15/03/2006 11:17

oh god i just looked at ds's vitamin supplement [animal parade] and it has both sodium benzoate and ascorbic acid in it . he's only 18 months ands he's been having it for the last six months. now i am bloody terrifed.

Original poster
Blu · 16/03/2006 14:54

ruty - is it liquid? Anyway, if it's a vitamin supplement, it will only be tiny amounts he is drinking - not like great cupfuls of ribena.

And as for your q below, that should actually be ok, because the benzene takes a while to form once the sodium benzoate and vit C come into contact.

DS has had loads of Ribena in his time, though we avoid other soft drinks - but it will be water or pure juice from now on!

OP posts:
ruty · 16/03/2006 16:00

oh thanks blu for that - yes it is a liquid, but i feel so cross because he's so small, they really should take out the sodium benzoate. AS it has such relatively large amounts of ascorbic acid in it i was worried it might make the sodium benzoate degrade quicker and more easily, but it is in a plastic bottle not a metal one, don't know if that makes a difference. No more for him though.

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