Niet gecategoriseerd

The health risks of BPA.

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Understanding the Health Risks of BPA

Understanding the Health Risks of BPA

If you frequently use plastic containers or water bottles, you might have encountered the term BPA, or Bisphenol A. This industrial chemical is an essential component in the production of two widespread synthetic materials.

Polycarbonate and Epoxy Resins are found in a variety of consumer items, including but not limited to food storage containers, baby bottles, and lining for canned goods. It’s critical to understand the health implications of using products that contain BPA.

Health Consequences of BPA:

BPA is not just an ordinary chemical; it has the potential to disrupt hormonal balance in both males and females. Research links BPA to numerous health concerns like infertility, various cancers, obesity, diabetes, early puberty, and behavioral shifts in children. Moreover, BPA has been connected to decreased sperm counts in men.

It’s worth noting that some jurisdictions, like Canada, have already declared BPA as a toxic substance. Both the United States and Europe have banned the use of BPA in plastic infant bottles.

Is ‘BPA-Free’ Truly Safe?

While manufacturers are promoting BPA-free products to alleviate consumer fears, the reality may not be as reassuring. Many of these supposedly safer alternatives contain Bisphenol S (BPS), a compound which early studies suggest might have similar hormone-mimicking properties to BPA.

Reducing BPA Exposure:

  • Switch to glass baby bottles for infant feeding.
  • Opt for reusable stainless steel water bottles instead of plastic ones.
  • Use glass jars or Pyrex containers for storing food.
  • Avoid microwaving food in plastic containers.
  • If you use plastic kitchenware, keep them out of the dishwasher and replace old or scratched items.
  • Consider using glass dishes and cups in place of plastic versions.
  • Steer clear of plastic wrap, especially when microwaving food.

While it may be challenging to entirely eliminate BPA exposure, these steps can substantially lower your risks and contribute to a healthier lifestyle…

The health risks of BPA. Read More »

Why I don’t eat Margarine.

Niet gecategoriseerd
Why I Don’t Eat Margarine

Why I Don’t Eat Margarine

I haven’t had margarine since I was probably 10 years old. After the propaganda of ‘fat will block your arteries and kill you” in the 80’s and 90’s, we’ve come a long way to understanding why that isn’t so and why (good) fats are necessary for a healthy body and brain, but also why those low-fat “healthy” alternatives are so often terrible for our health, with margarine being a biggie!

WHAT’S IN MARGARINE?

Margarine is typically made from a range of vegetable oils, milk, salt, emulsifiers, colors, flavors, preservatives, food acid, maltodextrin, vitamins A and D amongst other things. To some people, this might sound OK – vegetable oils, vitamins with a few “less desirables” but hey, what are you going to do? We all know we need fewer additives, preservatives, colors, and flavors, but what about the big players in this process?

VEGETABLE OILS

  • Palm Oil
  • Sunflower Oil
  • Soybean Oil
  • Canola Oil
  • Peanut Oil

Whilst the term “vegetable oil” may sound harmless, unlike olive oil (that’s squeezed from crushed olives), most vegetable oils undergo a long and arduous process that makes the product palatable for sale. Let’s use Canola oil as an example. According to the Weston A. Price Foundation experts Sally Fallon and Mary Enig, the process of preparing canola oil for sale is as follows:

“Like all modern vegetable oils, canola oil goes through the process of refining, bleaching, and degumming — all of which involve high temperatures or chemicals of questionable safety. As canola oil is high in omega-3 fatty acids, which easily become rancid and foul-smelling when subjected to oxygen and high temperatures, it must be deodorized. The standard deodorization process removes a large portion of the omega-3 fatty acids by turning them into trans fatty acids. Although the Canadian government lists the trans content of canola at a minimal 0.2 percent, research at the University of Florida at Gainesville found trans levels as high as 4.6 percent in commercial liquid oil. The consumer has no clue about the presence of trans fatty acids in canola oil because they are not listed on the label.”

Trans fats are the ones we want to avoid. Why? Firstly, they have been linked to inflammation and calcification of arteries, which are well-established risk factors for coronary heart disease. High levels of trans-fats have also been linked with breast cancer as well as pre-eclampsia, obesity, colon cancer, diabetes, allergies, and more.

But what about trans-fat free margarine? Well, this is where it all gets a little science-based BUT according to McGill University in Canada:

“A liquid fat that has mostly unsaturated fatty acids connected to its glycerol backbone is mixed with a solid fat such as glyceryl tristearate. The solid fat can be made by total hydrogenation of a vegetable oil such as soybean oil. Total hydrogenation gets rid of all the double bonds and does not produce any trans fats”

In short, the oil is once again, heavily processed to produce a spreadable option. It’s not real food.

EMULSIFIERS

Emulsifiers are used to combine two ingredients that normally don’t mix together, i.e. oil and water or oil and vinegar. Emulsifiers are used frequently in food manufacturing to stabilize processed foods.

What are the health effects? One study suggests emulsifiers have the potential to damage the intestinal barrier, leading to inflammation and increasing our risk of chronic disease.

Another study discovered that feeding mice common emulsifiers resulted in an altered gut microbiome, with reduced numbers of bacteria considered beneficial to health, and increased levels of inflammation-promoting microbes. The research also discovered that once healthy mice who had been fed emulsifiers ate more food and gained more weight (especially body fat), had higher blood sugar levels, and were resistant to the action of insulin AKA metabolic syndrome. A huge player in the health epidemic.

HOW IS BUTTER MADE?

Butter is made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk, sometimes with a little salt. That’s it.

I know which one I’d rather 🙂

Why I don’t eat Margarine. Read More »