WORLD WORLDWIDE EUROPE ITALY SICILY - news journal UPDATE - (en) Italy, Sicilia Libertaria #457 - Brunella - A food that ... is no longer food (ca, de, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

 Another step in the progressive fracture, which we claim to call

progress, between us and the natural environment that hosts us is the
spread of industrial foods, in particular ultra-processed or
ultra-processed foods. Foods that, in countries such as the United
States, Canada and the United Kingdom, represent 50% of the foods
consumed daily and in Italy less than 30%. But their consumption is
increasing, even in the less industrialized countries. These are
packaged foods that have undergone various industrial processing and
that contain many ingredients including various additives, such as
thickeners, emulsifiers, sweeteners, stabilizers, colorants, and above
all transformed compounds, such as modified starches, inverted sugars,
hydrolyzed protein compounds. Modified substances are in fact a large
reservoir from which to draw to obtain what you want. Modified starches
are an illuminating example: treated with propylene oxide they become
products with the liquid but sticky consistency typical of salad
dressings; if you mix them with phosphoric acid and stabilize them with
multiple freezing and thawing cycles you get products that are good for
filling desserts; modified starches such as maltodextrins are excellent
for giving shine and creaminess to preparations such as milkshakes. If
the taste and smell of what you get is not pleasant, there are additives
available that can make even the worst rubbish appetizing. Additives
that should not be harmful but this is not always the case. Emulsifiers,
widely used in pastry making, such as mono and diglycerides of fatty
acids (E471) or carboxymethylcellulose (E466) or polysorbates (E433 -
E436), dissolve the protective mucus of the intestinal mucosa causing
inflammation and probably contribute to the development of ulcerative
colitis. Sodium and potassium nitrates and nitrites (E 249 - E 252) used
to preserve meat and cured meat products increase the risk of cancer,
diabetes, cardiovascular, respiratory, liver and kidney diseases, as
well as altering the intestinal microbiota. Monosodium glutamate (E621),
widely used as a flavor enhancer, is toxic to the nervous system.
Caramel, used as a colorant in many industrial drinks, contains a
carcinogenic substance, 4-methylimidazole. And the list could go on.

Highly profitable edible products have therefore been created by
replacing natural ingredients with low-cost synthetic substances, which
can also extend shelf life, to which additives are added to reproduce
flavors, odors and consistencies similar to the original ones and then
they are made hyper-tasty, with mixtures of sugars, salt and fats,
inducing dependence and increasing need. The data collected by observing
some brain scans, in fact, demonstrate that hyper-tasty and highly
caloric foods cause morphological and functional changes in neurons in
the same brain structures influenced by drugs, activating the brain's
reward system in a similar way to what happens with drugs, alcohol,
nicotine or morphine.

But what foods are we talking about? They are snacks, snacks, ready-made
foods and fast food products but also energy drinks, frozen pizzas, meal
replacement bars, sandwiches and industrial bread, sauces, margarines,
sweet and savory creams, low-fat fruit yogurts, vegan burgers, sugary
breakfast cereals; low-fat products are also part of this category. An
example of how the food industry operates is light mayonnaise in which
fats are replaced, an apparently difficult operation given that fats are
responsible for both taste and consistency. In two well-known brands
such as Helmann's and Heinz the problem was solved in different ways: in
the first case gums and modified starch were used, obtaining a product
denser than the non-light version, in the second case only modified
starch was used, obtaining a product with a consistency similar to the
full-fat version. In this way, producers save on the cost of raw
materials and increase their profits by making people believe that they
care about the health of consumers who will thus be able to eat without
gaining weight. Unfortunately, statistics show exactly the opposite: the
more light products become widespread, the higher the rates of
overweight and obesity increase. And this is not the only risk.

There are now numerous epidemiological studies that analyze the effects
of the consumption of ultra-processed foods on human health, so we know
that the more you eat, the greater the risk of early death, up to 40%
more among those who consume 65%. There is also an increase in
cardiovascular risk, diabetes, obesity, chronic lymphocytic leukemia and
some types of cancer, particularly breast, prostate, colon, pancreas,
nervous system. The risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease,
depression and dementia also increases. Clearly the risks increase as
the amount of ultra-processed foods consumed increases.

What we know is more than enough to demonstrate that we must nourish
ourselves with food and not its industrial transformations.

https://www.sicilialibertaria.it/
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