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Toxic Foods to Avoid

“… the way we eat represents our most profound engagement with the natural world. Daily, our eating turns nature into culture, transforming the body of the world into our bodies and minds.” ~ Omnivore’s Dilemma, Michael Pollen.

Last year, I read two informative books about cancer: (i) Anticancer by David Servan-Schreiber MD PhD, and (ii) The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer, by Siddharta Mukherjee. With the increasing rates of cancer in modern day society, I have attempted to list below  the top 17 toxic foods, preservatives, and additives that are carcinogenic. These are the ingredients that are best avoided when dining out and when cooking at home.

1. Partially Hydrogenated Vegetable OiLs:  Partially Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil is made by reacting vegetable oil with hydrogen. When this happnes, the level of polyunsaturated oils (good fat) is reduced and trans fats are created. Also BHA/BHT or simply fried oil and Brominated vegetable oil are cancer causing oils.

2. Heating cold pressed oils like olive oil: Actually, most cooking classes on TV are deep frying everything with olive oil. What is the healthiest oil for cooking?

3.  Preservatives like Sodium Nitrate and Nitrite that exists in hot dogs, processed meat and bacon, doughnuts, chips, crackers, cookies and French fries.

4. Toxic additives like high fructose corn syrup that exists in almost every processed food, natural sweeteners like aspartame and saccharine.

“Very simply, we subsidize high-fructose corn syrup in this country, but not carrots. While the surgeon general is raising alarms over the epidemic of obesity, the president is signing farm bills designed to keep the river of cheap corn flowing, guaranteeing that the cheapest calories in the supermarket will continue to be the unhealthiest.” ~ Omnivore’s Dilemma, Michael Pollen.

5. MSG, which is hidden under 50 different names, exists in almost everything including infant formula, low fat milk, candy, chewing gum, drinks, over-the-counter medications (especially children’s), fruit yogurts, prescription drugs, IV fluids given in hospitals, and in the chicken pox vaccine.

6. Refined white sugar which is in EVRYTHING and kills more people even more than all the drugs combined. I call this the legal form of cocaine. Read Omnivore’s Dilemma on this topic:

7. Pesticide ridden foods, canned foods and processed foods, and bottom line, almost anything and everything that is man-made inside a factory.

8. GMOs: There have been many independent studies that have related Monsanto’s best selling pesticide called “Roundup” used for killing bugs and weeds in GMO crops to cancer and many other health problem including infertility and autism.

9. Overcooking or deep frying foods kill and destroy all the nutrients inside your food and your food will turn into free radicals and cancer causing agents. Tell that to cooking classes advertised on TV that promote deep frying foods with olive oil that should not be heated under any circumstances.

10. Cooking in Teflon and other non-stick products that are made with chemical C8 (PFOA) can cause autoimmune disorder, thyroid and high cholesterol level.

11. Microwave foods: Microwaving your food is one of the best ways to destroy and nuke all the nutrients in your foods and turn them into cancer causing agent and free radicals.

12. Refined white flour: According to a study published in Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention, consumption of refined carbohydrates increases the chances of breast cancer by 220 percent. Yet, white bread, white pasta, high gluten wheat and GM wheat are all regulated and considered safe by giant agribusiness.

13. Conventional fruits and vegetables: Thanks to biotech and chemical companies one would never think that eating conventional apples, strawberries or blueberries can give you cancer. However according to Environmental Working Group (EWG) 98% of all conventional products are contaminated with cancer-causing agents.

14. Farmed fish: Most farmed fish have high levels of toxic contaminates including carcinogenic chemicals, PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls), flame retardants, pesticides, and antibiotics.

15. Hormones and antibiotics in meat, poultry and dairy products: Despite countless number of studies that have linked rBGH and rBST hormones produced by Monsanto to breast cancer in women and prostate cancer in men, hormone injected meat and dairy filled with 50 other toxic chemicals are regulated safe by giant meat and big dairy industry.

16. Soy products and soy milk: The food industry has been manipulating women for far too long labeling soy as healthy. As a matter of fact, vegans who consume soy beans or tofu instead of meat or dairy products are at a higher risk of mineral and vitamin B12 deficiencies. Soy beans also have goitrogens substances that can suppress and effect thyroid function and cause breast cancer in women.

17. Bisphenol A (BPA) and phthalates: Both bisphenol A (BPA) and phthalates are hormone-disruptive chemicals that are widely spread in environment and our food. Plastic containers and canned foods are contaminated with BPA.  Hormone-disruptive chemicals  are linked to infertility in men and BPA to neurological problems, cancer, obesity, hyperactivity, stress and diabetes.

 

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