Ingredient Mysteries Part 1 Sulfites

Sulfites- “Ingredient Mysteries” Part One

Welcome to the first post of my new series, ingredient mystery. We live very busy lives and I don’t think that most of us have the time to research countless ingredients and make confident choices in what you should or should feed your family. So I am going to help you out. I will look into several of the ingredients that we are consuming on a daily basis, most of us having no idea if or how it is affecting our health. Once I am done researching the ingredient I will relay my findings. I have a 3-source rule. No investigation will be complete until I have read at least 3 sources about the subject. Some I may end up with way more just depending on how complex the ingredient is.

The first ingredient I chose to investigate is; Sulfites. This is a inorganic salt that is added to most canned foods to help preserve the food, ultimately increasing shelf life.  It may also occur naturally in some wines and beers. This ingredient is one that not all people are sensitive to. If you are asthmatic or have allergies then it may be affecting you more than if not. People deficient in sulfate oxidase the enzyme necessary to break down sulfites, can experience symptoms without having asthma. As of right now, there is no known definite trigger to cause this sensitivity, but it can range from a mild to severe reaction. May even result in a fatal reaction.

The main reasons it is added to foods are; reduction of spoilage by bacteria, slows browning of fruit, veggies and seafood, inhibits of growth of bacteria during fermentation of wines, conditioning of dough in frozen pie and pizza crusts, and bleaching effect for maraschino cherries. In 1986 FDA banned this ingredient from being used in fresh foods.

FOODS TO WATCH FOR IT IN:

~Dehydrated/PreCut/Peeled Potatoes

~Baked Goods

~Maraschiro Cherries

~Guacamole

~Fresh/Frozen Shrimp

~Molasses

~Condiments

~Tea

~Bottled Lemon/Lime Juice

~Apple Cider

~Sparkling Grape Juice

~Veggie Juices

~Beer/Wine

~Trail Mix

~Potato Chips

~Dried Fruit

~Gravies

~Pickled Foods

~Canned Veggies

~Jams

Names to Watch For On Ingredients Lists

-Sulphite ammonia caramel E150d

-Caustic sulphite caramel E150b

-Sodium bisulphite (sodium hydrogen sulphite) E222

-Sodium sulphite E221

-Potassium metabisulphite E224

-Sodium metabisulphite E223

-Potassium sulphite E225

-Calcium hydrogen sulphite E227

-Calcium sulphite E226

-Potassium hydrogen sulphite E228

-Sulfur dioxide

-Potassium bisulfate

As far as the severity of eating this ingredient I would say it is one that you need to start eliminating from your kitchen ASAP. This is especially important if anyone in your family suffers from asthma or allergies. Any ingredient that could potentially be life threating to you or your family should NOT be taken lightly. In order to do this cost efficiently start replacing your kitchen 3 products at a time. This will help make the change more gradual for your body also.

Have a Healthy and Happy Day,

Lori Graham

Integrative Nutrition Health Coach


RESOURCES:
WebMD.com
About.com
Livestrong.com
sulfite.com

Stepbystep.com (picture credit)