When you have friends over, do you fix them something nice to drink, then offer to add a shot of flame retardant? Yeah, I didn’t think so. Me either.
Did you know this is what is happening to some soda you may be buying? (Which is yet another good reason to stay away from the stuff.)
It’s true — citrus flavored sodas in the U.S. have a nice dose of flame retardant in them. Otherwise known as brominated vegetable oil (I know – sounds less dangerous that way, doesn’t it?). Otherwise known as an ingredient banned in Europe and Japan. Otherwise known as an item the FDA removed from the Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) list in 1970.
But, in 1977, after the Flavor Extract Manufacturers Association petitioned to add BVO as a stabilizer instead of a flavor additive, the FDA gave “interim approval” for its use when limited to 15 ppm. This interim period continues today.
How in the world does the safety of BVO change when it’s added to something as a stabilizer vs. a food additive? Perhaps because of the limit of how much could occur. But are there people consuming enough of these beverages to go over this limit? How much is too much?
Does this encourage you to stop drinking this sort of stuff, if you do, indeed, drink it. (If you don’t, we’re good; feel free to make other uses of your time today.)
We’re being poisoned. Slowly. Surely. Is it any wonder that we — speaking of those of us in the U.S. — are becoming more and more ill? Last I checked, our bodies don’t do well on poison. And they never, ever are going to evolve to thrive on poison.
You being well is in your hands. Your family’s health is in your hands. Make the most informed choice you can to save it (and suffering and expense). Just say no to this junk. Send companies a message: Thanks, but I don’t buy poison. Produce something healthful, and I’ll be right with you.
As always, I don’t believe in black and white. A little bit of junk food most likely isn’t going to kill you. A little bit of flame retardant? Probably not. But I don’t want to stake how well I feel tomorrow on a probably. Do you?
Thankfully, it seems a couple major soda manufacturers are “working to remove” this complained-about ingredient from their products. Maybe by the end of the year. But, hey, by then, you can dump the stuff, enhance your health, save money, and you won’t need to read the label to see if they really have anyway. Or worry what replaced it and how long it will take before we realize there is yet another ingredient making us sick in there.
