What ingredients are bad?

NikkiDerrig386

I am trying to get better at distinguishing what ingredients are bad and good. I know the basics like aspartame, MSG, and glucose. What other ingredients are a no no?

stumblinthrulife

No ingredients are bad, including the ones you list.

Excess is bad.

wheird

None? What is wrong with aspertame and glucose? Glucose is one of the primary fuel sources in your body. :huh:

Derp_Diggler

No ingredients are bad, including the ones you list.

Excess is bad.

Yup. He's right.

JesterMFP

I try to avoid trans fats. If I was allergic to things, I'd try to avoid those things. I can't think of anything other ingredients I'd consider bad though.

MysteriousMerlin

I try to avoid trans fats. If I was allergic to things, I'd try to avoid those things. I can't think of anything other ingredients I'd consider bad though.

This is about the only thing I really try to avoid, but I have health issues for doing so. Moderation is the key!

Willbenchforcupcakes

Things you are allergic/have sensitivities to. Anything that has been around the house long enough to have spoiled ... other than that, everything is fair game!

Fullsterkur_woman

*Bad ingredients*!! Go sit in the corner! :laugh:

SarahSilverman

In order for an ingredient to be made legal to put into our food is has to go under intensive studying and tests that can up to ten years. Researchers have found that all those funky ingredients we see on our food labels that we can barely pronounce are safe for the human body in those small amounts. The FDA wouldn't let us consume harmful ingredients in our food.

Stay away from Olestra. It's a fat replacer used in low fat or fat free potato chips and french fries. They were taken off the market because they cause anal leakage. Dead serious.
I like to generally stay away from heavy dyes in drink and stuff. Just because....ew.

Hope that helped

MoreBean13

Woah, what? Glucose is a bad ingredient now? Seriously....glucose? What are you going to use when you're in the middle of a long run and hitting the wall? I don't think MSG, aspartame or glucose are bad.

The only "bad" ingredient I can think of is trans-fats, generally listed as partially hydrogenated oils.

ndj1979

bad ingredients are the ones in jail….

seriously, as already said there are no "bad" and "good" foods…there is just food that is used for energy. Eat too much, you gain weight; eat less, you lose weight, eat at maintenance, you do not lose or gain..

rileysowner

No ingredients are bad, including the ones you list.

Excess is bad.

THIS.

MB_Positif

The ones that had a lot of detention in high school.

plkbplkb

Depends what your goal is. If you are strictly worried about losing weight, then there are no bad ingredients. If you are concerned about fueling your body with quality food, then anything created in a lab is probably not the best. If you are interested in feeling your absolute best, whole foods are the best. If you are interested in creating a firestorm here, just sit back and watch the thread

plkbplkb

It is also interesting to look at different countries and what they have banned and what is allowed. Several EU countries have banned artificial colors, certain hormones and miscellaneous additives. The US has a fairly liberal standard of food ingredient safety. I have researched this extensively for my job - if you want some info, message me, but I am scared to post here because of the harsh words that will follow.

fxg20

Stay away from Olestra. It's a fat replacer used in low fat or fat free potato chips and french fries. They were taken off the market because they cause anal leakage. Dead serious.
I like to generally stay away from heavy dyes in drink and stuff. Just because....ew.

Olestra was not taken off the market, it's just unpopular. The FDA determined they didn't need the warning about gastrointestinal distress anymore because that side effect is actually very rare. Many more people will face those side effects from milk than would with Olestra, but nobody freaks out about the dangers of milk. If you are lactose intolerant, you just avoid it.

I'd urge folks to give the Olestra chips a try, they taste good and have much fewer calories than regular chips. It's not impossible it will cause buttleak for you, but probably won't. (A ringing endorsement!)

fruttibiscotti

If there is something to avoid, I would say trans fats, and the man-made fats, like crisco, margarine, olestra, hydrogenated fats/oils, etc. Best to stick with natural fats, like butter, olive oil, coconut oil, egg yolks, etc.

I would also recommend you learn a bit more about glucose. Perhaps go to Wikipedia and read what it is. Glucose is a form of sugar, and the sugar in your blood is in the form of glucose. I am on a low carb diet, which means I limit carbohydrates that most would otherwise be broken down into glucose in my body. I do this to induce ketosis metabolism, which promotes burning of fats, and to do this, I need more fat and less glucose-resultant foods. People with medical afflictions like diabetes or metabolic syndrome also reduce or control sugars and/or carbs in their diet, again to control blood sugar levels. Having said that, glucose is not a molecule to be feared in your food. It's not a toxin. Your body recognizes it, and has the biochemical mechanisms to process it.

Francl27

Celery is bad.

Cindyinpg

Cauliflower. Especially when people are trying to make bread, pizza crusts or mashed potatoes out of it. :sick:

JoanaMHill

I'd say avoid eating anything with arsenic in it. It can make your day pretty bad.

toddis

I'd say there are a list of things you should limit or eliminate:
Sodium Nitrate
Partially Hydrogenated Anything
Xylitol (laxative effect)

NikkiDerrig386

In order for an ingredient to be made legal to put into our food is has to go under intensive studying and tests that can up to ten years. Researchers have found that all those funky ingredients we see on our food labels that we can barely pronounce are safe for the human body in those small amounts. The FDA wouldn't let us consume harmful ingredients in our food.

Stay away from Olestra. It's a fat replacer used in low fat or fat free potato chips and french fries. They were taken off the market because they cause anal leakage. Dead serious.
I like to generally stay away from heavy dyes in drink and stuff. Just because....ew.

Hope that helped

Thank you. You are the only person who was not condescending in your reply.

To everyone else. Are you serious no bad ingredients? Really? You hear (at least I do) about hidden ingredients in food all the time. Please watch "starving for a change". They talk about how MSG is put in food for you to get addicted to it. Its all about making money esp off of fat people. Yes I understand how food has to be approved before selling it to people. Certain ingredients should be avoided. DUH to the answer that only in "excessive" amount. If someone is eating all processed foods and MSG is an Ingredient that is in 90% of the meals then yes that's a problem. I am only using MSG as an example. Also aspartame is extremely bad for you. Studies have shown that if used in an excessive amount can lead to many cancers. People who drink diet this and sugar free that may not know how much they are actually ingesting if the are not looking at the ingredients.

NikkiDerrig386

Holy mother of baby jesus I meant to type Fructose, Sucrose, Dextrose not glucose. It was a mistake.

JoanaMHill

You can also get skin cancer from excessive exposure to the sun but no one's telling you to stay inside and hide under your bed until night time.

davert123

Glucose can be 'bad'. It is for me as it does my head in and I find it addictive. A lot of people don't have a problem with it though so that is the reason for them it isn't bad. In general though I would agree most foods are not bad , just hit your macros and you will be find no matter what you eat. I agree with you that there are some things which I wouldn't want to eat - like trans fats. I am sure there are plenty junk things that i wouldn't want to eat - like some food colors etc.

Sarauk2sf

I try to avoid trans fats. If I was allergic to things, I'd try to avoid those things. I can't think of anything other ingredients I'd consider bad though.

^^yep.

GingerLolita

Most people on here only care about calories and macros. Many users feel that cutting out certain foods/demonizing ingredients or food groups/labeling food as good and bad is the reason most dieters set themselves up for failure, which is certainly the case for some. You don't want to do anything to make yourself feel deprived or you won't succeed in accomplishing your health and fitness goals.

However, I'm cutting down on processed foods for health reasons as well. I'm trying to only consume ingredients I would use in my own cooking and baking. I'm not too strict about it and I don't feel deprived at all. I recommend the website/app Fooducate, which assesses packaged foods you scan/search for and gives an explanation of ingredients you may be/should be wary about.

twixlepennie

In order for an ingredient to be made legal to put into our food is has to go under intensive studying and tests that can up to ten years. Researchers have found that all those funky ingredients we see on our food labels that we can barely pronounce are safe for the human body in those small amounts. The FDA wouldn't let us consume harmful ingredients in our food.

Stay away from Olestra. It's a fat replacer used in low fat or fat free potato chips and french fries. They were taken off the market because they cause anal leakage. Dead serious.
I like to generally stay away from heavy dyes in drink and stuff. Just because....ew.

Hope that helped

Thank you. You are the only person who was not condescending in your reply.

To everyone else. Are you serious no bad ingredients? Really? You hear (at least I do) about hidden ingredients in food all the time. Please watch "starving for a change". They talk about how MSG is put in food for you to get addicted to it. Its all about making money esp off of fat people. Yes I understand how food has to be approved before selling it to people. Certain ingredients should be avoided. DUH to the answer that only in "excessive" amount. If someone is eating all processed foods and MSG is an Ingredient that is in 90% of the meals then yes that's a problem. I am only using MSG as an example. Also aspartame is extremely bad for you. Studies have shown that if used in an excessive amount can lead to many cancers. People who drink diet this and sugar free that may not know how much they are actually ingesting if the are not looking at the ingredients.

:huh:

fxg20

The available evidence does not suggest that aspartame causes cancer.

FDA: Considering results from the large number of studies on aspartame's safety, including five previously conducted negative chronic carcinogenicity studies, a recently reported large epidemiology study with negative associations between the use of aspartame and the occurrence of tumors, and negative findings from a series of three transgenic mouse assays, FDA finds no reason to alter its previous conclusion that aspartame is safe as a general purpose sweetener in food.

EFSA: Overall, the Panel concluded, on the basis of all the evidence currently available… that there is no indication of any genotoxic or carcinogenic potential of aspartame and that there is no reason to revise the previously established ADI for aspartame of 40 mg/kg [body weight].

http://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancercauses/othercarcinogens/athome/aspartame

Both agencies have also approved MSG based on looking at the totality of the evidence. They are both safe products.

jonnythan

OP was looking for someone to confirm her existing beliefs. She's not open to learning things that might contradict expectations.

Too bad.

p4ulmiller

Sprouts.

Sprouts are really bad.

Don't touch sprouts.