Thoughts on Carrageenan

Michelle9055

Is it good or bad for you?

juliacatherine1

Someone told me it was a carcinogen, but I never actually looked into it. I haven't been looking out for it either. LOL apparently im not scared of it? Maybe I should be?

liftsforchocolate

It's a carcinogen, actually an algae

If it wasn't so toxic, it would be fine but otherwise avoid it. Small amounts not too bad

Ang108

It's a carcinogen, actually an algae

If it wasn't so toxic, it would be fine but otherwise avoid it. Small amounts not too bad

I was under the impression that it is a food additive that is especially used in dairy and meat to stabilize it. When I was a vegetarian living in Asia it also was often available as a jello substitute and considered a healthy alternative, because it was made from a sea weed called red algae. I do not know right now if it is the same as Agar Agar ( also made from red seaweed ) a popular substitute for gelatin all over Asia...and I am too lazy to look it up right now.

lunapetu0311

I have done research on Carrageenan before and decided to cut back on it but I don't completely avoid it either. The most negative thing I read about it is that it's found to be an intestinal irritant and can cause inflammation in that area. I have personally never experienced any stomach issues after consuming it but some people may be sensitive to it.

It's made of seaweed and is used to "thicken" foods or drinks. It's often found in natural gelatin, yogurt and almond milk.

Acg67

It's a carcinogen, actually an algae

If it wasn't so toxic, it would be fine but otherwise avoid it. Small amounts not too bad

Uh oh, I have some iota and kappa carrageenan in my cabinet

debbieyoung3910829

Regarding the safety of carrageenan, there has been an amazing amount of misinformation being blogged about carrageenan being unsafe as a food ingredient. In spite of this misinformation, carrageenan continues as the safe food ingredient it has always been. If it were not, the principal regulatory agencies of the world (US FDA, FAO/WHO JECFA, EU EFSA, and Japan Ministry of Health) would not approve its use, and all of them give the necessary approvals. The only application restricted as a precautionary measure is stabilizing liquid infant formula and a definitive toxicology is about to be published that is expected to remove this restriction.
Why all the concern about the safety of using carrageenan in foods? Starting in the 1960s there have been research studies showing that if excessive doses of carrageenan are consumed in animal trials inflammation can be induced in the small intestine. Likewise, inappropriate methods of introducing the carrageenan into the animals, i.e. in the animals’ only source of drinking water, have induced an inflammatory response in the small intestine. However, there has never been a validated inflammatory response in humans over the seventy plus years carrageenan has been used in foods. The anecdotal “upset tummies” reported in blogs as coming from consuming a food containing carrageenan are hardly reliable sources of information on the safety of carrageenan.
Inflammatory responses in animals only occur when carrageenan can cross the blood membrane barrier of the small intestine. This only occurs when the extreme feeding conditions mentioned above are employed. Normal feeding regimes induce no such response.
Over the last decade a group of molecular biologists at the University of Illinois at Chicago lead by Dr Joanne Tobacman have been exploring the in vitro interaction of carrageenan with various genes and conclude that carrageenan can cause
inflammation in the gut via a binding mechanism involving TLR-4 receptors. This group also concluded that carrageenan degrades in the gut and the degraded carrageenan can permeate the membrane barrier. Recent studies refute both of these claims, and furthermore this recent research questions the validity using in vitro studies to mimic the in vivo events in the GI tract when a human consumes a food containing carrageenan.
The bottom line on the safety issue is that in spite of all the efforts to downgrade or question the safety of carrageenan, particularly by bloggers, carrageenan is a safe food ingredient in all of the major regulatory jurisdictions of the world.
Already unnecessary negative publicity has done damage to a versatile, effective food ingredient.