Nearly 3,000 food additives are used in the processing of food by American food manufacturers. Although each additive used is approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, some individuals experience negative reactions to them, ranging from itching and hives from food coloring to more serious asthma attacks from sulfites, according to the University of Arizona College of Agriculture & Life Sciences.
Itching and Hives
The food additive FD&C Yellow #5 used to color food is known to cause in a small number of people itching and hives, or red itchy bumps on the skin, according to the University of Arizona College of Agriculture. Other food additives can cause hives, such as azo dyes used as colorants; artificial sweeteners such as aspartame; emulsifiers such as vegetable gums and polysorbates; preservatives including nitrites, sorbic acid and benzoates; and flavorings or salicylates, reports the University of Michigan Health System.
Asthma Attacks
Food additives can trigger asthma attacks in sensitive people, according to MayoClinic.com. A common culprit includes sulfites in wine. Sulfites cause mild to life-threatening symptoms in approximately 5 percent of people with asthma, reports the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. Symptoms include stomach cramps, diarrhea, breathing problems and chest tightness. It is suspected that the sulfur dioxide inhaled during eating or drinking causes these reactions.
Methemoglobinemia
Nitrates used to preserve cured and smoked meats, fish, bacon and ham can cause methemoglobinemia, reports Ali Khan and colleagues in 2006 in "The New Zealand Journal of Medicine." This reaction is potentially fatal because it causes the oxidation of ferrous iron in the haemoglobin to result in methaemoglobin that cannot bind oxygen well, reducing and eventually hampering the oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood plasma. The condition is characterized by profound cyanosis, a bluish coloring of the mucous membranes and the skin.
Tissue Damage
The artificial sweetener aspartame, made from two amino acids, cannot be metabolized by individuals suffering from the rare genetic disease phenylketonuria, reports the University of Arizona College of Agriculture. When a person cannot metabolize one of the amino acids in aspartame, phenylalanine, tissue damage and other serious side effects occur when aspartame is consumed.
Worsening of Hyperactive Behavior in Children
Food additives including food preservatives and food colorings may worsen or actually cause hyperactive behavior in some children, reports MayoClinic.com. Typical symptoms of hyperactivity include wandering, an inability to concentrate or participate in quiet activities, aggression and excessive fidgeting and talking.
Headaches and Chest Tightness
Monosodium glutamate is not only found in many Chinese foods, it is an amino acid used in flavoring refined and processed foods under various names, including plant protein extract. Drowsiness, chest pains, headaches, tingling and weakness in the upper back and neck and burning sensations in the neck and chest are some of the negative reactions reported, although there is no proof monosodium glutamate actually causes these symptoms, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center,
References
- University of Arizona College of Agriculture: Food Additives & Life Sciences--Are They Safe?
- University of Michigan Health System: Hives
- Clemson: Chemicals & Foods
- MayoClinic.com: Food Allergy
- Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America: Food Additives
- The New Zealand Medical Journal: Deadly Meatballs---A Near Fatal Case of Methaemoglobinaemia
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