This article comes on the tails of last weeks post about hidden sources of proteins in medications and vaccinations. This week, I face this same challenge.
My son could use a multivitamin but he is corn intolerant. To the unknowing medical professional, finding a non-corn syrup based product would be corn free right? Wrong. Many vitamins are derived from corn. A good example is Vitamin C (also labeled ascorbic acid), when you think of Vitamin C, what comes to mind? A nice juicy orange?...Unfortunately not. The vitamin C added to foods to make it "100% Vit.C" is a corn derived chemical product. This is also true for most citrates- (potassium citrate, sodium citrate, calcium citrate). Corn is in everything.
I know not everyone has corn as a protein trigger but my eyes have been opened wide because my son does. But whether you have a corn intolerance, or your intolerance is dairy, soy, wheat, or many others- ingredients need to be checked one by one, and not just labels read. Federal law mandates the top 8 allergens be listed clearly on a food label if the food contains one of them (milk, soy, wheat, eggs, peanut, tree nut, fish, and shellfish ) but this still does not assure all ingredients are safe for the very sensitive allergenic individual, and does little for assurances of Protein intolerances that react to minute amounts of trace proteins in vitamins and preservatives, "natural" flavorings, hidden ingredients in non FDA regulated "organic/natural" foods/supplements, and fortifiers meant to replace actual nutrition (such as fiber added to call a bread product to call it multi-grain in an attempt to fool the consumer to believe it is as healthy/healthier than whole grain products). Every single ingredient needs to be accounted for with an allergy response as sensitive as something like FPIES, which is a severe form of Protein Intolerance; much in the same way extra precautions are taken if you had a typical IgE anaphylactic response to foods. "Processed on the same equipment" takes on a whole new meaning (of stay away caution); natural flavors that are anything but natural (typically chemically derived from wheat, soy, corn sources); fortifiers of so-called vitamins into foods that would other wise be void of real nutrition.
Recognizing all names for your individual intolerance is very important when learning to read labels for allergens. Cooking from scratch and natural sources is advisable, but doesn't take away your risk. Foods that aren't required to be labeled are: fresh produce, fresh meats and certain highly refined oils. Also foods that come into contact with an allergen during growing, harvesting or manufacturing as well as the possibility of trace amounts (although some companies do list this, it is not required). Trace amounts would be a protein found in syrups or oils, these are typically processed so that the proteins have been removed making them hypoallergenic (a wise mom once pointed out something she was told by a fellow mom/scientist - hypoallergenic does not mean non-allergenic, any food has the potential to be allergenic to a food-allergy prone individual). Fresh produce typically has a wax spray (yes, even organic can) on it that can be either corn or soy derived, proceed with caution if soy or corn are problematic. Fresh meats can come from animals that have been fed high amounts of soy or corn grains- this too can be problematic for the highly sensitive that react to trace proteins. Syrups and oils have been processed to remove the protein component and yet companies will even admit that trace proteins can still be present. Again, if highly sensitive individual can react to these trace proteins.
For more information on food labeling visit the FDA website: http://www.fda.gov/Food/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/ucm079311.htm
Know your ingredients. Know your vitamins, supplements, flavorings, additives and fortifiers. Know your food. Manage your allergies and intolerances.
My son could use a multivitamin but he is corn intolerant. To the unknowing medical professional, finding a non-corn syrup based product would be corn free right? Wrong. Many vitamins are derived from corn. A good example is Vitamin C (also labeled ascorbic acid), when you think of Vitamin C, what comes to mind? A nice juicy orange?...Unfortunately not. The vitamin C added to foods to make it "100% Vit.C" is a corn derived chemical product. This is also true for most citrates- (potassium citrate, sodium citrate, calcium citrate). Corn is in everything.
I know not everyone has corn as a protein trigger but my eyes have been opened wide because my son does. But whether you have a corn intolerance, or your intolerance is dairy, soy, wheat, or many others- ingredients need to be checked one by one, and not just labels read. Federal law mandates the top 8 allergens be listed clearly on a food label if the food contains one of them (milk, soy, wheat, eggs, peanut, tree nut, fish, and shellfish ) but this still does not assure all ingredients are safe for the very sensitive allergenic individual, and does little for assurances of Protein intolerances that react to minute amounts of trace proteins in vitamins and preservatives, "natural" flavorings, hidden ingredients in non FDA regulated "organic/natural" foods/supplements, and fortifiers meant to replace actual nutrition (such as fiber added to call a bread product to call it multi-grain in an attempt to fool the consumer to believe it is as healthy/healthier than whole grain products). Every single ingredient needs to be accounted for with an allergy response as sensitive as something like FPIES, which is a severe form of Protein Intolerance; much in the same way extra precautions are taken if you had a typical IgE anaphylactic response to foods. "Processed on the same equipment" takes on a whole new meaning (of stay away caution); natural flavors that are anything but natural (typically chemically derived from wheat, soy, corn sources); fortifiers of so-called vitamins into foods that would other wise be void of real nutrition.
Recognizing all names for your individual intolerance is very important when learning to read labels for allergens. Cooking from scratch and natural sources is advisable, but doesn't take away your risk. Foods that aren't required to be labeled are: fresh produce, fresh meats and certain highly refined oils. Also foods that come into contact with an allergen during growing, harvesting or manufacturing as well as the possibility of trace amounts (although some companies do list this, it is not required). Trace amounts would be a protein found in syrups or oils, these are typically processed so that the proteins have been removed making them hypoallergenic (a wise mom once pointed out something she was told by a fellow mom/scientist - hypoallergenic does not mean non-allergenic, any food has the potential to be allergenic to a food-allergy prone individual). Fresh produce typically has a wax spray (yes, even organic can) on it that can be either corn or soy derived, proceed with caution if soy or corn are problematic. Fresh meats can come from animals that have been fed high amounts of soy or corn grains- this too can be problematic for the highly sensitive that react to trace proteins. Syrups and oils have been processed to remove the protein component and yet companies will even admit that trace proteins can still be present. Again, if highly sensitive individual can react to these trace proteins.
For more information on food labeling visit the FDA website: http://www.fda.gov/Food/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/ucm079311.htm
Know your ingredients. Know your vitamins, supplements, flavorings, additives and fortifiers. Know your food. Manage your allergies and intolerances.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.