Some Nutritionists have warned against the consumption of foods and fruits which contain additives, chemicals or have been artificially ripened.
According to them, some of the additives and chemicals can damage body cells and organs.
The nutritionists, who spoke to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Friday said that food additives are chemicals that keep foods fresh or enhance their colour, flavour or texture.
They said that fruits, vegetables and indeed food generally are important for nourishment and wellbeing but become toxic when they are not well handled or preserved.
Mrs Bushra Adefalu, Head, Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Isolo General Hospital, Lagos, told NAN that the additives mostly used by people were often without the approval and certification of the authorised body.
She decried the rate at which people applied such additives to foods, saying that the act, if left unchecked, could lead to life threatening health conditions.
According to her, the most common trending one includes the usage of paracetamol in cooking meat to make it bigger and soft.
She expressed regrets that people also applied additives to “fufu’’ – cassava flour, palm oil and fruits like plantain oranges and banana.
She noted that the side effects of most of the additives outweighed their benefits and as a result, such practice should be avoided.
“According to World Health Organisation (WHO), food additives are substances that are added to a food to maintain the safety, freshness, taste, texture or appearance of the food.
“An example of food additive is sugar that is used as preservation in marmalade.
“Unfortunately, people have abused the additives, having designed lots of additives/chemicals they add to food to get desired size, taste, appearance, texture or colour.
“Every uncertified additives or chemical is poison.
“The human body naturally is made up of chemicals, cells and organs.
“So, adding additives to the foods we eat means either doubling or shortening the workloads of the body mechanisms and this can cause serious threat to human health,’’ she said.
Adefalu said that it was the sole responsibility of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to regulate monitor and certify foods and its additives that would not be harmful to health.
Adefula, who alleged that NAFDAC had not done enough in this direction, urged the Agency to rise up to its responsibility and save the innocent citizens who ignorantly buy and consume these products.
The nutritionist also suggested the establishment of another body or agency that could be assisting NAFDAC, particularly in the area of monitoring foods.
She said that such a body could be moving round to monitor and ensure compliance.
Dr Ngozi Anyanwu, said that many people use calcium carbide to force ripen fruits and foods like banana, plantain, mango and others.
“Calcium carbide produces acetylene, which is similar to ethylene.
“It is not good. It is like an explosive, it breaks down the organic composition of vitamins and other micronutrients.
“It changes only the colour of the skin of the food item or fruit but inside of it is still raw,’’ she said.
However, a public health expert, Dr Gbemibo Adelaja, said that not all additives were harmful to human health and advised that moderation and precautions be observed when using them.
He said that some additives could cause digestive disorders including diarrhoea, colicky pains; nervous disorder like hyperactivity, insomnia and irritation.
He listed some of the additives to include antioxidants, artificial sweeteners, flavors, flavor enhancers, bulking agents, colour additive, emulsifiers, preservatives, mineral salts, propellants, raising agents and thickeners.
“Some of these substances or additives have been associated with adverse health effects and should be avoided while others are safe and can be consumed with minimal risk,’’ he said.
Dr Amaka Uzu, a Nutritionist at Our Lady Specialist Hospital, Lagos, also told NAN that while some additives are harmless, others can cause asthma, nausea and headaches in some people.
She said that artificial preservatives used to delay the contamination of food could lead to health problems.
Uzu advised that food items listing more than five or six ingredients or those listing ingredients that are longer than three syllables should be avoided.
She also emphasised that fresh fruits and vegetables be washed properly and the right way before being eaten.
“Preservatives could be natural or artificial. There are some preservatives that don’t use any chemical to alter the composition or are not mixed with any synthetic items.
“These preservatives have antioxidant properties which delay the oxidation or aging process of food items. Sugar, oil and salt are some of the naturally occurring preservatives.
“Artificial preservatives are artificially produced and also synthetic in nature. The food products that have artificial preservatives come with additive food label.’’
The nutritionist said that caution was the watchword when purchasing food items as diseases caused by using a lot of preservatives had negative impact on health.
“There is need for people to pay extreme caution before buying or consuming fruits , vegetables and food items in general.
“People can do a lot of things to make brisk business at the detriment of the health of consumers, so one has to be careful before taking anything into the body, ’’ she said.(NAN)
