In a new study, researchers found that a food preservative used to prolong the shelf life of Pop-Tarts, Rice Krispies Treats, Cheez-Its and almost 1,250 other popular processed foods may harm the immune system.
They examined the health hazards of the most common chemicals added to food, as well as the “forever chemicals” known as PFAS, which can migrate to food from packaging.
They found that the preservative tert-butylhydroquinone, or TBHQ, can harm the immune system both in both animal tests and in non-animal tests known as high-throughput in vitro toxicology testing.
This finding is of particular concern during the coronavirus pandemic.
The research was conducted by a team at Environmental Working Group.
TBHQ is a preservative that is pervasive in processed foods. It has been used in foods for many decades and serves no function besides increasing a product’s shelf life.
Using new non-animal test results, the team found that TBHQ affected immune cell proteins at doses similar to those that cause harm in traditional studies.
Earlier studies have found that TBHQ might influence how well flu vaccines work and may be linked to a rise in food allergies.
The team says chemicals linked to health harms can be legally added to packaged foods because the FDA frequently allows food manufacturers to determine which chemicals are safe.
Additives like TBHQ were approved by the FDA decades ago, and the agency does not consider new science to reassess the safety of food chemicals.
The research shows how important it is that the FDA take a second look at these ingredients and test all food chemicals for safety.
The study is published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. One author of the study is Olga Naidenko, Ph.D.
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