The focus of this program thus far has been on foodborne illness - the FDA's #1 food-related priority (recall the CDC statistics from Week 3). The FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition 2001 Program Priorities include food safety, food additives, dietary supplements, and food biotechnology.

By now you're aware of the multi-agency scope of keeping food safe, nutritious and wholesome. The federal agencies that share responsibility for ensuring that food additives, pesticide residues and other substances do not pose a danger to health are:

Food & Drug Administration (FDA)

• Reviews safety of food and color additives before marketing
• Enforces pesticide tolerances on all foods except meat, poultry, and certain egg products.

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)

• Collects and analyzes samples of food products for microbial and chemical contaminants and infectious and toxic agents
• Establishes production standards for use of food additives and other ingredients in preparing and packaging meat and poultry products, plant sanitation, thermal processing, and other processes
• Enforces pesticide tolerances on meat, poultry, and certain egg products.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

• Reviews the scientific data on all pesticide products before they can be registered (or licensed) for use. If a product is intended for use on food crops, EPA also establishes a tolerance.
• Regulates toxic substances and wastes to prevent their entry into the environment and food chain
• Determines safety of new pesticides, sets tolerance levels for pesticide residues in foods, and publishes directions on safe use of pesticides

Among the most important roles that additives serve is to keep food safe from harmful bacteria. Two of the oldest known additives that act as antimicrobial agents are salt and sugar. In New Mexico,there is a long history of food preservation using these ingredients, along with our dry and sunny climate.

Food additives refer to substances added to foods intentionally (nutrients, colors, preservatives, etc.) or indirectly during harvesting, production, processing, storage or packaging. Under FDA's Food Additives and Premarket Approval, the Background for Consumers section on Food Additives includes a good overview of additives and a listing of some common additives and the foods where they're used. For a quick Q & A on additives, also see the FDA's Food Additives/Food Colors

The USDA Additives in Meat and Poultry Products includes a Glossary of Commonly Used Meat and Poultry Additives and Terms.

Although additives that function as preservatives and antioxidants are meant to protect us, for some people certain additives pose an allergy risk. Two of the most well known additives that have been reported to cause adverse reactions for a small percentage of people are sulfites and MSG.

In Sulfites: Safe for Most, Dangerous for Some, the FDA estimates that one out of a hundred people is sulfite-sensitive, and that 5 percent of those who have asthma are also at risk of suffering an adverse reaction to the substance. Sulfur-based preservatives, or sulfites, are used to prevent oxidation of fruits and vegetables, discourage bacterial growth as wine ferments, prevent melanosis ("black spot") on shrimp and lobster, "condition" dough and maintain the stability and potency of some medications. FDA requires that the presence of sulfites is disclosed on labels of packaged food, but sulfite-sensitive individuals need to use caution when dining out or eating bulk foods.

MSG, or monosodium glutamate, is used as a flavor enhancer. An independent study that reviewed scientific data on MSG concluded that an unknown percentage of the population may react to MSG and develop "MSG symptom complex". Severe, poorly controlled asthma may be a predisposing medical condition for MSG symptom complex. For MSG-sensitive individuals, reactions are most likely when MSG is eaten in a large quantity or in a liquid, such as a clear soup. For more information, see the FDA Backgrounder: Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) .

For an excellent entry site into numerous articles and organizations that address food allergy concerns, go to the MEDLINE Plus Food Allergy page.

Since 1993, food labels must list all certified colors as part of the requirements of the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990. See From Shampoo to Cereal, Seeing to the Safety of Color Additives from the December 1993 FDA Consumer. Because of allergic reactions in some people, FD&C Yellow No. 5 (listed as tartrazine on medicine labels) has been listed on food labels since 1981.

An interesting article that is somewhat related to the subject of food colors, is The Color of Meat and Poultry. Find answers to questions like … What causes iridescent colors on meats? Does a change in color indicate spoilage?

Pesticide residues in food fall under the category of indirect or unintentional additives, which is part of the reason they are so controversial. The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) reports that pesticides are probably one of the most regulated chemical products used in the U.S. Despite the many regulations, pesticide residues still find their way into our food supply. Toxicity testing determines the 'No Toxic Effect Level' (NOEL), the level at which there are no toxic effects on the most sensitive population (i.e. children and the elderly). This becomes the basis for the permitted residue limit. The regulations set the permitted residue level at a level that is from 10 to 100 times lower than the NOEL. NIEHS points out that "the fact that residues are found at all is only due to the significant advances in analytical chemistry. The tests are now so sensitive that the detection level that can be easily reached is equivalent to detecting one teaspoon of salt in one million gallons of water. Levels even lower than that can sometimes be detected. The mere presence of a trace amount of a pesticide does not mean that the product is unhealthy. On the contrary, eating a diet full of a variety of fruits, grains, and vegetables has been shown to significantly decrease your risk of a variety of health problems from high blood pressure to cancer. Variety is the key to good health."

Consumers have many choices for limiting their intake of pesticide residues while consuming a varied, nutritious diet. Some may opt to grow and preserve their own fruits and vegetables. In major markets and local farmer's markets consumers can obtain information about the source of produce, whether it was conventionally or organically grown, etc. Labeling of produce has vastly improved in recent years.

Are commercial produce washes and sprays more effective than tap water at removing pesticide residues?

Public health experts advise consumers to wash their fruits and vegetables under clear drinking water before eating. Special produce washes and sprays that claim to clean fruit and vegetables better than water have appeared in recent years on grocery store shelves. Another popular wash is to use a very small amount of dishwashing liquid in water.

Many, though not all, pesticides are water soluble and can be washed off under running water. Rinsing also remove dirt and bacteria. A three-year study performed at the Department of Analytical Chemistry, Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station showed that rinsing under tap water significantly reduced residues of nine of the twelve pesticides examined across fourteen commodities. Four fruit and vegetable wash products were found to be no more effective at removing eight of nine pesticide residues from produce than either a 1% solution of dishwashing liquid or rinsing under tap water alone for three commodities studied. To view the study, go to Removal of Trace Pesticide Residues from Produce. Another resource on this subject is the FDA's Does washing fresh produce eliminate pesticide residues from food?

In Healthy Sensible Food Practices, the EPA offers the following recommendations for reducing the amount of pesticides that you consume.

1. Wash and scrub all fresh fruits and vegetables thoroughly under running water. Running water has an abrasive effect that soaking does not have. This helps to remove bacteria and traces of chemicals from the surface of fruits vegetables and dirt from crevices. Since not all pesticide residues can be removed by washing, also:

2. Peel & Trim fruits and vegetables when possible to reduce dirt, bacteria, and pesticides. Discard outer leaves of leafy vegetables like lettuce and cabbage. Trim fat from meat and skin from poultry and fish, since some pesticides residues collect in fat.

**Note: The EPA does not specify which fruits and vegetables to peel. Many consumers choose to peel vegetables that have been waxed, such as cucumbers and apples. For a Q & A on food waxes, see the Produce Marketing Association's Wax Coatings on Produce.

3. Select a Variety of Foods. This provides a better mix of nutrients and reduces your likelihood of exposure to a single pesticide. (The is also known as the "dilution" principle.)

For additional information on pesticides, go to MEDLINE Plus on Pesticides, an entry site to consumer education articles, databases, and organizational links and more.

If you're a label-reader and you eat smoked, cured or processed meats (like luncheon meat or bacon), then you've probably seen the additive sodium nitrite on the ingredient list. Nitrite is an important preservative because it inhibits the growth of bacteria, including the type that produces the dangerous botulinum toxin. Unfortunately, nitrite is converted to nitrosamine in the stomach, a carcinogen linked with stomach cancer. The good news is that vitamin C suppresses this conversion. Though it's best to limit your consumption of preserved and smoked meats, along with salt, you can reduce your cancer risk by choosing a diet rich in vitamin C-containing fruits and vegetables.

For breakfast or a quick snack, try one of the smoothie recipes - Mango Pineapple or Banana Peach -- that appeared in the January 2001 issue of Personal Best.