The latest on food additives

A study into additives and their effect on children's behaviour, conducted by the University of Southampton on behalf of Britain's Food Standards Agency (FSA), revealed certain colourings and additives could increase hyperactivity.

It looked at the effect of mixes of additives on children aged between three and nine drawn from general population with varying degrees of hyperactivity and ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder).

After assessing the observations of teachers and parents and computerised attention tests done by the older children, the study leaders concluded that artificial food colours and additives exacerbate hyperactive behaviour in children at least up to middle childhood.

The preservative sodium benzoate was also included in the study, but its effects on hyperactivity were inconsistent.

The findings, made public last September, led the FSA to recommend that the UK push for voluntary removal of the additives through extensive reformulation, as the first step towards a ban.

"If one puts consumers first, then the evidence suggests it would be sensible for these colours to be taken out of the food that children eat, and by definition, out of all foods as you cannot separate the food that adults and children eat," said FSA chair Dame Deirdre Hutton, back in April.

"We do recognise that phasing out colours in Europe would take some time. But we would like to see voluntary action by manufacturers in the UK to remove them by 2009."

But i July the European parliament took a very bold step towards that ban, by adopting a legislative package that will compel the makers of products containing any of the six artificial colours named in the Southampton study to include a health warning for children on the label.

They are tartrazine ,E102, quinoline yellow, E104, sunset yellow, E110, carmoisine, E122, ponceau 4R, E124, and allura red, E129.

The warning will read: "May have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children".

Manufacturers have 18 months to comply with the new labelling requirements.

Commentators say the companies must now decide whether to risk the effect the warning may have on sales, or invest heavily in reformulation.

Says Anna Glayzer, co-ordinator of the Food Commission's "Action on Additives" Campaign (www.actiononadditives.com): "Putting warning labels on foods may seem like a positive step for the consumer, but our concern is that this will be just one more thing parents are expected to look out for.

"Even if you do have time to check every label while you shop, you can't vet everything your child eats outside the home, and if you are eating out you don't even get to see labels. Why not take the burden off the parent and simply ban these colours?

"The evidence is there, we know that they affect children and they serve no useful purpose in our food."

(Click here for the full story which includes naming some of the products in South Africa that contains these colourants  <http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?art_id=vn20080811055430998C880776&set_id=1&click_id=125&sf=> <http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?art_id=vn20080811055430998C880776&set_id=1&click_id=125&sf=>  )

PARASITES

So Mark, Stephen and I started our 6 twice a year parasite cleanse on 1 August and are growing great guns, excuse the pun.

With 4 grandchildren ( I was seeing daily until 3 of them moved away) a cat , 2 dogs and a hamster that comes to visit occasionally and walks on the wild side, Mark and I can actually feel our body needing a parasite cleanse. How do we feel it. Well with me my digestion becomes sluggish and I find my eyes and immune system doing strange things. Mark and Stephen they start grinding their teeth in their sleep and the itchy rear end at night and the nail biting. So when I got a croaky throat for no apparent reason and the boys were tense when they work up, I duly ordered 3 bottles of Para 90 and Florafood from Aim and we are taking them 3 times a day. Within 24 hours my digestion had improved and within a week my eyes and immune system, the teeth and rear ends had cleared up. This time round there were some weird symtoms such as a strong smell of ammonia when have a very loose bowel movement. Ammonia is formed when there is fermentation in the digestive tract or when flesh decays within a few hours of dying.

So whatever it was (and no I refuse to look!) it was dead and got out! For those of you who are squeaming (so am I by the way) , don’t avoid getting rid of them as they can cause some serious long term problems.

Here are some sins that you have parasites and some of the problems they can cause. Remember you need a month long course of anti parasite herbs to make sure you get rid of all the eggs too. A once of pill r for a few days only will only kill the adults. So make sure you do the full 30 days.

(From Chapter 10 – Digestion in my book Perfect Weight)

A parasite is an opportunistic organism that survives off a host. Very often their effect on the body goes unnoticed. But internal parasites, such as worms or flukes, rob the body of nutrients and this leaves us wide open to other illnesses. If you are feeling generally run down, this is the time to consider anti-parasitical treatment. Some doctors estimate that over 90 per cent of people suffer from parasite infestation. Parasites enter the system fairly easily: you get tapeworm usually from eating animal flesh, hookworm from soil or sand (so wash even organically grown produce carefully before you eat it), pinworm from poor personal hygiene (not washing your hands), and you can get flukes from touching almost anything. (like kissing children and babies who have been kissing the cat and dog or playing in the sand pit)

The presence of parasites in the digestive tract can cause a host of health problems, including excess weight. They cause damage to the body in the following ways:

• ·        Destroy cells faster than they can be regenerated (contributing to premature ageing and cancer)
• ·        Produce toxic waste products
• ·        Irritate and invade body tissue, including skin and intestinal lining
• ·        Put pressure on internal organs and upset the balance or homeostasis of organ function
• ·        Depress the immune system
• ·        Cause nutrient malabsorption (thus contributing to eating disorders and nutritional deficiencies).

The symptoms of parasite infestation can include any of the following: diarrhoea, bloating and gas (even after you have changed your diet and are combining properly), hunger pains, appetite that is too healthy or no appetite at all, irritable bowel syndrome, constipation, nausea, fluid retention (this will affect your weight as well), allergies and food sensitivities, sugar cravings, foul smelling stools, heartburn, and weight loss or weight gain (I suggest that if you have a weight problem, get rid of any parasites while you alter your diet and lifestyle). Other symptoms include anaemia, rectal itching (especially at night), tooth grinding, nose picking, fever, rash, joint and muscle pain, bad breath, mental confusion, chronic fatigue or tiredness, headaches, teeth grinding, bed wetting, nervousness and sleep disturbances.

The best approach to parasites is to deworm yourself (and your family) once a year if you are a vegetarian (I am finding twice a year is best), and twice (three times is better) a year if you eat meat, chicken or fish. A variety of deworming medication is available from pharmacies, but they do not get rid of all parasites (such as flukes) and usually have some side effects. The safest approach is to use a herbal preparation like AIM’s Para 90. I do however suggest that you start off by taking AIM’s Herbal Fibreblend (one heaped teaspoon twice daily for a month at least) as this will help clear the digestive tract of old faecal matter, and some of the herbs in this product also get rid of certain parasites, thus making the action of the Para 90 quicker and more effective.

(Para 90 is pretty powerful stuff, that is also why I prefer you take Herbal Fiberblend first, then your detox symptoms from Para 90 will be milder)

You will know the product is working when you feel a ‘pokey’ sensation in your abdomen, or if your skin itches or feels ‘crawly’. Headaches, excess mucus, nausea and extreme tiredness are other symptoms you can expect during the deworming process. You may also experience more frequent bowel movements, looser stools and increased urination. (look out for strange smells, such as the ammonia I mentioned) Some people even feel pain in the liver area and others experience severe stomach cramps as the parasites dislodge. Pregnant and breastfeeding women should avoid Para 90 (the parasites can emerge in some strange places!) and anyone with colon problems should consult a doctor first.

Para 90 is an excellent deworming product that can be used safely from the age of about three years however, I would suggest that you take a probiotic like Florafood after taking Para 90, to re-establish the benign intestinal bacteria.

(Florafood also help with some of the gas that results from the parasites dying and moving out of the colon. Incidentally Melissa gives her 1 and 2 year old 1 Para 90 a day and they do extremely well on it. They are serious sand and mud ‘thuglets’ and she was desperate for them to get rid of the parasites)

You can also use a combination of natural herbs if you know what you are doing, but taking Para 90 makes it easy and convenient for us. The herbs in Para 90 are;

American Wormseed Chenopodium ambrosioides vermifuge, anthelmintic
Black Walnut Hulls Juglans nigravermicide, antiseptic, antiparasitic
Boldo Leaves Peumus boldusalterative, antiseptic, vermifuge
Butternut Bark Juglans cineraria alterative, laxative, anthelmintic
Clove Caryophyllus aromatics carminative, antiseptic
Cramp Bark Viburnum opulusantispasmodic, astringent
Garlic Allium sativumantibiotic, alterative, antiseptic, vermifuge, anthelmintic
Grapefruit Seed Citrus paradisi antibiotic, antiparasitic
Kamala Mallotus philipinensis taeniafuge
Male Fern Root Dryopteris filix mas, vermifuge, anthelmintic, alterative
Neem Azadirachta indica, alterative, anthelmintic
Peppermint Mentha piperita, carminative, antiseptic, antispasmodic
Pumpkin Seed Cucurbita pepo, vermifuge, anthelmintic, taeniafuge
Sweet Annie Artemisia annua, vermifuge, alterative, anthelmintic
Thyme Thymus vulgaris, carminative, antiseptic
White Oak Bark Quercus alba, antiseptic, anthelminti, 

HERB CLASSIFICATIONS

Herbs can be classified a number of ways. The classifications are generally based on how the herbs affect the body. Following are a number of herb classifications.

Alterative: Alters (purifies) the blood.
Anthelmintic: Destroys or causes the expulsion of parasites. There are two types: vermicides and vermifuges.
Antibiotic: Inhibits the growth of or destroys bacteria or other organisms.
Antiparasitic: Destroys or inhibits parasites.
Antiseptic: Prevents or inhibits the growth of bacteria.
Antispasmodic: Used for muscular spasms, convulsions, and cramps.
Astringent: Increases tone and firmness of tissue; lessens mucus discharge.
Carminative: Stimulates expulsion of gas from gastrointestinal tract.
Laxative: Promotes bowel action.
Taeniafuge: Expels tapeworms.
Vermicide: Destroys worms without necessarily expelling them from the bowel.
Vermifuge: Expels worms from bowels.