7 secrets "big food" is keeping from you

It shouldn’t come as a huge surprise that fast food and the major food producers (“big food”) may not have your best interests at heart. 

Is "big food" in it purely for the money?

Of course, there’s nothing wrong with making money…it’s what every successful business strives to do.  The problem arises when money is the sole motivator, particularly in the food business.

When a food company realizes that consumers are only willing to pay so much for, say, a hamburger, and the company must choose between healthy ingredients that cost more or cheaper ingredients that may cause health problems such as cancer…sadly, the healthier choice does not always win out.

Here are 7 things "big food" doesn’t want you to know:

1. What you read on the nutrition facts label isn’t necessarily all you are getting.  Cancer-causing chemicals such as acrylamides may be formed in the food during high-heat processing, yet they don’t have to be listed on the label. Residues of solvents, pesticides and other chemicals may also be present, but those don’t have to be listed, either. Even worse, the National Uniformity for Food Act, currently being debated in the U.S. Congress would make it illegal for states to require cancer warnings on foods that contain cancer-causing chemicals.  Guess who’s sponsoring that bill?
2. Everyone’s least-favorite Chinese take-out ingredient, monosodium glutamate (MSG), is added to thousands of food and grocery products through a dozen different innocent-sounding ingredients.  MSG imbalances endocrine system function and it disables your appetite regulation so that you keep on eating. This chemical not only contributes to nationwide obesity, it also helps food companies boost repeat business.
3. MSG is commonly disguised as other ingredients like yeast extract, torula yeast, hydrolyzed vegetable protein and autolyzed yeast.  And no, being vegetarian won’t help, since MSG is included in nearly all "vegetarian" foods such as veggie burgers.
4. Artificial colors and refined carbohydrates in processed food have been shown to contribute to ADHD in children.  In a recent study, 80% of so-called ADHD children who kicked processed foods were cured of ADHD in two weeks.
5. One of the more popular artificial sweeteners, aspartame, starts breaking down into chemicals like formaldehyde and formic acid when it’s exposed to warm temperatures for only a few hours.  This is bad because formaldehyde is a potent nerve toxin and causes damage to the eyes, brain and entire nervous system. Aspartame is associated with migraines, seizures, blurred vision and many other nervous system problems.
6. When you pick up a package of dip at the store, such as guacamole or cool ranch dip, you should know that those dips are made with hydrogenated oils, artificial colors and MSG. Believe it or not, many guacamole dips don't even contain avocados. 
7. Even the plastic food packaging that most fast food and package food comes in is a potent health hazard.  The problem is that plastics routinely seep the chemical bisphenol A into your food.  And when you cooking in plastic containers (like in the microwave), that multiplies the level of exposure. Bisphenol is a hormone disruptor and can cause breast formation in men and severe hormonal imbalances in women. It’s also linked to hormone-related cancers such as prostate cancer and breast cancer.