Health News: You have no idea what you are eating
“Beaver Butt Juice”
How would you feel if you were told that your favorite ice cream is made with Castoreum? You probably wouldn’t think twice because you probably have no idea what Castoreum is. That’s fair, I guess.
But how would you feel if I told you that Castoreum is “Beaver Butt Juice”? What exactly is Beaver Butt Juice? Are you sure you want to know? OK, I hope your not eating right now.
BBJ or Castoreum, is an orange-brownish secretion extracted from the sacs between the anus and the genitals of beaver. No need to clear your eyes, you read correctly. According to Veg Magazine, It is used for flavoring baked goods, condiments, and candies. Oh and umm, Ice cream. Its usually a vanilla or raspberry type of flavor.
Castoreum is also used in perfumes, incense and… (Pay attention my wonderful readers who smoke)… to give flavor and odor to Cigarettes.
That’s Right!! Are you still there or are you throwing up? I’ll wait.
Why are companies allowed to use “flavoring” like castoreum? Because our “friends” at the FDA approved Castoreum as a natural food additive. They only require companies to reference it as “Natural Flavoring” in the list of ingredients of products you eat and use. Riddle me this: what’s so natural about extracting anal glands from a beaver to make my ice cream taste better?
An even better question is, as Jamie Oliver asked on David Letterman, “Who found out that a beaver anal gland tastes good?”.
But wait, that’s not the only Natural Flavor you should be concerned about. Check this out:
Another ingredient that totally turned my stomach is “Ground Beetle Carcasses”. Also known as “Carmine” That’s right! 70,000 ground up beetles = 1 lb of Carmine used to bring that beautiful coloring in processed foods you love to eat including Dannon and Yoplait Yogurt. As fox news reported, there are often allergic reactions to Carmen and companies are only forced to list the ingredient as “color added”, although Dannon and Yoplait voluntarily list the ingredient itself on their labels.
Want more? Sure you do:
How about “Musk” which comes from the genitals of the Northern Asian Hornless Deer
“Ambergis” which is a waxy substance from the intestines of sperm whales
“Skatole” which comes from the umm, how can I say this tastefully, “Poop” of animals. It is taken from the intestine of animals and used in cigarettes and Strawberry Ice Cream.
“Lanolin” aka Sheep Secretion. The oils inside sheep’s wool are collected to create a goopy substance that ends up in Chewing Gum. Its usually listed as Gum Base.
So if your a meat or meat by-product eater, you may be saying, “So What! I eat other parts of an animal anyway, what’s the difference? Ok, I hear ya. How about this?
Another ingredient often used is “L-cysteine”. This is flavoring agent and dough enhancer found in many commercial breads. Hears the kicker, its produced directly from HUMAN HAIR. Yes, you read that correctly. According to Mike Adam’s book “25 Amazing Facts About Food”, It is usually taken from the floor of Chinese barber shops. The hair is dissolved in acid and isolated through a chemical process. How about them duck feathers huh? Oh that reminds me, if they can’t find enough human hair, L-cysteine can be made from Duck Feathers also.
Ok, ill stop, for now. So, how do we avoid these “unusual” additives? We’ll, the most effective way is to take on a plant based diet. This way you can be assured you are eating exactly what you expected to eat, Fruits and Vegetables. Don’t take for granted that everything you eat is made from a “natural” food source. Here is a reality folks, almost everything you eat is not really what you think you are eating. Unless you are eating plant based vegan food, there is a 90 percent chance there is some form of unexpected additive like the ones mentioned above. Or maybe it will contain:
“Coal Tar” in your red colored candy
“Sand” in your Wendy’s Chilly or “Fertilizer” in your Subway Sandwich
Ok, I will stop. No wait, Just one more,
Did you know that White Sugar from sugar cane is often filtered through crushed animal bone aka “Bone Char”? Why? It helps to get that beautiful white color people love to see.
If you desire a free consultation at Jaime@creatingtherealyou.com
