"[Dr. Tobacman] explained that all forms of carrageenan are capable of causing inflammation. This is bad news. We know that chronic inflammation is a root cause of many serious diseases including heart disease, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, and cancer," stated Dr. Weil. "All told, I recommend avoiding regular consumption of foods containing carrageenan," he adds.
Cornucopia already shared an analysis of the scientific data with many organic food and beverage companies. After learning about carrageenan's harmful effects on human health, some companies are actively reformulating their products to remove the dangerous additive.
A shopping guide on Cornucopia's website points consumers to carrageenan-free alternatives for many products. For example, Tofu Shop Specialty Foods, Inc., an organic soy foods producer in Arcata, CA, has for years offered chocolate soy milk without carrageenan. The food industry's claim is that chocolate milk and chocolate soy milk require carrageenan, because it suspends the cocoa particles. The easy alternative to carrageenan, in this case, is asking consumers to shake or stir the beverage first.
"We couldn't find an organic thickener for our soy milks, and one of our employees had the great idea to simply say 'Shake It Up' on the bottle," says Matthew Schmit, The Tofu Shop's founder and president. "We're confident that our customers don't mind the minimal effort of shaking the soy milk first and that they prefer a wholesome product free of additives."
Other companies, like Dean Foods, which owns the Horizon organic brand and Silk brand, appear unwilling to part with this convenient additive and are attempting to dispute the science, disseminating misleading claims that food-grade carrageenan is "natural" and therefore safe.
"Natural does not mean safe," says Vallaeys. "Poison ivy is natural, but you wouldn't put it in skin lotion. Given that carrageenan appears to do to your gut what poison ivy does to your skin, we urge all companies to remove this ingredient from the foods and beverages they sell."
"We hope the FDA will act in the public's interest and perform a good faith evaluation of the science, and revoke the regulations that currently allow carrageenan in food," says Vallaeys. "But until they do, it is up to individual consumers to take their safety and health into their own hands and avoid any foods and beverages containing this harmful ingredient."
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The Cornucopia Institute's report, Carrageenan: How a "Natural" Food Additive Is Making Us Sick," and shopping guide to carrageenan-free products, are available on Cornucopia's website: www.cornucopia.org.
On Monday, March 18, The Chicago Tribune, in an exclusive 1400-word front-page story, covered the release of Cornucopia's carrageenan report. The article profiled Chicago-based researchers and interviewed victims who have radically improved their health by eliminating carrageenan from their diets: http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/ct-met-carrageenan-0318-20130318,0,2164837.story.(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).