27/10/2020
How ironic that we are trying to hide from a virus. Many have died from comorbidities linked with these ingredients prevalent in our food chain.
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Halloween is right around the corner. What will you be giving out this year? Or has Halloween been canceled in your community?🎃 👻
Did you know that the ingredients in most candy have been linked to a bunch of illnesses…inflammation, cancer, allergies, neurological issues and many other conditions? 😳
Did you know that most commercial candy can’t be sold outside of the US because those countries ban or restrict the ingredients? (The candy companies reformulate to sell outside of the US). 🤬
Though there may be thousands of chemicals lurking in the Halloween bag ☠️☠️ here are 8 “scary” Halloween candy ingredients that it’s best to avoid for optimal health. 🚫🚫
1. GMO Sugar
2. MSG
3. Partially Hydrogenated Oils
4. Vanillin and Other Artificial Flavors
5. Gluten
6. Dairy
7. Artificial Colors
8. Preservatives
So let’s break it down…
1 – SUGAR
Everyone knows there’s a lot of sugar in Halloween Candy. The average trick or treater’s haul will have 3-4 cups of sugar. But how many different types of sugar are in your candy? A lot…like glucose syrup, high fructose corn syrup, dextrose, confectioner’s glaze, and others. This is not the healthy sugar you find in a piece of fruit, but processed, sugar that leads to inflammation.
How many Krispy Kreme Donuts would you let your child eat? 4 or 5? 10? There is more sugar in a fun size M&M’s or a fun size serving of Starburst than in a Krispy Kreme Donut. That sure takes the fun out of fun-sized. 😥😥
2 – MSG
MSG is a food additive used to enhance flavor. It is widely known for causing a variety of symptoms in those sensitive to it like headaches, nausea and hives. It’s also bad for the rest of us because it overexcites the nervous system and is a very inflammatory additive (google excitotoxin to learn more than you ever wanted to know about MSG).
You thought MSG was just in Chinese food? Think again! MSG is found in most candies and gums which means that plastic pumpkin your child brings home overflowing with Halloween treats is also loaded with MSG. 🚫🚫
3 – PARTIALLY HYDROGENATED OILS
The food industry has been directed by the FDA to get partially hydrogenated oils out of our foods by January 1, 2020 because they have been found unsafe, but they still can be found in your child’s Halloween candy. Hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils are linked to cellular congestion and inflammation. They have also been connected to cancer, neurotoxin syndrome and chronic fatigue. Airheads, Whoppers, Skittles, Starburst, and Milky Way are some Halloween favorites with this scary ingredient. ☠️☠️
4 – VANILLIN AND OTHER ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS
Vanillin doesn’t sound scary when you look at it in an ingredient list. Most of us could pronounce it, right? Yeah, but it’s made from petrochemicals (i.e. carcinogens). Stick with real vanilla. You really don’t know what you are getting with artificial flavors because they are made synthetically in a lab. Yes many artificial flavors are made with petrochemicals and emulsifiers, but be careful,
Natural flavors aren’t always better. If they aren’t listing the actual name of the ingredient it could be an ingredient you wouldn’t want to eat, chemically modified or GMO. 🚫🚫
5 – GMO GLUTEN
Many bad Halloween candy options include GMO gluten and aren’t allergy-friendly Halloween options. Bad Halloween candy choices like Kit Kat, Twizzlers, Mars Bars, and Milky Way are some that contain gluten.
Here’s the thing about gluten even if you aren’t celiac: the protein in gluten is highly inflammatory and one of the first inflammatory foods I always recommend people remove from their diets right away if they are dealing with any sort of health issue. ☠️☠️
6 – DAIRY
Milkfat and whey are some of the names that dairy goes by in ingredients lists of many common unhealthy treats. Dairy, like gluten, is a very inflammatory food that is best to remove from your diet if you are dealing with any health issues. Milk was biologically made to help a baby cow grow to a 2,000-pound animal and not for humans.
Dairy causes inflammation and has been linked to acne and cancer. If you are looking for a healthy Halloween treat, try real dark chocolate without the milk. There are some suggestions below. 🐄🐮🥛
7 – ARTIFICIAL COLORS
Our consumption of food dyes has increased 5x since 1955. These dyes have been linked to conditions like cancer and hyperactivity that have “coincidentally” also increased since 1955. Did you know that a snack size bag of Skittles has 19 unhealthy ingredients with a bulk of them being artificial colors like Red 40 Lake, Titanium Dioxide, Red 40, Yellow 5 Lake, Yellow 5, Yellow 6 Lake, Yellow 6, Blue 2 Lake, Blue 1, Blue 1 Lake? But they’re gluten-free… No, thanks! 🍭🍭
8 – PRESERVATIVES
Many of the preservatives in candy have been linked to allergies, cancer, asthma, dermatitis, and other conditions. After hearing about all the scary ingredients in Halloween candy, you might want to light all that candy on fire. You’re in luck...it will probably be easy to start that fire because a common ingredient in candy is the preservative, TBHQ, which is derived from butane. That’s commonly known as lighter fluid. ☠️☠️
Here are some links for healthier alternatives to conventional Halloween candy...
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1. Unreal M&Ms and other dark chocolate treats – These GMO-free candies are made with real colors and flavors.
2. Enjoy Life Candy – They have allergy-friendly treats in snack-sized packs that are dark chocolate and free of the top allergens.
3. Yum Earth skips the corn syrup and artificial dyes. They even have a healthier candy corn and some of their products can be found at common retailers like Target.
4. Torie and Howard Fruit Chewies – They are like Starburst without the corn syrup, hydrogenated oil, and artificial colors.
5. Organic, non-GMO and delicious-Fruit gummies by Black Forest
6. Ocho are delicious and they taste just like the original snickers, milky way, mounds etc.
7. Stickers- They are low cost and fun healthy treat alternative.
Giving your kids a healthy lifestyle doesn’t mean you are going to ruin Halloween. You can avoid bad Halloween candy ingredients and the unhealthiest candy options and still give your kids some “healthier” candy choices.
Thanks for sharing this information Jen Barsamian! 💕
