Did you read the article in ‘The Guardian’ for 7th February, 2014, about food testing? Food testing by local authorities showed that “well over a third of the foods tested failed to meet correct standards in some way.” Tests discovered drinks with a banned flame retardant added, mozzarella with less than 50% cheese, ham made from coloured poultry meat and a herbal slimming tea with no herbs but containing a withdrawn prescription drug at 13 times recommended dosage.
Many authorities, such as Birmingham, Rochdale, Blackburn, Leicester or the City of London, did no testing last year. In 2007 there were 41 public analysts, but now the even more meagre number of 17. The true degree of the problem posed by processed foods is unlikely ever to be known. On this site we have frequently given nutritional guidance to avoid all processed foods, which can contain high levels of sugars, artificial sweeteners, salt and trans fats. These cause inflammation within the body and oxidation of fat/cholesterol in the walls of the arteries precipitating cardiovascular disease and many other illnesses. Now there is a second reason to avoid them, because you just do not know what they may contain.
The answer to keeping, or restoring good health, is often a nutritional one. Eat plenty of home prepared meals with a good portion of good quality, or organic, vegetables (washed and raw is even better). If frying or roasting, though steaming and baking is far better, do not use heated oil (except coconut oil), but rather use good old fashioned saturated fats such as meat fats, or butter. Eat plenty of whole fruits, but not processed fruit juices. Try to avoid wheat products, especially processed bread, and within reason minimize consumption of starchy carbohydrates.
Also, do not forget the benefit of supplements, but, as the slimming tea above illustrates, make sure that they are good quality pharmaceutical grade one products. Important supplements include vitamin C, fish oil/ground flax seeds (especially for Omega 3), vitamins B6 and B12, and last but not least (available from Arkworld) L-arginine and co- enzyme Q10 (now in the new ‘Micro’ capsule form).