Lecture
Food additives have a long history. It is known that ancient Japanese already obtained mint essential oil and also isolated menthol from it. Essential oils were used at that time as components of cosmetic products, as well as for preparing light dishes and beverages [2, 5].
Today the term «food additives» has several meanings. Most often
it is a group of substances of natural or synthetic origin that are used to improve food technologies
with characteristic organoleptic indicators and improved product properties. It is important that the added additives do not change the nutritional
properties of food products.
The FAO/WHO Joint Commission has combined food additives (Food additives)
«Codex Alimentarius» counts as such «all substances not used
as food under normal conditions and not used as typical components of food,
regardless of their nutritional value. They are specially added for a technological
purpose, in particular to improve organoleptic properties, during the
production, packaging, transport or storage of food products» [2, 5].
The main criterion for the use of food additives is their safety. They must not endanger human health even with prolonged consumption. Therefore the degree of their action upon entering
the human body, either directly or after appropriate technological
processing of products containing certain additives, is usually taken into account
Over the last decade the range of food additives used in the food industry has increased significantly and continues to grow constantly. The question of their safety for the human body is acute. The relevance of the question grows when the possibilities of the combined (synergistic) action of many food additives are taken into account, given their consumption over most of a
person's life.
Modern production of food additives is developing at a faster pace than the production of food products. This is explained by general
trends in the development of the food industry, namely the growth in production of
low-calorie products with reduced sugar and fat content, products
for dietary and therapeutic purposes and fast preparation
Substances and compounds that are added to food products to increase their biological and nutritional
value are not considered food additives. These are trace elements, most vitamins and amino acids.
The "E" index denoting food additives was introduced at the time for
39
convenience. Each food additive is characterized by a long chemical name, which
is difficult to fit on a food product label. The presence of the code means
that the additive is officially permitted in European countries [2, 5].
Toxicological assessment and hygienic regulation of food additives are relevant in all countries. Research into the properties and effects of food additives
on an international scale began back in the 1950s, from the time of the creation
in 1956 of the Joint Committee of Experts on Food Additives. The principles for
conducting research on food additives and contaminants contained in
food products were formulated in the document «Environmental Health Criteria
Principles for the safety assessment of food additives and contaminants in food products». Based on the generalization of
research results, the FAO/WHO Joint Committee of Experts developed principles for verifying the safety of food additives. Already in 1963
a joint FAO/WHO program on food standards was formed. It was
recognized that, for the purposes of human health protection, it is advisable to limit the intake of food additives into the body.
Since most food additives are foreign substances
for the human body (either in chemical composition or in the amount entering the human body), this necessitates conducting research and measures aimed at preventing their adverse effects on
human health. The problems of using food additives are primarily
related to preserving human health.
The rules and standards for the use of
food additives in food products established in different countries are not identical. In Ukraine the use of food additives is regulated by DSanPiN 222-96 «Sanitary
rules and norms for the use of food additives» (Registered:
by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine on 16.12.1996 under No. 715/1740) with amendments – Order of the Ministry of Health No.
218 of 23.07.1998. The general part of the documents contains the principles
of assessment, registration and use of food additives
The principles of hygienic assessment of food additives in Ukraine are generally accepted in world practice and fully comply with international
norms. According to these documents, for conducting a hygienic
assessment of food additives, information about their chemical and toxicological characteristics is required.
Today, when carrying out a hygienic assessment of food additives and
determining the possibility of their registration in Ukraine, it is accepted to be guided by
the principles recommended by the WHO scientific group. The main one is
the principle of safety.
In DSanPiN 222-96, as well as in the Regulation of the FAO/WHO Joint Committee
of Experts on the use of food additives, it is noted
that the use of food additives pursues the goal of 1) preserving the nutritional properties of products;
2) increasing their shelf life (reducing losses of food
products);
40
3) giving them a more attractive appearance;
4) facilitating the technological processing of food raw materials, reducing the time of technological processing.
As a component of the diet that does not increase the caloric content of food, they perform the following functions [2, 5, 10, 11, 15-18]:
1. Reduce the potential harm of the numerous toxicants entering
the body with food products.
2. Enrich the diet with vitamins, essential amino acids, trace elements and other biologically active substances, because the need
for them increases in the presence of toxicants in the body. It is known that the main
symptoms of chronic poisoning by pesticides, heavy metal salts and
other toxicants are avitaminosis and signs of deficiency of many metabolites.
3. Increase the body's resistance to stressful situations, for which purpose
various plant and mineral adaptogens are introduced into food additives.
4. Ensure control of body weight by changing appetite.
5. Reduce the body's heightened reaction to environmental factors causing allergy, including food allergens, pollen of flowering plants, household synthetics, etc.
Food additives must not be used if this leads to:
1) concealment (masking) of improper processing of raw materials;
2) falsification of food products;
3) loss of biological value.
The necessity of ensuring the safety of the use of food additives is emphasized, as well as the obligation to provide information on labels about their presence in food products.
According to the Law of Ukraine «On the Quality and Safety of Food Products and Food Raw Materials», the sale and use is prohibited
of domestic food products and the import into Ukraine of imported food products without labeling in the state language of Ukraine of the composition of the food product with an indication of the list of names of food additives used in the process of manufacturing the products. A food additive can be designated as an individual substance, for example «sorbic acid», or by a group name, for example,
"preservative" or "emulsifier" [2, 5].
Most food additives do not have a special nutritional or
functional effect on the body; some of them are inert in the amounts
used. These include natural food dyes of plant origin, some emulsifiers and stabilizers, and enzyme preparations. Thus, as stabilizers for confectionery products, in particular for
ice cream, agar, agaroid (furcellaran), sodium alginate are permitted. These substances may contain impurities: gelatin, other proteins, starch, dextrin and,
within permissible limits, heavy metals.
Quite a lot of food additives are known that are capable of adversely affecting the
human body when consumed in increased quantities. At the same time
it has been established that food additives are dangerous only in the case of overdose.
Comments