What Is The "Yoga Mat" Chemical And Why Is It In Your Food?

The “yoga mat” chemical softener officially known azodicarbonamide hit the headlines last week when Subway announced they were dropping the ingredient from their sandwiches. But possibilities are, you are still consuming it – the chemical is in close to 500 food items nevertheless on the marketplace – and in your kitchen – in accordance to a report issued today by the Environmental Doing work Group.

Bread, bagels, pastries, pizza, tortillas, hamburger and sizzling dog buns typically contain azodicarbonamide, which is utilized to bleach flour, and to make dough much more elastic.

Why is azodicarbonamide (ADA) known as the “yoga mat” chemical? Due to the fact its major use is in plastic and rubber items like yoga mats and flip flops, exactly where it’s employed to make them softer and far more stretchy. In accordance to the scientists at the EWG, azodicarbonamide functions “like champagne for plastics,” aerating plastic with tiny bubbles to make it lighter, spongier, and much more flexible.

The concern: Azodicarbonamide is acknowledged to improve the danger of asthma, allergies and skin difficulties – and some specialists believe it hasn’t been adequately tested in humans at the concentrations it is generally utilized at.

In its report, provocatively titled “500 Approaches to Make a Yoga Mat Sandwich,” the Environmental Working Group lists more than 130 businesses, from Betty Crocker to Pillsbury to Tiny Debbie, which use azodicarbonamide in their goods. But the massive “conventional” bakers are not the only ones on the checklist more “health”-oriented brand names like Earth Grains, Nature’s Personal, Artisan’s Selection, and even Manischewitz use it also. (Including, specialists warn, in products labeled “natural” and “whole grain”.

In the U.S., the FDA has authorized azodicarbonamide for use in meals, and it is allowed in Canada also. But  Australia and a lot of European countries have banned its use in foods. The Environmental Functioning Group, primarily based in Washington, is so incensed about azodicarbonamide that they’re circulating an on the internet petition to get the chemical banned in the U.S.

According to the Environmental Doing work Group’s report, ADA has gotten a pass this far because it’s not deemed toxic by the FDA, as lengthy as it’s utilised in concentrations below 45 elements per million. Nevertheless, the Planet Overall health Organization ready a chemical evaluation report that expressed concern about the results on bakery and other food employees who handle huge volumes, and who have reported respiratory signs and symptoms and skin reactions. Nevertheless,  there hasn’t been in depth testing to investigate ADA’s health effects.

Although Subway got singled out thanks to a viral petition circulated by Meals Babe blogger Vani Hari, a lot of other restaurant and rapidly foods chains use azodicarbonamide, including:

• Starbuck’s


• Marie Callendar’s


• McDonald’s


• Burger King


• Wendy’s


• Arby’s


• Dunkin Donuts

The controversy stirred up by Hari led Senator Chuck Schumer of New York to call on the FDA to completely ban ADA.

So how unsafe is this most current “red flag” meals additive? Truthfully, not so undesirable, at least when in contrast to some of the other chemical compounds, like BPA, that have raised a hue and cry in the past handful of many years. Interestingly, ADA was truly brought in as a substitute for a much worse chemical,

But do you want it in your food, specially meals many of us eat numerous instances a day? No, not actually, particularly since its longterm effects actually are not acknowledged nevertheless. The advice, as constantly: Study labels meticulously, decide on the least processed products with the fewest quantity of additives, and stick to home-produced total food items whenever possible.

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What Is The "Yoga Mat" Chemical And Why Is It In Your Food?