New food scare: Phosphate additives

Colas, processed cheese, and baking powder reportedly contain the most phosphate additives.

The media release is below. Click here for the study.

Looks like more speculation based on weak correlations.

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Contact: Dr. Eberhard Ritz
prof.e.ritz@t-online.de
Deutsches Aerzteblatt International
Phosphate additives pose a risk to health

Excessive consumption of phosphate is damaging to health. Therefore, food that contains phosphate additives should be labeled, as recommended by Eberhard Ritz and coauthors in their article in the current issue of Deutsches Ärzteblatt International [Dtsch Arztebl Int 2012; (109 (4): 49-55].

Ritz et al. selectively review the literature on the subject, which documents the fact that ex-cessive phosphate consumption elevates mortality in patients with renal disease. Recent stud-ies have also shown that phosphate apparently damages blood vessels and induces aging pro-cesses. Free phosphate (the type found in food additives) is entirely resorbed in the gastroin-testinal tract. Persons with renal disease have been found to have a markedly elevated serum phosphate concentration.

Phosphate additives are present in many types of fast food, which are eaten mainly by persons of lower socioeconomic status. It seems likely that excessive phosphate consumption is linked to the increased prevalence of cardiovascular diseases in the general population.

The authors conclude that physicians and the public need to be educated about the role of phosphate additives as a risk factor for disease.

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http://www.aerzteblatt.de/pdf.asp?id=119592

4 thoughts on “New food scare: Phosphate additives”

  1. The germans have a specially disposition to hate phosphates. Thirty years ago they removed it from the detergents (reason- water eutrophication) replacing it with phosphonates. Now it seems that they seek any reason for removing it from food also.As food technologist I can say that it will be very hard for them.

  2. When I was a kid you could go to a soda fountain in any drug store and get a drink called a cherry phosphate. We didn’t know that we were killing ourselves. Who do I sue?

  3. “Some studies suggest that people who read junk science scare stories may have a 100% risk of dying.”

  4. “Persons with renal disease have been found to have a markedly elevated serum phosphate concentration.” According o my copy of Mosby’s Diagnostic and Laboratory Test Reference, renal failure is the main cause of higher levels of serum phosphate.

    They got the causation backwards. Idiots.

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