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We are discussing Cooking for life
With Kurma Dasa, Sue Dengate, Dave Tuff, Jacinta Dugbaza, Roger Bayley

Question:
Is it true that food additives can contribute to Parkinson’s and Alzheimers?

Answer:
Sue - An expert in ageing from Sheffield University in the UK hit the headlines recently when he announced that a common preservative found in soft drinks may cause serious cell damage. Professor Peter Piper, a professor of molecular biology and biotechnology who has been studying the effects of sodium benzoate (211), suggested that the problem could eventually lead to cirrhosis of the liver and degenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s.

Professor Piper, whose work is funded by a government research council, said that safety tests conducted on these additives 50 years ago were out of date. Since Professor Piper’s announcement – which coincided with a leaked report regarding a major new study on the effect of colours and benzoate preservatives on children’s behaviour – all the major supermarkets in the UK have promised their own brand products will be additive-free by the end of the year.

Studies show that in some children, short term effects of food additives can include forgetfulness, inattention and ‘foggy brain’. Presumably this can also apply to seniors. A sixty-four year old who wrote to the Food Intolerance Network after avoiding additives reported improvement in his ‘clarity of thought, conceptual grasp and intellectual awareness’ .

For more information, see Food Intolerance Network

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