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Is a fast food milkshake really food?

I am a very strong advocate of eating whole foods. A whole food is something that grows from the ground, or walks around on the ground, and is prepared with no (or very little) alteration of the ingredients. Processed food is the opposite of this. Processed food is made by adding all sorts of chemical ingredients together. These chemicals are usually modified components of real food, like high-fructose corn syrup. A whole lot of people are starting to believe that consuming processed foods can destroy your health. Anyway, here's a good example of the difference between a whole-food strawberry milkshake and a processed-food strawberry milkshake. You draw your own conclusions.

I made a milkshake the other day from a recipe that I got from a farm. The farm grows organic foods, and distributes them to members in and around Denver. This recipe came in late spring, when strawberries are in season. The ingredients: Fresh whole cream, strawberries, sugar, and ice. Now, I grant that I don't have many milkshakes, on average about 1 a year (probably less, really). But when I do have one, I get the real thing. This one was spectacular. Once again, the ingredients in a real milkshake:

Strawberry milkshake
  • Fresh whole cream
  • Strawberries
  • Sugar
  • Ice

That butt-kickin' good shake reminded me of an article that I got from the Chek Institute a few years ago. It listed the ingredients in a fast food strawberry milkshake. We won't say whose it was. Just think 'giant company' and 'very fast' and you'll guess correctly. Anyway, I did some googling, and found the ingredients (reference below):

"Now take a look at the ingredients you might find in a fast-food strawberry milkshake: milkfat and nonfat milk, sugar, sweet whey, high-fructose corn syrup, guar gum, monoglycerides and diglycerides, cellulose gum, sodium phosphate, carrageenan, citric acid, E129 and artificial strawberry flavor."

The US FDA, for some reason I can't figure out, doesn't require food manufacturers to elaborate on what comprises "artificial strawberry flavor." So what does that "artificial strawberry flavor" contain? A whole hell of a lot actually:

"Just these few yummy chemicals: amyl acetate, amyl butyrate, amyl valerate, anethol, anisyl formate, benzyl acetate, benzyl isobutyrate, butyric acid, cinnamyl isobutyrate, cinnamyl valerate, cognac essential oil, diacetyl, dipropyl ketone, ethyl butyrate, ethyl cinnamate, ethyl heptanoate, ethyl heptylate, ethyl lactate, ethyl methylphenylglycidate, ethyl nitrate, ethyl propionate, ethyl valerate, heliotropin, hydroxyphrenyl- 2-butanone (10% solution in alcohol), ionone, isobutyl anthranilate, isobutyl butyrate, lemon essential oil, maltol, 4-methylacetophenone, methyl anthranilate, methyl benzoate, methyl cinnamate, methyl heptine carbonate, methyl naphthyl ketone, methyl salicylate, mint essential oil, neroli essential oil, nerolin, neryl isobutyrate, orris butter, phenethyl alcohol, rose, rum ether, undecalactone, vanillin and solvent."

Yum. Makes you want to run out to the local chemical supply house, grab a few bags of amyl valerate, benzyl isobutrate, and E129 doesn't it? I guess you can pick those chemicals up the next time you're at the drive thru.

The really sad truth is that most of these chemicals are approved by the FDA with no testing whatsoever, so no one really knows what the hell they might do to you. The lesson here is this: be on the safe side. Read labels. When the labels contain things like "artificial flavors" remember what went into "artificial strawberry flavor." Do you really want to feed that stuff to your family and yourself ? I don't.

Here's where the quoted text originally appeared:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/food/Story/0,,1759910,00.html

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