If you buy a chemical-free product, you’re not getting a good deal. You’re buying nothing. A vacuum. What’s a vacuum? A space empty of all matter. And what is matter? Anything that has mass and occupies space. What is matter made of? Simple. Chemicals. Everything in the world is made of chemicals, a term that encompasses everything from simple elements like gold to incredibly complex molecules such as DNA. There are over fifty million known chemicals, both naturally occurring and synthetic. They are not good or bad, their safety and utility depend on which chemical we are talking about, how much of it, and in what context. Sugar in your mouth is fine, but you don’t want it in your gas tank. A small dose of coumadin can prevent a blood clot, a larger dose is great for killing rats in the basement. Unfortunately, today many people don’t regard chemicals as the constructs of matter, they consider them to be the agents that deconstruct life. The word chemical itself has become a dirty word, synonymous with poison or toxin. This is especially the case when it comes to synthetic chemicals, which are thought to be particularly sinister.
The truth is that the safety of a chemical does not depend on its ancestry; whether it was made by Nature in a bush or by a chemist in a lab is irrelevant. The properties of a molecule are determined by its molecular structure and its safety can only be determined by studying the chemical. And most assuredly, its safety does not depend on the number of syllables in the chemical name. Yet how often do we hear the advice, “if you can’t pronounce it, you shouldn’t be eating it!” Of course such advice usually comes from people who have little knowledge of what they speak. I’m quite sure they wouldn’t want to have beta-fructofuranosyl-alpha-D- glucopyranoside in their food either. But they would be missing some sweetness in their lives because that’s just plain old sugar. I suspect they probably would want to avoid dihydrogen monoxide as well. Of course, they would get dehydrated pretty quickly. But it isn’t only the chemically illiterate who see chemicals as the roadblocks to a healthy life. Mainstream producers are also trying to capitalize on the anti-chemical fervor. Take McCain Foods for example. They have announced a campaign to use only “real ingredients.” What does that mean? They plan to remove “unfamiliar ingredients.” Specifically, they mention sodium steroyl lactylate and sodium ascorbate by name. Why remove these? Marketing.
There is absolutely no scientific reason to remove these chemicals. Both are approved food additives and have undergone rigorous testing. Sodium steroyl lactylate is an emulsifier used in baked goods, like pizza dough, for dispersal of the fats through the dough. This allows less fat to be used while softening the dough at the same time. Sodium ascorbate is just the sodium salt of vitamin C and is used as an antioxidant to prevent fat from going rancid. These additives actually make for a better dough. Removing them just caters to the current wave of chemophobia. McCain also makes a big deal out of using only vine- ripened tomatoes. That’s great. The riper the tomato, the better the taste and the more natural ascorbate it contains. So while the company sings the praises of taking out ascorbate with one hand, they increase the amount of the same chemical with the other. What silliness!
