healthy snacks for kids to make, lunches, parties, on the go

them. Our various addresses are: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Thank you. *********************************************************** CSPI: food additives to avoid 1.14.00 http://www.cspinet.org/ The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) is a nonprofit education and advocacy organization that focuses on improving the safety and nutritional quality of our food supply and on reducing the carnage caused by alcoholic beverages. CSPI seeks to promote health through educating the public about nutrition and alcohol; it represents citizens’ interests before legislative, regulatory, and judicial bodies; and it works to ensure that advances in science are used for the public’s good. CSPI is supported by nearly 1,000,000 member-subscribers to its Nutrition Action Healthletter [subscribe for $ 24 ] and through foundation grants and sales of educational materials. For more information contact CSPI at  email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it 1875 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 300 Washington, DC 20009  phone (202) 332-9110, fax (202) 265-4954 Contact Nutrition Action Customer Service. http://www.cspinet.org/reports/food.htm CSPI REPORTS  Food Additives to Avoid (listed alphabetically) Acesulfame K Known commercially as Sunette or Sweet One, acesulfame is a sugar substitute sold in packet or tablet form, in chewing gum, dry mixes for beverages, instant coffee and tea, gelatin desserts, puddings and non-dairy creamers. Tests show that the additive causes cancer in animals, which means it may increase cancer in humans. Avoid acesulfame K and products containing it. Your sweet tooth isn't worth it. Artificial colorings The great bulk of artificial colorings used in food are synthetic dyes. For decades synthetic food dyes have been suspected of being toxic or carcinogenic and many have been banned. Whenever possible, choose foods without dyes. They're mostly used in foods of questionable nutritional worth anyway. Natural ingredients should provide all the color your food needs. Aspartame This sugar substitute, sold commercially as Equal and NutraSweet, was hailed as the savior for dieters who for decades had put up with saccharine's unpleasant after taste. There are quite a few problems with aspartame. The first is phenylketonuria (PKU). One out of 20,000 babies is born without the ability to _meta_bolize phenylalanine, one of the two amino acids in aspartame. Toxic levels of this substance in the blood can result in mental retardation. Beyond PKU several scientists believe that aspartame might cause altered brain function and behavior changes in consumers. And many people (though a minuscule fraction) have reported dizziness, headaches, epileptic-like seizures, and menstrual problems after ingesting aspartame. Avoid aspartame if you are pregnant, suffer from PKU, or think that you experience side affects from using it. If you consume more than a couple of servings a day consider cutting back. And, to be on the safe side, don't give aspartame to infants. BHA & BHT These two closely related chemicals are added to oil-containing foods to prevent oxidation and retard rancidity. The International Agency for Research on Cancer, part of the World Health Organization, consider BHA to be possibly carcinogenic to humans, and the State of California has listed it as a carcinogen. Some studies show the same cancer causing possibilities for BHT. BHT and BHA are totally unnecessary. To avoid them read the label. Because of the possibility that BHT and BHA might cause cancer, both should be phased out of our food supply. To play it safe, phase them out of your diet. Caffeine Caffeine is found naturally in tea, coffee, and cocoa. It is also added to many soft drinks. It is one of the few drugs