Trisodium Phosphate In Childrens Cereal

So a while back I wrote an article about changing your groceries that was focused on breakfast cereal. I came across trisodium phosphate, a common food additive found in many cereals. A few days ago I went to the grocery store and did a small 15 second video (above) about cheerios and the ingredients found inside, only to get me thinking more about trisodium phosphate as it is an ingredient found in cheerios also. Most people would think, if it is in our food, we shouldn't be too concerned right? Wrong. Trisodium phosphate is also a household product, used for degreasing, is a cleaning agent, stain remover, and also can be used as lubricant. Why in the world would this be in our food for us to eat? To me it sounds very wrong.

Looking into it, it seems to be more popular with painters as it is still in common use for the cleaning, degreasing and deglossing of walls prior to painting. TSP breaks the gloss of oil based paints and opens the pores of latex based paint providing a surface better suited for the adhesion of the subsequent layer. TSP was very popular in the mid 20^th century, and is still sold, and used, as a cleaning agent, but during the late 1960s in the United States, government regulators in seventeen states determined that overuse led to a series of ecological problems with the damage to lakes and rivers (yet it is ok for our bodies?). A few safety precautions from the product are if you have Skin Contact / Absorption with it, it may cause moderate skin burns. It may also cause severe irritation, especially if your skin is moist or wet. If it is ingested it may cause burns of the mouth, throat and stomach. Aspiration in to the lungs might occur during ingestion or vomiting, resulting in lung injury. Now the precaution noted that if you DO ingest it, it says to not induce vomiting and to not give anything by mouth to an unconscious person, and of course to seek immediate medical attention….. Yet it is found in our food?

Here is a video I found on the many uses of TSP on youtube, can you believe we are literally eating and digesting this? It literally infuriates me. What can this be doing to the inside of our bodies?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxiUOtVCluU



While I was doing some research in exactly what cereals it was found in, I couldn't help but notice this ingredient was found in nearly all conventional cereals targeted for children, but seemed to never be found in cereal targeted for adults. Now with that said I can’t help but think ‘red flag’ when I noticed this. Could this be a reason why so many children are having more and more learning disabilities? Autistic? Are getting sick? I am not talking about just this particular ingredient, but even others questionable ingredients found in foods (food dyes made from petroleum, GMOs, aspartame to name a few), Can they be the reason behind Americas epidemic of diseases? Sadly, most children today have been eating crappy food since they have been in their mother’s womb, without even knowing it, only to be fed with infant formulas that are not made with the ingredients our children deserve, and off to cereal with GMO sugar as a first ingredient (and we wonder why our children are hyperactive?), other GMOS, and trisodium phosphate, a CHEMICAL used to degrease floors and take out stains! Of course chemicals will mess up with our brain development, it’s only normal, it’s toxic! Yet we still question why our children are sick while not even looking at the ingredients of our food! Shame on these companies and the FDA for feeding us ingredients like this, yet it makes you question and wonder there tactics. Are pharmaceutical companies trying to make profit from our children? From us? Are they trying to kill us slowly so we can’t grow old? So we die from cancer, yet to profit the hospitals again? I mean, why else would they allow such ingredients in our foods? I can’t think of anything positive out of these ingredients. The reason of it's use in cereal is that it can modify cereal color and aid the cereal's flow through the extruder. TSP isn't only found in cereal though but is also commonly present in cheese sauces as an emulsifier, it’s in many exercise supplements and even laxatives.

Supposedly it does no harm to us when consumed in small quantities, just like sodium fluoride is 'ok' in small quantities. Whenever I hear this, I just can't help but think, since when is a small quantity of poison ever OK to eat? Who regulates how much we eat or drink it? If most people knew and had a choice, of course we would just want normal cereal with NO weird additives! Small amounts or not, no one literally wants to add any kind of toxic ingredients to there food, even if the FDA claims it to be 'safe'. The FDA has been wrong many times before. We are in serious need to change the food system, as it is only getting worse and worse, so please vote with your dollars and make homemade food whenever possible! Show these companies that you want real ingredients, ingredients we can trust! Cereal is super simple to make and I will post a recipe on my personal website for you all soon.

Now for a small list of cereals that do contained TSP are: Trix, Corn Pops, Cheerios, Reeses Puff's, Lucky Charms, Cocoa Puff's, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and Cookie Crisps. Please make sure to check ingredient labels when you buy your food. Question those weird sounding ingredients, write it down and look it up when you get home!

You can always replace your cereal with nature's paths. They are organic, GMO free and have ingredients you can pronounce. Not all are exactly healthy, but are of course a better choice when it comes to cereal. For kids, the have gluten free organic versions of Frosted Flakes, Reeses Puff's, and a few others. They also have cereal that tastes a bit like special K, and have there own cheerios. The granola cereal they offer is super tasty. If you want to go for a healthy cereal I recommend Qia (also made by natures path) or Food for life sprouted grain cereal (also known as the Ezekiel 4:9). Personally, I just make my own cereal, but I do understand that everyone sometimes needs practical and an easier solution. With all that said, I hope you can all make better shopping decisions and please inform your friends and family! Happy, safe, eating everyone! -Vicky