{"id":1001,"date":"2016-02-21T04:51:31","date_gmt":"2016-02-21T10:51:31","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2016-02-28T11:44:02","modified_gmt":"2016-02-28T18:44:02","slug":"butane-based-bthq-food-safe-just-ask-the-fda","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/articles\/butane-based-bthq-food-safe-just-ask-the-fda\/","title":{"rendered":"What is BTHQ, BHT &#038; BHA? &#8211;Food-Safe  (Just Ask the FDA)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Everyone must make their own decisions about the allowable level of toxins permitted into their home and I am not one to preach.\u00a0 The Toxin Police coming into my home will see a scented candle, a small container of coffee, and even a bottle of carpet cleaner.\u00a0 The journey to a fully healthy and sustainable home is far from complete for me, as I am sure it is still a work in progress for most of my readers.\u00a0 <strong>So no judgments here.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">\u00a0I recently fell off the wagon and purchased a store-bought cracker that I grew up crushing into my chili.\u00a0 Aahh, comfort food.\u00a0 I no longer find comfort in it: It contains TBHQ.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" title=\"Boxes containing BHT, TBHQ, or BHA in my pantry\" src=\"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/media\/blog-images\/cracker_labels_002.jpg\" alt=\"Boxes containing BHT, TBHQ, or BHA in my pantry\" width=\"200\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">\u00a0TBHQ, BHT, BHA. They are variations of the same thing.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><strong>\u00a0What is TBHQ?\u00a0 TERTIARY BUTYLHYDROQUINONE<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">TBHQ increases shelf life because it stabilizes fats, and has a stabilizing effect for explosives (as a side note).\u00a0 It is derived from petroleum and is related to Butane and not too distant from lighter fluid.\u00a0 Apparently, while most studies show that this can lead to cancer, there is even contradictory study that show it might be a cancer preventative (see source #1) since it is a \u201csynthetic antioxidant\u201d.\u00a0 Hmmm, makes you wonder who\u2019s funding which study but that\u2019s a blog for another day.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">\u00a0It isn\u2019t just reserved as a synthetic preservative for your synthetic crackers.\u00a0 It\u2019s sprayed on nuts, it\u2019s blended into the seasoning mix of sausages and other meats. It\u2019s sprayed in fast food cartons and appears in the oils of both fast food and packaged food alike. <img decoding=\"async\" style=\"display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" src=\"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/media\/blog-images\/peanuts.jpg\" alt=\"peanuts\" width=\"200\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><strong>What is BHA?\u00a0 BUTYLATED HYDROXYANISOLE<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">BHA is found in:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Cosmetics (especially lipsticks and eye shadows)<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Butter, meats, cereals, chewing gums, snack foods, commercially dehydrated foods, nuts, etc.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Beverages<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Edible Fats and Oils (shortening, etc)<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Pharmaceuticals (over the counter and prescriptive)<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" style=\"display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" title=\"lipstick\" src=\"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/media\/blog-images\/lipstick.jpg\" alt=\"lipstick\" width=\"82\" height=\"104\" \/><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><strong>What is BHT? BUTYLATED HYDROXY TOLUENE\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">According to the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.tbhq.org\" target=\"_blank\">company who produces it<\/a>, \u201cThe antioxidant activity of <strong>BHT<\/strong> (Food Grade) can be transferred to baked products if it is used as an antioxidant in the shortenings used in their manufacture\u201d (see source #2). You body can metabolize it (#6) and its affects are due to exposure accumulation. \u00a0 It is more commonly found in meat, fish, and bone meals than its TBHQ and BHA relatives, although it is commonly used in conjunction with BHT.\u00a0 Check your vitamin and fish liver oils that you may have in your pantry for this combination. <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" style=\"display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" title=\"fish tanning\" src=\"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/media\/blog-images\/fish_tanning.jpg\" alt=\"fish tanning\" width=\"135\" height=\"163\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><strong>So what, why care? Isn\u2019t this another case of how <em>everything<\/em> is going to kill us?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">\u00a0I will cite the FDA regulation here: \u201cThe total antioxidant content of a food containing the additive will not exceed 0.02 percent of the oil or fat content of the food, including the essential (volatile) oil content of the food.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">\u00a0Why does the FDA, deeming the preservative safe, limit it to far less than 1% of the oil used? How much of the food item contains oil, and then .02% of that oil\u2014aren\u2019t we talking trace amounts? Yes.\u00a0 So the FDA says that on one hand TBHQ (and its\u2019 relatives) is completely safe.\u00a0 On the other, they do not allow more than trace amounts in any one food item.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">\u00a0<strong>This is why the FDA limits it\u2014 5 grams is <em>death<\/em>.\u00a0 1 gram (up to 4 grams) produces the following side effects: nausea, vomiting, tinnitus (ringing in the ears), delirium and collapse.\u00a0 There is limited evidence of hyperactivity, restlessness, and ADHD-like symptoms in children.<\/strong>These side effects are considered rare because of the amount of food required (with the current FDA regulation of .02% of oil) to quantitatively measure these effects.<strong>\u00a0 <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">\u00a0But does the average family only eat one item with this additive a day? A week? A month? How many servings is the average family eating\u2014because after all you cannot stop after 1 potato chip? \u00a0\u00a0How much, especially in combination with all of the other toxins present in food, is the average 40-pound child consuming? Is there an accumulative effect?\u00a0 In a moment of honesty, I unearthed the notes of an FDA committee meeting in which it was stated that there is indeed an accumulative effect:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"Default\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">\u00a0 <em>They tolerate a small amount, sometimes, for a while. But if they now think, I&#8217;m all cured, I can do this, and they begin eating at Taco Bell or something, which has BHT, TBHQ, and everything, and they think they&#8217;re okay, after they&#8217;ve done this for a few weeks, they&#8217;re not okay anymore.\u00a0 So there is some tolerance that&#8217;s built up. And these children, once they are off the diet &#8212; remember, you&#8217;re taking away thousands of additives when you put them on either the Feingold diet or an oligoantigenic diet, then you&#8217;re picking one thing and testing them. (see source #5)<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">\u00a0Wherever I found a resource (such as a science blog) that allowed reader\u2019s comments, I found a myriad of postings from average people who had simply internet-searched because \u201cI ate McDonalds for the 1<sup>st<\/sup> time in years, and vomited for hours.\u00a0 I read the ingredients and this was the one thing I didn\u2019t know about\u201d\u2026or \u201cI never had a problem with this until pregnancy.\u201d\u00a0 How many times do you read the above \u201canecdotal\u201d problems of others before a warning bell goes off in your head?\u00a0 And remember, it\u2019s only \u201canecdotal\u201d until you\u2019re the one hugging the toilet bowl.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">As usual, I read a crazy number of sources for the blog, but either I did not find sufficient documentation or they simply repeated more reliable sources, so I do not list them below.\u00a0 I want you to research for yourself so I only list the sites I most highly recommend to you. I tend to go straight to the horse\u2019s mouth, so you\u2019ll find a site listed below that is the manufacturer\u2019s attempt at making you think they\u2019re doing you a favor.\u00a0 You\u2019ll also see some FDA sites and science blogs, to include a dog food advisory site.\u00a0 As always, I want to encourage you to review these sources personally and find a few of your own.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">\u00a0(1)\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.dogfoodadvisor.com\/red-flag-ingredients\/tbhq-dangeorus-dog-food-preservative\/\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.dogfoodadvisor.com\/red-flag-ingredients\/tbhq-dangeorus-dog-food-preservative\/<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">(2)\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.tbhq.org\/\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.tbhq.org\/<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">(3)\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ehow.com\/facts_5594973_tbhq-side-effects.html\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.ehow.com\/facts_5594973_tbhq-side-effects.html<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">(4)\u00a0\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.accessdata.fda.gov\/scripts\/cdrh\/cfdocs\/cfcfr\/CFRSearch.cfm?fr=172.185\" target=\"_blank\"> http:\/\/www.accessdata.fda.gov\/scripts\/cdrh\/cfdocs\/cfcfr\/CFRSearch.cfm?fr=172.185<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">(5)\u00a0\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.fda.gov\/downloads\/AdvisoryCommittees\/CommitteesMeetingMaterials\/FoodAdvisoryCommittee\/UCM255118.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.fda.gov\/downloads\/AdvisoryCommittees\/CommitteesMeetingMaterials\/FoodAdvisoryCommittee\/UCM255118.pdf<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p>(6) <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pubmed\/12396675\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pubmed\/12396675<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">If your family struggles with an unknown food sensitivity, I would like to suggest you check out: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.feingold.org\/\" target=\"_blank\">http:\/\/www.feingold.org\/<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><strong>Proviso:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Nothing in this blog constitutes medical or legal advice.\u00a0 You should consult your own physician before making any dietary changes.\u00a0 Statements in this blog may or may not be congruent with current USDA or FDA guidance.<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>Want to keep learning and growing in your ability to produce, prepare, &amp; preserve your own fresh harvest? <strong>Sign up here for something (about bi-weekly):<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><!-- Begin MailChimp Signup Form --><\/p>\n<div id=\"mc_embed_signup\">\n<form id=\"mc-embedded-subscribe-form\" class=\"validate\" action=\"http:\/\/pantryparatus.us2.list-manage.com\/subscribe\/post?u=7ce042647d45b41dfe60075af&amp;id=f1526c68a9\" method=\"post\" name=\"mc-embedded-subscribe-form\" target=\"_blank\"><input id=\"mce-EMAIL\" class=\"email\" name=\"EMAIL\" type=\"email\" value=\"\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"clear\"><input id=\"mc-embedded-subscribe\" class=\"button\" name=\"subscribe\" type=\"submit\" value=\"Subscribe\" \/><\/div>\n<\/form>\n<\/div>\n<p><!--End mc_embed_signup--><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Photo Credits:<\/span><\/p>\n<h4><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><a title=\"profile of MeiTeng\" href=\"http:\/\/www.rgbstock.com\/user\/MeiTeng\">MeiTeng<\/a>\u00a0 Fish<\/span><\/h4>\n<h4><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><a title=\"profile of sritenou\" href=\"http:\/\/www.rgbstock.com\/user\/sritenou\">sritenou<\/a> peanuts<\/span><\/h4>\n<h4><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><a title=\"profile of melodi2\" href=\"http:\/\/www.rgbstock.com\/user\/melodi2\">melodi2 <\/a>lipstick<a title=\"profile of melodi2\" href=\"http:\/\/www.rgbstock.com\/user\/melodi2\"><br \/>\n<\/a><\/span><\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Everyone must make their own decisions about the allowable level of toxins permitted into their home and I am not one to preach.\u00a0 The Toxin Police coming into my home will see a scented candle, a small container of coffee, and even a bottle of carpet cleaner.\u00a0 The journey to a fully healthy and sustainable [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4546,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[53],"tags":[526,513,527],"yst_prominent_words":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/Butane-based-preservatives.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9Fvks-g9","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1001"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1001"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1001\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4546"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1001"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1001"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1001"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=1001"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}