 During
food irradiation, food is exposed to very high doses of
radiation, in the form of gamma rays, X-rays or electron beams.
Irradiation can kill nearly all bacteria in food, both good and
bad (yes, some bacteria is good for you!), but it is helpless
against mad cow disease and viruses i like foot and
mouth disease and hepatitis.
How is food irradiation
different from microwaving?
The main purpose of food irradiation is to preserve foods and
extend the shelf life of products. Food irradiation is
considered to be a "cold" process because it achieves
its effect with hardly any increase in the irradiated foods'
temperatures. It uses gamma rays with short wavelengths and high
frequencies that penetrate food so rapidly that little or no
heat is produced. Microwave radiation uses longer wavelengths
and less energy than irradiation. Unlike irradiation,
microwaving causes foods to heat rapidly, and they can undergo
changes in texture and shape as well. For example, microwaved
corn kernels change shape and texture as they become hot
popcorn. ii
Food irradiation creates food safety issues that are far
more serious than those posed by microwaving.iii The
large amount of energy contained in the ionizing radiation used
in food irradiation allows for complex chemical changes to occur
in food components, including the production of mutagenic or
carcinogenic substances which were found in very small amounts
or were not present at all before irradiation. iv
Effects of Food
Irradiation
The long-term health consequences of eating irradiated food are
still unknown. Irradiation creates a complex series of reactions
that literally rip apart the molecular structure of the food.
This process creates known carcinogens like benzene and other
toxic chemicals including toluene.v Also, irradiation
byproducts called 2-ACBs, which do not occur naturally in any
food, have been linked to cancer development in rats vii
and genetic damage in human cells.viii Other serious
health problems have been observed in animals fed irradiated
foods, including premature death, mutations, stillbirths, organ
damage and nutritional deficiencies.ix
Irradiation can also alter the flavor, odor, texture,
color and nutritional value of food.x For example,
egg yolks are more watery, and have less color and brightness
than normal eggs. It also destroys the niacin and vitamins in
eggs,xi including up to 24 percent of their vitamin A
when exposed to just one-third the level of radiation that the
FDA has approved as safe.xii
For consumers, the risks involved with food irradiation
far outweigh any benefits. And even though the process might
kill some harmful bacteria, the food can be easily re-infected
after irraditation, either while being shipped, sold or prepared
by the consumer.
The agriculture industry is trying to use food
irradiation as a quick fix to a much larger problem created by
their own factory farms. The overcrowded and unsanitary
conditions on factory farms make animals more susceptible to
disease and injury, and can increase the levels of pathogens in
their bodies. The filthy conditions in slaughterhouses where
animals are killed at an extremely fast pace, endanger the
health of people who eat that meat.
What You Can Do
Food irradiation is not the answer. Eating locally-grown,
sustainable food from independent family farmers is. Here are
some things you can do to avoid irradiated foods:
Radura Symbol - It is legally required that all
irradiated foods bear this symbol.
- Avoid buying foods with the radura
symbol - this symbol marks all irradiated foods.
- Tell your local school board
officials not to serve irradiated foods to their students.
- Ask restaurant and grocery store
managers not to sell irradiated foods.
- Some spices that have been
irradiated are not marked with the radura symbol. To ensure
your spices have not been treated with irradiation, buy organic
spices or ask the companies that make your spices whether or
not they irradiate their products. And tell those companies
that you don't want to buy irradiated products.
Did You Know?
- In a study conducted by Consumer
Reports, professional taste testers noticed that most samples
of cooked irradiated beef and chicken had "a slight but
distinct off-taste and smell" similar to that of singed
hair. xiv
- Proper cooking destroys more
bacteria than irradiation.xv
- Since irradiation fails to eliminate
all bacteria from foods, and since foods can become
contaminated after having been irradiated, the process does not
prevent food borne illness. The FDA recommends the same
food-handling practices for irradiated foods as for any other
foods. xvi
For More Information
Reports and Articles
- "Preventing Pathogenic Food
Poisoning: Sanitation Not Irradiation" International
Journal of Health Services, 2001
Sources
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