To start off the week, todayâs post is something Iâve gotten many questions about, and am excited to finally address it!
Have you ever picked up a carton of almond milk or coconut milk to check the ingredients list and wondered what one (maybe even more than one, depending on the brand) of them actually was?
If there was only one questionable ingredient that made you stop and wonder, it was probably carrageenan, which is added to a surprising number of foods (for humans and their pets) and drinks- yet doesnât really add any nutritional value.
Carrageenan has been met with quite a bit of criticism, most notably from those like Dr. Andrew Weil. And itâs been purportedly linked with some pretty hefty health issues, even though itâs not a new ingredient at all. Still, there are differing opinions regarding its safety.
Is it as bad as some experts say? Or is it safe, like the FDA claims (the FDA lists it as âGenerally Regarded as Safe,â or GRAS)?
Before we get into the possible dangers (or not) of carrageenan, letâs talk about what carrageenan actually is. The name alone sounds a little clinical and scary, right?
It is a food additive thatâs even allowed in organic foods, and it comes from seaweedâred seaweed to be exact, which some say causes inflammation in the body.
Carrageenan has been used in different foods and drinks since the 1930s, so itâs not exactly some new ingredient thatâs just been created and started being haphazardly sprinkled into processed foods. However, the debate around it has just started heating up even though experts have been conducting research on it for decades.
Some of the results of those studies didnât put carrageenan in a flattering light. Yet in May 2012, the National Organic Standards Board chose to allow carrageenan in organic foods for another five years.
Itâs used as an emulsifier and thickener in things like:
Basically, itâs added so you donât have to shake or stir things up before you eat or drink them, or so the texture feels creamier and fattier (maybe more satisfying?), than it would otherwise.
No matter what as far as its safety is concerned, I donât believe carrageenan is a necessaryâor beneficialâadditive, really (other thickeners that act in a similar way and arenât surrounded by such controversy include guar gum and locust bean gum).
However, I also think a lot to the fear over it has been taken a bit too far. Thereâs a lot of confusion around this ingredient and whether itâs worth replacing with other things because there are two different types of carrageenanâone is generally deemed safe for human consumption by the FDA and the other is not.
One study points out that undegraded carrageenan could be linked to ulcers and tumors of the colon right along with the degraded carrageenan, for these possible reasons:
An entry in Critical Reviews in Toxicology , on the other hand, states that food grade carrageenan maintains its higher molecular weight, is not broken down to become harmful like poligeenan, and is not absorbed by the body. The review looked at studies concerning rodents, dogs, and non-human primates.
The review states thereâs no need to worry that the carrageenan used in food is toxic or carcinogenic.
One is more processed. Carageenan has a higher molecular weight than poligeenan. Poligeenan is derived from carrageenan when itâs processed at a high temperature with strong acids for six hours or more. Itâs broken down into shorter chains and a lower molecular weight during this process.
That lower weight could allow it to be more readily absorbed into the blood stream, which is when it really gets potentially harmful and could contribute to health problems. Otherwise, the idea is that carrageenan, because of its higher molecular weight and inability to cross into the blood stream, just goes right through the body without causing any trouble.
There are too many unknowns about what happens when itâs broken down by the human body, despite animal studies that say carrageenan is safe (remember, there are also studies that say otherwise).
It may be safe, but Iâm still a little skeptical and would suggest largely avoiding it.
Though most of the proven health issues with carrageenan are attached to degraded carrageenan (poligeenan) which are not allowed in food products, further studies have shown that undegraded carrageenan could be unhealthy as well.
Some of the top concerns linked to carrageenan in animal studies include:
Maybe, maybe not.
In a lot of the tests that have been conducted over the years with a variety of outcomes, the carrageenan was usually fed in much higher amounts than any human on a whole foods based diet would consume on a regular basis. You probably arenât consuming that much of it if youâre focusing on fresh produce and avoiding the processedâeven processed organicâstuff.
Carrageenan was also not fed to the animals as part of another food; instead, the doses were given in water.
Possibly. Without further testing, we canât know for sure.
There were also different reactions depending on the type of animals used in the studies; sometimes different species in the same study would experience different outcomes. For example, in one report that looked at carrageenanâs effects as far back as the 1960s, there are a few studies that analyzed degraded and undegraded carrageenanâs effects. Several studies were discussed, but hereâs an overview:
The report also points out scientistsâ concern about food-grade carrageenanâand subsequent letters to medical journal The Lancetâas early as the 1980s.
In a separate comparison between degraded and undegraded carrageenan on rhesus monkeys, the ones that received undegraded (food grade) carrageenan gained weight normally and didnât seem to suffer any adverse effects. The ones fed the degraded carrageenan, however, lost weight, lost blood through their intestinal tracts, and some developed anemia.
Finally, one researcher who is well-known for her studies in carrageenan, Dr. Joanne Tobacman, now an associate professor of clinical medicine at the University of Illinois College of Medicine, has been investigating the issues with undegraded carrageenan for decades and has completed 18 peer-reviewed studies on the topic. Her findings suggest that both types should be banned and she wrote to the National Organic Standards Board about it in 2012 to no avail.
She argued that both types of carrageenan can cause inflammation and that humans do get enough in their diet to suffer because of its addition to common foods and beverages. The American average is 250 mg per day (think of all the processed foods in the Standard American Diet!); the rats in her studies received the equivalent of 100 mg (when adjusted for weight and size) and developed tumors. Because either type can cause inflammation, she argues that either type can cause a laundry list of diseases.
After all, whatâs at the root of so many modern diseases? Inflammation.
Not many tests have been done involving humans, but Dr. Tobacman has been able to test carrageenanâs effects on human cells. The breast cells actually died.
Though thereâs no set âsafeâ or âunsafeâ decision across the board because several of the tests and studies yield different results, thereâs still enough evidence pointing toward the âunsafeâ camp to make me want to avoid carrageenan whenever possible, despite what the FDA says or what the molecular weight of carrageenan versus poligeenan is.
If youâre following the Beauty Detox principles, youâre probably naturally pretty safe from carrageenan anyway. Youâre not consuming dairy in any form, so the yogurt, ice cream, cottage cheese, and sour cream arenât part of your life anymore. Youâre probably almost never consuming those processed foods, like the breakfast shakes and frozen dinners and pizzas, either.
Thereâs one place you may still be getting carrageenan exposure, thoughâŚ
Your cowâs milk substitute.
Despite small amounts of carrageenan in certain brands of almond, hemp, or coconut milkâIâm not convinced you need to cut them out of your diet completely until we have more conclusive evidence. Those drinks make fantastic treats (almost-raw vegan hot chocolate, anyone?) and smoothie bases, and I still use those products on occasion, especially if Iâm traveling.
Still, if youâre intent on avoiding it, you check the list below to see if you can find any of the carrageenan-free products near you. If those arenât available, donât worry! Becauseâguess whatâmaking your own almond milk is super easy! It just takes a little forethought because you have to remember to soak your almonds first. We only use raw almond milk at Glow Bio from organic, soaked and rinsed almonds! :)
Personally, I think it tastes much better when you make it fresh, anyway, and you can control the amount of vanilla you add and control the sweetness by adding more dates or stevia. You can switch it up and use hazelnuts, too. How good does hazelnut hot chocolate sound right now?
Okay, so maybe adding âMake almond milkâ to your to-do list is the last thing you want to do right now. I totally understand not wanting to add one more thing to your list of things you need to do to (I know, thereâs probably a lot on there already!), and sometimes you just want something convenient.
If you want to avoid carrageenan at all costs, even in the small amounts that may be in the occasional almond milk you consume, luckily there are some brands out there that do not use carrageenan in their products. Youâll have to be a little picky and you may have to go a little out of your way to find the right brands, but avoiding carrageenan can be done.
Try these brands for carrageenan-free milk substitutes:
Things change and ingredients come and go (often based on what the customers ask for!), so be sure to read the label before you buy your milk. And just because something isnât on this list, that doesnât mean that a brand wonât remove carrageenan in the future.
Keep checking the labels if there are no carrageenan-free options where you live right now. You could also try talking to the management at the grocery store to see if theyâd be willing to branch out and introduce another brandâbut go armed with your information so they know which ones youâd love for them to start carrying.
Because itâs an unknown and there are options without carrageenan, I would say steer clear when you can. However, if you donât have a choice and have to have a small amount of almond milk that lists carrageenan as an ingredient every now and then, donât stress out about it too much. Itâs a tiny amount and youâre probably not getting much exposure from other sources if youâre eating a healthy, whole foods in a non-processed diet without dairy.
Also, if youâre in a situation where you have to make a choice between carrageenan-free milk from a cow and a milk alternative that contains carrageenan, never go for the dairy! The same is true of other things, like soda or other foods and beverages with wheat, high-fructose corn syrup, high sodium levelsâyou get the idea. It may not be good for you, but carrageenan is the lesser of those evils.
The answer is, we have no final verdict. This post is unique in there there is no clear black or white⌠not yet at least. There is evidence that carrageenan may be bad for you, and yet as we discussed, it may also be that the form and amount used in products like almond milk isnât really harmful.
The purpose of this post is to explore the topic thoroughly, present you with both perspectives, and give you the information to make your own decision.
And now that youâve read this, Iâm curious, were you already trying to eliminate carrageenan from your diet? Do you plan to do so now?
If you decide to make your own almond or hazelnut milk, let me know!
I want to know how it turns out and how you customize it for your own tastes. Also, if youâve found another carrageenan-free brand that isnât on the list, share it in the comments section.
I hope this post is helpful. Keep in mind that many health topics are like thisâthereâs a grey area that need to be explored, researched and thought through.Sometimes the best thing we can do is research, discuss and then each make our own individual decisions accordingly.
Thank you so much, and I look forward to hearing from you below! Have a beautiful day, and take care of yourself.
In Love and Health,
Kimberly
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