Sodium Benzoate is a commonly used preservative that is found in many foods, cosmetics, and personal care products that we consume or put on our bodies daily. Knowing the facts and the dangerous truth about sodium benzoate could be crucial to your health.

Sodium benzoate is a preservative that is widely used and can be recognized by E211. It is the sodium salt of benzoic acid and exists in this form when dissolved in water. It can be produced by reacting sodium hydroxide with benzoic acid.

To put it more simply, Sodium benzoate is an effective preservative and is a type of salt derived from benzoic acid. One reason it is commonly used is because it is dissolved very easily in water. It is made by combining an acid and a base, the result is a salt. When you mix sodium hydroxide with hydrochloric acid, you get sodium chloride, which is common table salt. When you mix sodium hydroxide with benzoic acid you get sodium benzoate a known carcinogenic additive. Now are you totally confused?

Sodium benzoate has the ability to deprive the cells of oxygen, break down the immune system, and cause cancer. It chokes out your body’s nutrients at the DNA cellular level by depriving mitochondria cells of oxygen and can shut them down. We need oxygen to breathe and our cells need oxygen to function properly so they can fight infection as well as cancer.

Sodium benzoate is even in many products that are labeled as “all natural”. Benzoic Acid is found naturally in low levels in many fruits, such as berries, apples, plums, and even some spices as cinnamon, and is found in many plants, animals and milk. Benzoic acid is found naturally in foods, but sodium benzoate is a food additive. Please, don’t let that fool you because the product used as a preservative is synthesized in a lab.

Why Sodium Benozate is used is because it is a very good mold inhibitor and since aciditic foods grow bacteria, mold and yeast very quickly, this is the cheapest way to preserve them.

Common Foods & Products Contain Sodium Benozate:

It is most widely used in acidic foods such as salad dressings (vinegar), carbonated drinks such as soda, jams and fruit juices, pickles (vinegar), condiments, such a mustard, ketchup and it is also used as a preservative in medicines and cosmetics.

The FDA claims that sodium benzoate is safe because it is used in very low amount to preserve foods and as long as you don’t combine it with Vitamin C or E, because it forms benzene in the presence of vitamin C and E, or in an acidic environment. Benzene is a strong known carcinogen.

But let’s think about that for a minute! How do you not combine vitamin C with the hundreds of products that contain sodium such as pickles, salad dressings, jams, fruit drinks, dips, salsa, shredded cheese and even the cosmetic products such as mouthwash, toothpaste, cough syrup, creams and lotions? The list goes on and on!

Some Important Evidence:

1. Professor Peter W. Piper of the University of Sheffield claims that sodium benzoate by itself can damage and inactivate vital parts of DNA in a cell’s mitochondria. Mitochondria consume oxygen to generate ATP, the body’s energy currency. If they are damaged due to disease, the cell malfunctions and may enter apoptosis.

2. According to research published in 2007 for the UK’s Food Standards Agency (FSA) suggests that certain artificial colors, when paired with sodium benzoate may be linked to hyperactive behavior. The results were inconsistent regarding sodium benzoate, so the FSA recommended further study.

3. Professor Jim Stevenson from Southampton University, and author of the report, said: “This has been a major study investigating an important area of research. The results suggest that consumption of certain mixtures of artificial food colors and sodium benzoate preservative are associated with increases in hyperactive behavior in children. However, parents should not think that simply taking these additives out of food will prevent hyperactive disorders. We know that many other influences are at work but this at least is one a child can avoid.”

Don’t you think it’s time you start reading labels and avoiding sodium benzoate? Even though the FDA claims that sodium benzoate is safe, I personally don’t trust my health to the FDA or other big corporations where profit seems to be the main goal. When we continue to use products that contain this dangerous preservative that has been linked to many health risks, aren’t we putting our health and our family’s health at risk? Make a decision and use 100 percent organic in all your products or make your own DIY products. Choose organic or local harvest that contain no preservatives and make your food from scratch. Be self sufficient and be safe.

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Marla Gates is the owner of organic4greenlivings.com. Marla worked for over 10 years in healthcare, which helped her understand the dramatic need for changes in our society and how we view what healthy actually is. Her mission is education and awareness, so that people can make healthier choices and ensure a safe world for all of us to live in. Since she has suffered from Multiple Chemical Sensitivities (MCS), for 20 years or more it has given her the first-hand knowledge on what chemicals and pollution can do to your health. So come join her, read her blog and learn how to live healthy and green.