Customer Reviews

A Consumer's Dictionary of Food Additives: Fifth Edition Over 140,000 Copies Sold

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have just added the Consumer's Dictionary of Food Additives to my library. I am saddened by the quick jump of some reviewers to post incorrect negative reviews on the book, such as the one commenting on the book entry of monosodium glutamate (MSG) and the other on aspartame. For instance, the reviewer writes, "according to Ruth Winter in her book [Aspartame] was considered a safe additive." This is absolutely NOT correct. Ms. Ruth does not PERSONALLY endorse, recommend, or reject any food additive she lists in her book, including aspartame. Simply, she presents the facts, findings (hers, the FDA's, or a reseach group's), and any controversies surrounding each additive, and leaves it to the reader to judge for him/herself the safety of accepting the additive in their diet, avoiding it all-together, or doing further research on it. This is the approach I am taking to the book, and thus find it an eye-opener when it comes to the characteristics of food additives I never knew about. My approach is, as soon as there is a health concern listed for an additive, confirmed or not by the FDA or else, I avoid it all-together. After all, MSG and aspartame are not necessary for my survival as mother nature intended, and the author does not fail to list the controversies surrounding these two and many others when applicable! In addition, the book is not intended to be an "extensive" study on each food additive as the reviewers wish it to be (one of them writing a 50-page thesis and the other a chiropractic student); rather it is merely a handbook/dictionary/quick-reference. Thus, it is serving its purpose well as it is presentd by Ms. Winter.

I am glad that I was smart and decided to not be deterred by those negative reviews which I read before purchasing the book. Rather I decided to take a look at it myself first-hand, and hope future interested buyers do the same. I wish that reviewers will not jump to unfounded negative comments, because it is only taking an opportunity away from one consumer at a time to benefit from such an informative book if the latter weighs heavily on their reviews in his/her decision against acquiring the book.

I was very excited to discover and buy this book, but once I received it I was rather dissapointed. It does have quite a bit of information, but I find that it really is missing a lot. For example, there are absolutely no references given for all the supposed results of studies, and those "results" are mostly very brief summaries or interpretations by the author. In addition, some of the entries list a brief or confusing definition which leaves you knowing no more than you did before you read it.

I would find this book much more helpful if it really was written more like a dictionary - with pronunciation keys, simple, clear definitions, and most of all, a significant increase in the amount of information on studies.

Unlike 2 of the other 3 reviewers I do not have a specific axe to grind. I like this book and find it useful. I continue to find this book great value for money. Ms Winter writes in an easy to understand manner. She does not judge products; but gives warnings where allergies or problems may exist. At the same time she tells of the U.S.Government's stance on items. She often explains why additives are included in foods.

The descriptions of additives are well cross referenced for alternate names and spellings.

Its a great begining for any search for information on these additives. A useful bibliography provides sources for further reading.

This dictionary should be an essential part of every food allergic individual's home library. Simple, concise, and complete definitions assist in the indentifaction of possible hidden allergic ingredients. A great companion to take the supermarket for verifying source of unknown ingredients.

As a quick read with a number of interesting facts, this is a good introduction to food additives as well as nutrients. It could be construed as a dictionary but not as a reference. To be a reference, it needs a standardized format to ensure the same kind of information is provided for each item. To be a quick reference, it needs a comprehensive index. As a potential source, it also seems to lack authority when it fails to consistently cite sources and makes statements which appear subjective. I'm still looking for something of the nature of Rodale's Encyclopedia of Herbs.

I have severe food allergies, and must take great care to avoid the foods/ingredients that can trigger a severe allergic reaction. While I find this book to be of some use, it would help me more if it gave more indication what the various additives are derived from. I found one glaring error in the book, that could have been a disaster for me, if I didn't already know about it. The entry for citric acid said it is derived from citrus, or other fruit, but in this country, it is usually derived from corn. Since I have very severe reactions from ingesting corn, this error could have been very serious for me. There are many entries that don't give a clue as to what the additive is derived from. So it is of limited value to the food allergic. However, I give this book high marks for alerting people to the toxic nature of many of the additives that are put in our foods. Most people don't have a clue to what these toxins can do to their health. And this book tells what might harm them. I highly recommend this book to everyone! Even the food allergic can benefit from the advice about hazardous additives.

I bought this book as a chiropractic student to learn more about food additives. As a nutritionist it is important to learn what goes in as well as what to avoid. While researching excitotoxins in food, I found that according to Ruth Winter in her book Aspartate was considered a safe additive. Most people are aware of the dangers of Aspartame (an excitotoxin that destroys brain hypothalamus tissue, as well as becoming formaldehyde in the liver) and glutamate - but Aspartate being a non-essential amino acid has not been associated with the other exitotoxins. Well Aspartate (Aspartic acid without the H+, and 1 methyl group away from being identicle to glutamate) according to Dr. Russell Blaylock, MD in the book, "Excitotoxins - the Taste That Kills" kills neurons in the brain as well as damage muscle tissue. This particular amino acid overexcites muscle and brain tissue to the point of destruction. As was taught at a basic biochemistry class in chiropractic college - anything substance that can serve as a neurotransmitter, can become an excitotoxin because it increases the amount of neurotransmitter in the brain and periphery. Histlogic samples show marked destruction in the hypothalamus of mice (illustrated in book). If you look on Pubmed for current studies, they are there in abundance. Based on the information I retrieved from Ruth Winter's book, it appears to be in conflict with many other nutrition sources that I respect. For me to accept this book as the authority, it would need to drop the dietitian flavor, and review the literature concerning excitotoxins. As for the rest of the book and other additives, I cannot comment. I understand that many hard hours went into this book so I won't totally bad mouth it, but the only one time I needed it as a reference it failed me.

This is a good reference book to have on your shelf. It may not expound for pages and pages on every item, but it certainly gives a reasonably good yet brief definition of each entry. While I was surprised to see certain entries, such as oregano and cinnamon, I was not surprised at all to see such entries as aspartame, azo dyes, and monosodium glutamate.

The companion book "A Consumer's Dictionary of Cosmetic Ingredients" is a good complement to this book.

This book is aimed at ppl who're on the brink of understanding what toxins and allergic substances are contained within foods. After reading the reviews, I realised that you when you're severely allergic to foodstuffs, then it's not an axe to grind - it's pertinent facts you need.

And sadly, this is what the book lacks. It's more a P.R. book of why the government legally poisons our food with enhancers and food colorings - to make them more appealing...

This book is a good read for beginning information - but if you need real sources of allergies, there is abundant data freely available on the internet.

Don't listen to publicity - listen to allergy sufferers.

thanks for the information about citrus - I'm cutting that one out of my diet now. :os

I am thrilled to find this gem for my library! If you are one of those people who have an inquring mind and want a a solid source of reference on food label ingredients/additives, then you will want this book. I was also tickled to find an additional section with a chart on food storage guidelines, such as how long food keeps in the refrigerator, pantry, and freezer.