If you're a label reader, and let me tell you I sure am, you might have noticed carrageenan listed as one of the ingredients. When I first saw it listed on a Ben and Jerry's pint (yes, ice cream is OK when eaten in moderation), it brought up a couple of questions for me – What exactly is carrageenan and is it something I should avoid?
Carrageenan is actually extracted from red seaweed, and the name comes from a type of seaweed found growing on the coast of Ireland. It's used as a food additive and sometimes is referred to as kelp extract. It helps to stabilize, thicken, or emulsify dairy products, reprocessed meats (like sausages or beef jerky), dog food, toothpaste, pudding, salad dressings, and even shoe polish.
Carrageenan is a safe ingredient and should not be confused with poligeenan. This is a chemically degraded derivative of carrageenan, which is used for industrial (non-food) purposes. It was improperly named "degraded carrageenan" for a while which gave the true carrageenan a bad name. Research indicates that poligeenan creates unfavorable health effects, but food-grade carrageenan has no known toxicity or carcinogenicity, and is recognized as safe by the FDA.
So go ahead and enjoy foods made with carrageenan, especially Ben & Jerry's (in moderation of course).
Marc Jacobs
Kova And T
Nails Inc
we were just discussing carrageenan in AP bio yesterday! glad to know its safe!
1Good to know
2i've never heard of this before. good info!
3I
4Wow, never even heard of this before. Good catch, Fit!
5Thanks, Fit. Good info.
6Um, to which studies are you referring that say this is safe? Even the non-degraded type has been linked to cancer:
Results of a study published in October 2001 suggest that carrageenan may not be as safe as once thought. Findings from animal studies and a review of the scientific literature showed that degraded forms of carrageenan can cause ulcerations and cancers of the gastrointestinal tract.
But Dr. Tobacman thinks that undegraded carrageenan - the kind most widely used as a food additive - might also be associated with malignancies and other stomach problems. She suggests that such factors as bacterial action, stomach acid and food preparation may transform undegraded carrageenan into the more dangerous degraded type. Dr. Tobacman's findings were published in the October 2001 issue of Environmental Health Perspectives, a publication of the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), a branch of the National Institutes of Health.
Full article can be found here: http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/id/QAA44833
Please list your sources so we can follow up on the accuracy of claims!
7I thought everyone knew that carrageenan was derived from seaweed. So many of our current food thickeners and texture modifiers are derived from seaweed or algae. Incredible stuff.
8It's also the main ingredient in a sexual lubricant of the same name. Never used it...
9As a food scientist, I've worked with carrageenan and lots of other thickeners. They're pretty impressive, and many can be used to replace fats in some foods, providing thickness and lubricity missing in low-fat products, so that you can still enjoy it like it's a full fat food.
10Carrageenan is NOT safe!
11Undegraded carrageenan HAS been shown to cause cancer and gastric problems.
Even worse, once it hits the acid in your stomach it's converted into degraded carrageenan and poligeenan, both of which are HIGHLY carcinogenic! The result is severe inflammation and irritation of the entire digestive system. That's why it's used as a laxative on animals in research laboratories.
The few tests that were done to proclaim carrageenen as safe were intentionally constructed in such a way as to avoid these dangerous facts. Big money at work.
You don't have to take my word for it. You're already on the computer! I urge you to look it all up for yourself!
Just something else to consider: carrageenan is recognized as a possible migraine trigger. I know that my husband is horribly allergic to carrageenan and other types of algae (seaweed is a "macro-algae") and now that he really reads every single label, if he has carrageenan, he will most likely have to go to the ER for migraine treatment because it's so bad.
Just something to be aware of if you have migraines.
12Im really conflicted ive done research on many studies half of them say its safe, half say its not. In my experience as long as you make sure not to eat too much its fine. Just keep an eye out for it and dont overdo it, especially if you have pets, many pet foods have it and it should be avoided, though its really hard to find food without it, since my cat wont eat the raw stuff. Oh well
13I had to be rushed to the emergency room after eating food with carrageenan in it. Almost died. This is not a safe food -- it is poison. It is related to MSG too.
14A week ago I noticed that after eating a food with lots of Carrageenan in it, I had these weird symptoms of dry mouth and just not feeling well; a week after I ate the same food (never attributed the Carrageenan) and then got the dry mouth again, plus I couldn't breathe very well and I couldn't speak (paramedics said tongue was swollen). I think I am very allergic to Carrageenan. I had to be rushed to the ER. Might want to rethink it as being safe. I've also read it's a carcinogenic among other facts.
15you are probably allergic to it, you should get that checked out. Ive eaten carrageenan plenty of times and have felt fine. Your experience is not enough to calls omething poison
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