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So my wife has a chemistry degree and we have talked at length about how there are many molecules used in food that are identical regardless of how they are der
by swivelmaster 5y ago
So my wife has a chemistry degree and we have talked at length about how there are many molecules used in food that are identical regardless of how they are derived (“natural” vs synthetic), noting specifically that the naturally derived versions are often less pure / more likely to contain unwanted byproducts because (obviously) they are not the sole molecule in the food from which they are derived.
The fetishistic obsession with naturally derived flavors and additives is mostly blindly dogmatic and ignores the science.
- lazide 5y agoYes, but….. industrial chemicals also have contaminants that are different, potential chirality issues, and quality control problems that are different than ‘natural’ products (scare quotes because most are still industrially processed). As any chemist will tell you, no process has 100% yield with zero dangerous side products, let alone 100% of the time. Real processes have mistakes that make it past QA, let alone scams and other issues. Is the concern generally overblown? Yes. But it isn’t completely unrealistic either.
- Dylan16807 5y agoThe quality control and contamination problems are different, yes. That doesn't mean you can tell which one is better without extensive testing. Being made from dirt in a random field is not great for purity.
- lazide 5y agoIt isn’t, but (minus industrial contamination, pesticides, etc) it’s also something humans have dealt with for millennia.
- tptacek 5y agoPeople have been getting cancer from natural foods for millennia.
- lazide 5y agoAlso dying from plagues, getting crazy parasites, etc. I'm not saying it's an informed decision, I'm saying it's a conservative one, with relatively well known problems and risks (minus the relatively modern industrial contamination and pesticide problems, which make it mostly moot IMO).
- Finnucane 5y agoOn the other hand, in some cases, such as vanilla, the secondary molecules in the natural ingredient are seen as desirable.
- smegsicle 5y agoand for some reason, these nearby molecules often counteract negative effects associated with the desired molecule- naturally occurring sugar is nary found far from fiber, and ascorbic acid has even been suggested to reduce the toxicity of sodium nitrite, though there's probably not much vitamin C left in the powdered celery..