List of food additives

From WikiMD's medical encyclopedia

Food additives are substances added to food to preserve flavor or enhance taste, appearance, or other sensory qualities. Some additives have been used for centuries; for example, preserving food by pickling (with vinegar), salting, as with bacon, preserving sweets or using sulfur dioxide as with wines. With the advent of processed foods in the second half of the 20th century, many more additives have been introduced, of both natural and artificial origin.

Types of Food Additives

Food additives can be divided into several groups, although there is some overlap between them.

Preservatives

Preservatives are added to food to fight spoilage caused by bacteria, molds, fungus, and yeast. Preservatives can keep food fresher for longer periods of time, extending its shelf life. Food preservatives also are used to slow or prevent changes in color, flavor or texture and delay rancidity.

Sweeteners

Sweeteners are added to foods for flavoring. Sweeteners other than sugar are added to keep the food energy (calories) low, or because they have beneficial effects for diabetes mellitus and tooth decay and diarrhea.

Color Additives

Color additives are added to food to offset color loss due to exposure to light, air, temperature extremes, moisture and storage conditions; correct natural variations in color; enhance colors that occur naturally; provide color to colorless and "fun" foods.

Flavors and Spices

Flavors and spices are added to enhance the taste of food. Spices have been used for this purpose for thousands of years.

Flavor Enhancers

Flavor enhancers augment the existing taste and aroma of a food, without providing their own separate flavor. They are used in a variety of foods.

Fat Replacers

Fat replacers (also known as fat substitutes) are substances that mimic the mouthfeel of fat but have less food energy.

List of Food Additives

The following is a list of food additives and their functions:

An additive to food intended to improve its flavor or appearance or shelf life.

Direct food additives

Most direct additives are identified on the ingredient label of foods. For a list of direct food additives, see food additives

Indirect food additives

Indirect food additives are those that become part of the food in trace amounts due to its packaging, storage or other handling. For instance, minute amounts of packaging substances may find their way into foods during storage

List of food additives


A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

0-B

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

C-F

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

G-K

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

L-S

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

S-T

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

U-Y

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z

Z


External links

WHO Rod.svg
This article is a medical stub. You can help WikiMD by expanding it!
PubMed
Wikipedia



See Also

This is a non-exhaustive food and drink related list.

Food.jpg
This article is a stub related to food. You can help WikiMD by expanding it!


Navigation: Wellness - Encyclopedia - Health topics - Disease Index‏‎ - Drugs - World Directory - Gray's Anatomy - Keto diet - Recipes

Transform your life with W8MD's budget GLP-1 injections from $125.

W8mdlogo.png
W8MD weight loss doctors team

W8MD offers a medical weight loss program to lose weight in Philadelphia. Our physician-supervised medical weight loss provides:

NYC weight loss doctor appointments

Start your NYC weight loss journey today at our NYC medical weight loss and Philadelphia medical weight loss clinics.

Linkedin_Shiny_Icon Facebook_Shiny_Icon YouTube_icon_(2011-2013) Google plus


Advertise on WikiMD

WikiMD's Wellness Encyclopedia

Let Food Be Thy Medicine
Medicine Thy Food - Hippocrates

Medical Disclaimer: WikiMD is not a substitute for professional medical advice. The information on WikiMD is provided as an information resource only, may be incorrect, outdated or misleading, and is not to be used or relied on for any diagnostic or treatment purposes. Please consult your health care provider before making any healthcare decisions or for guidance about a specific medical condition. WikiMD expressly disclaims responsibility, and shall have no liability, for any damages, loss, injury, or liability whatsoever suffered as a result of your reliance on the information contained in this site. By visiting this site you agree to the foregoing terms and conditions, which may from time to time be changed or supplemented by WikiMD. If you do not agree to the foregoing terms and conditions, you should not enter or use this site. See full disclaimer.
Credits:Most images are courtesy of Wikimedia commons, and templates, categories Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY SA or similar.

Contributors: Prab R. Tumpati, MD