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- Natural preservatives like salt or sugar can be harmful to your health when eaten in excess.
- Artificial preservatives often use synthetic chemicals that are deemed safe by the FDA.
- The bigger health issue with artificial preservatives is that they're often in unhealthy, processed foods.
- Visit Insider's Health Reference library for more advice.
Humans have been preserving food for thousands of years. But it wasn't until recently that some of those preservation methods raised concerns for our health.
Here's what you need to know about natural and artificial preservatives as it pertains to your health.
Natural preservatives can be healthy in moderation
Natural methods of preserving food include freezing, fermentation, pickling, curing, and canning. Many of these methods involve adding large amounts of sugar or salt, which helps to preserve foods but also has been linked to poor health in excessive amounts.
For example, one serving of beef jerky (about 28 grams) contains 470 milligrams (mg) of sodium – that's 20% of the maximum recommended amount of 2,300 mg per day. Frozen foods, particularly certain frozen dinners, are especially high in sodium. A Marie Callenders frozen dinner with steak, potatoes and mac and cheese contains 1190 mg of sodium – more than half of the recommended maximum intake.
While we need a certain amount of salt to function, Americans often get too much in their diet. And that's a problem because a diet high in sodium has been linked to cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, osteoporosis, and stomach cancer.
Sugar is another common additive for preserving foods like jams, jellies, and canned fruits because it generates a hostile environment for microbial growth. A single serving of jam packs 10 grams of sugar, for example.
The US Department of Health and Human Services recommends that your intake of added sugar does not exceed 10% of your total daily calories. One gram of sugar equates to about 4 calories, which means for a 2,000 calorie diet you should not consume more than 50 grams of sugar daily. A diet high in sugar has been linked to obesity, diabetes, and heart disease.
Artificial preservatives include synthetic chemicals
Artificial preservatives generally use different chemicals to keep packaged and fresh food from spoiling. These artificial preservatives are deemed safe in the amounts they are currently used. The bigger issue is that they are often associated with processed, pre-packaged foods that are generally less healthy than whole, minimally-processed foods.
Here are some of the common types of artificial preservatives:
- Potassium sorbate: When it is dissolved in water, the compound ionizes to form sorbic acid, which is useful in preventing mold and yeast growth. It's common in baked goods, fruit products, cheese, salad dressing, and mayonnaise. Potassium sorbate is considered generally safe, according to the FDA.
- BHA/BHT (Butylated Hydroxyanisole and Butylated Hydroxytoluene): Keeps fats and oils from spoiling, and is used in foods like margarine and shortening. According to the USDA's list of "Safe and Suitable Ingredients", BHT and BHA are safe to use as a preservative in meat as long as it is under .02 percent, based on the fat content of the food product.
- Parabens: Commonly used in cosmetics and makeup. "Once absorbed in the body, these chemicals circulate in the blood and can be excreted in urine and breast milk, exposing young babies who can be very susceptible to these chemicals," says Luz Claudio, professor at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. "There are concerns among scientists that exposure to these chemicals may be related to breast cancer because parabens are suspected to affect the hormonal system." Moreover, a study published in Nature Communications in 2020 found a correlation between mothers' exposure to parabens and childhood overweight development.
Insider's takeaway
Natural preservatives like sugar and salt are fine to eat - but excessive amounts have been linked to poor health outcomes. Artificial preservatives like potassium sorbate are deemed safe, but they are often used in highly-processed foods like junk food that you should only eat in moderation.