Page 41 - Fall2020

chest pain and weight gain as additional side when consumed along with sorbitol and fructose, led to “frank diarrhea.” 22
effects beyond the ones already mentioned. Considering the foods commonly consumed by a majority of
17
The IIBFY website also notes that the chemi- American infants and toddlers, it is likely that young children’s intake
cals used to modify the starches (in the case of of modified food starch remains high. For example, a 2004 analysis of
chemical modification) pose a health threat in infants’ and toddlers’ food consumption patterns found that nearly half
and of themselves. of infants seven to eight months old (46 percent) “consumed some type
Concerns about the health effects of modi- of dessert, sweet, or sweetened beverage,” and the percentage consuming
fied food starch are not new, particularly in baked desserts rose to 62 percent by the time the children were nineteen
relation to the very young. In a historical review to twenty-four months old. A more recent study published in Pediatrics
23
of modified starches in infant foods, published in 2014 reported that 57 percent of twelve-month-olds were consuming
in 2018, the author noted that although “added sweet foods on a weekly basis and 85 percent were consuming dairy
starch and modified starch became increas- foods other than milk. As previously noted, bakery items and low-
24
ingly important in the production of puréed quality industrial dairy-based products are among the many foods likely
fruits and vegetables” from the 1940s on—and to contain modified food starch.
were also widely incorporated into foods such
as grain-based fortified infant cereals—by the PARTNERS IN CRIME
1990s, the public and the media had begun to Maltodextrin is another starch derivative, derived from the same
scrutinize infant foods more closely. Appar- sources as modified food starch (corn, potato, tapioca, rice or wheat) and
18
ently, this resulted in pressure to cut back on the often added to the same types of packaged or processed foods, including
use of modified starches in baby foods, though frozen foods, baked goods, salad dressings, soups, sweets and sports
bodies such as the American Academy of Pe- drinks. And manufacturers add maltodextrin to these foods for similar
25
diatrics and the National Academy of Sciences purposes—to boost flavor, thickness or shelf life. In a sort of one-two
declared the starches’ use in such foods to be punch, it is not uncommon for maltodextrin to be paired with modified
completely safe. food starch in the same food. For example, a trade industry publication
19
As of the late 1990s, one dedicated group in 2005 described how modified food starch “coagglomerated with
of university researchers was still sounding maltodextrin” provides “enhanced functionality in specific applications,”
the alarm about the presence of modified food such as “enhanced dispersion characteristics in hot and cold liquids” and
starches in foods targeted at infants and young desirable properties in salad dressings, sauces and marinades. 26
children. These dissenting researchers not only Trade groups do not mention the myriad health risks with which
described the modified starches’ effects on maltodextrin has been linked. These include an increased risk of dia-
nutrient absorption, the potential for diarrheal betes; a risk of inflammatory bowel disease (due to reductions in good
symptoms and possible impacts on the gastroin- gut bacteria and increases in harmful gut bacteria); allergies, asthma
testinal flora, but also suggested that the starches and rashes; bloating and flatulence; and weight gain. When one views
25
could be implicated in Crohn’s disease and this list of potential problems alongside the unpleasant symptoms linked
might have toxic, mutagenic and carcinogenic to modified food starch, it casts a different light on the food industry’s
effects due to the chemicals used to modify the celebration of these ingredients as “downright essential for enabling
starch. 20,21 In 2001, one of the same researchers food manufacturers to provide varied and flavorful offerings to today’s
collaborated on a study showing that modified busy consumer.” 26
starch in baby foods produced loose stools and,

GMOS, GLYPHOSATE AND MODIFIED STARCH
Among the constituencies that should get credit for illuminating the risks of modified food starches are the individuals
and organizations involved in publicizing the dangers of genetically modified ingredients. Many modified starches come
from corn. With the high likelihood of corn being GMO, modified starches should, therefore, be considered a potential
GMO ingredient. Maltodextrin also commonly comes from GMO corn.
29
Because wheat is another source material for modified food starch, contamination with glyphosate (used as a dessicant
on conventional wheat crops and, sadly, also present as a contaminant in some organic wheat) is a possibility. There is
also another challenge specific to wheat-derived modified starch; individuals suffering from celiac disease—and others
who need a diet guaranteed to be gluten-free—complain that they have difficulty screening for gluten in modified starch
because lax labeling rules “do not require [that] the grain source be disclosed on ingredient labels.” 30

FALL 2020 Wise Traditions 39