Urgent warning as sweets and soda laced with chemicals linked to cancer, memory loss ‘flood UK shops’
Popular American sweets and drinks containing ingredients that could raise the risk of cancer and heart problems are ‘flooding the UK’, experts have warned.
Several imported fizzy drinks and sweets from America contain banned and illegal ingredients in the UK, according to an investigation by consumer protection body, the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI).
This finding has prompted Manchester City Council’s Environmental Health team to issue an updated warning urging the public to not buy certain products.
Products in the warning include; Jolly Rancher Hard Candy, Fanta Pineapple, Mtn Dew, Swedish Fish, Prime Hydration, Cheetos Crunchy and Twizzlers Strawberry Twists and Rainbow Twists, Manchester Evening News reported.
Experts warned that those buying the products listed should check the list of ingredients on the pack to make sure the product is safe to consume.
Some of the potentially harmful and illegal substances include brominated vegetable oil, known as BVO, which is found in the popular fizzy drink Mountain Dew, Red Dye 3, widely used to add colour to jelly beans and preserved cherries, and white mineral oil, which is used to make popular sweets, Swedish Fish.
The Manchester warning reads: ‘The Chartered Trading Standards Institute has issued a warning that imported sweets and fizzy drinks with known links to hyperactivity and cancer have flooded the UK.
‘Here in Manchester we’re taking this very seriously, and the Council’s Environmental Health team are seizing illegal products from local shops. We’re also urging you not to buy these products for children.
Manchester City Council’s Environmental Health team warned that anyone buying the products listed should check the list of ingredients on the pack to check if the product is safe to consume
The warring follows an initial alert in December by CTSI after an audit saw them identify 4,000 potentially harmful items worth £8,500 confiscated in Staffordshire alone (pictured)
‘We’re working hard to protect consumers by removing these products from local shops and educating shopkeepers about the dangers. If you see a product with one of the banned ingredients, please report it to [email protected].’
The alert highlights that some of the imported sweets and drinks are banned in the UK because they have been linked to hyperactivity, behavioural problems, cancer, kidney damage and heart problems.
Some ingredients have also been found to make insulin response less effective, cause nutrient deficiencies, headaches, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, loss of appetite and stomach cramps.
It follows an initial alert in December by CTSI after an audit saw them identify 4,000 potentially harmful items worth £8,500 confiscated in Staffordshire alone.
The CTSI investigation discovered widespread sale of crisps containing the additive ‘Yellow 6’ — a synthetic food dye restricted in Britain.
In the UK, products containing this substance, also called ‘sunset yellow’ or ‘E110’, must carry a disclaimer stating the products can cause hyperactivity in children.
Another concerning chemical found was the preservative EDTA, which is found in the US version of Mountain Dew, but banned entirely in fizzy drinks in the UK.
Also called calcium disodium, studies of this compound have revealed links to fertility problems as well as the development of colon cancers.
Products in the warning include; Jolly Rancher Hard Candy, Fanta Pineapple, Mtn Dew, Swedish Fish, Prime Hydration, Cheetos Crunchy and Twizzlers Strawberry Twists and Rainbow Twists
The recent warning from Manchester City Council highlights ingredients such as brominated vegetable oil (BVO), E127, erythrosine (shown on US products as Red Dye 3), mineral oil — which combines with other compounds to form cancer-causing substances — and bleached flour.
The Food and Drug Administration in the US banned BVO last year over its link to a slew of health issues, and outlawed Red Dye 3 last month, due to its potential cancer risks.
BVO is already banned Japan, India, the European Union as well as the UK.
BVO, which was previously used in Mountain Dew products sold in the US, is used in small amounts to prevent flavors from separating and floating to the top, mainly gives citrusy sodas their bright colors and smooth texture.
The bulk of health concerns surrounding BVO stem from the presence of bromine. Unlike some other additives, it is not designated a carcinogen.
However, BVO has been linked to headaches, memory loss, impaired balance and thyroid problems.
Additionally, inhaling bromine itself can irritate the nose, throat, and lungs, as well as the mucous membranes that line the inside of the mouth, throat, stomach, and lungs.
In July last year this website revealed sweets sold in these shops contained unauthrorised additives and found brands including Swedish Fish and Lemonheads, contained illegal ingredients
Some other additives included in the warning can cause hyperactivity and behavioural problems in children.
This includes Sunset yellow FCF (E110), Quinoline yellow (E104), Carmoisine (E122), Allura red (E129), Ponceau 4R (E124).
All food additives have an E number, which means the ingredient has passed safety tests and are approved for use in the EU.
But research funded by the FSA revealed these six food colours are closely linked to hyperactivity in children.
While these food colourings are not banned outright in the UK, food items that contain these ingredients must include a warning label that detail the risks associated with the dyes.
The mandatory warning should read: ‘May have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children’, according to the FSA.
The NHS advises that if your child is overactive and struggles to concentrate, cutting down on these colours in their diet may help.
MailOnline has also previously revealed that the same banned ingredients were found in American sweet sold in newsagents, souvenir shops and specialty American sweet shops across central London.
In July last year this website revealed sweets sold in these shops contained unorthrorised additives and found brands including Swedish Fish and Lemonheads, contained illegal ingredients.
The Food standard Agency (FSA) admitted there is a ‘problem’ with businesses selling imported American sweets and advises people to ‘avoid buying’ these types of sweets.
Adam Hardgrave, Head of Additives at the FSA previously told MailOnline: ‘We know there is a problem with businesses selling imported American-style confectionery and are working with Trading Standards to address concerns around the food safety risk of allergens not displayed on labels as well as some of these products containing additives not authorised for sale in the UK.
‘You should avoid buying these types of products if they look slightly different from your regular brands, state the weight in non-UK measurements or if they have ingredients listed using American terms.
‘Please get in touch with your Trading Standards if you see these products on sale.
‘If the FSA identifies a food safety risk with these products, we will take action to remove them from sale and inform consumers through our alerts service which can be signed up to at food.gov.uk.’
