Common food preservatives may increase cancer, diabetes risk: Studies
Heads up if you snack on a lot of packaged foods—new studies just found that some common preservatives are associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes and certain cancers.
Researchers tracked over 100,000 people in France for more than a decade and noticed higher health risks tied to these additives.
The findings are sparking fresh calls for tougher rules on what goes into our food.
Which preservatives are the worry?
Potassium sorbate (used to keep things like bread and cheese mold-free) was linked to a higher risk of overall cancer—especially breast cancer.
Sodium nitrite, often found in cured meats, showed a connection with increased prostate cancer risk.
Plus, folks who ate more foods with these kinds of preservatives had nearly 50% higher odds of developing type 2 diabetes.
This lines up with earlier research hinting we should be careful about eating too many processed foods loaded with additives.