| Ingredients That Add Heavy Metals to Your Body |
During this module of instruction, you will learn to identify the most common food ingredients that contain allowable heavy metals such as lead, mercury or arsenic. The more you eat these ingredients, the more likely you are to suffer from the toxic effects of heavy metal exposures.
Scientists have determined that the level of heavy metals in your bloodstream match the level of heavy metals in the foods you eat.
Some people have higher levels of heavy metals in their blood and these metals may impact their behavior or health. Children with autism or ADHD commonly have higher heavy metal levels in their blood and can improve their behavior if they avoid eating foods with these ingredients. People with Type-2 diabetes have higher inorganic mercury levels in their blood and can reverse their diabetes by NOT eating processed foods and instead adopting a healthy diet of whole foods.
Learning Objectives
Teens will
1. Recognize the food ingredients that contain allowable heavy metals.
2. Describe how heavy metals may be introduced to food ingredients (e.g. vegetable oils, corn sweeteners, food colors).
3. Explain how exposure to certain heavy metals may lead to changes in zinc status.
4. Become familiar with recipes for preparing zinc rich meals.
5. Prepare a zinc rich meal.
Activities
1. Read Chapter 4 of your Unsafe At Any Meal book.
2. Using all of the tables in Chapter 4, survey your kitchen cupboards and refrigerator to find and write a list of the food products that may contain ingredients with at least one heavy metal. You will need to read the ingredient label on each food product you see. For example, the food ingredient label below contains two ingredients with allowable or known heavy metal concentrations:
INGREDIENTS: Premium brewed green tea, high fructose corn syrup, honey, citric acid, natural flavors, ginseng extract, vit C.
3. Do a keyword search on the Internet to find foods high in zinc. Make a list. Find or create a recipe that incorporates two or more of the food ingredients on your list. Share the recipe with your mom or dad and ask them for help in buying the ingredients. Once you have the ingredients, follow the recipe, prepare and eat the meal with your family.
4. Answer the discussion questions below and talk about them with your friend or study group.
Discussion Questions
1. What evidence is there to suggest that consumption of highly processed food contributes to your heavy metal exposure? (Hint: Did the book discuss any human studies that have been conducted to determine the harm certain ingredients cause?)
2. How does heavy metal exposure impact MT gene function and your body's zinc status? From your survey findings, which food ingredients can you eliminate from your diet to improve your zinc status?
3. Share with your friend or study group the recipe you followed when you prepared your zinc rich meal. Which ingredients were high in zinc? How did the meal turn out?
Click on the link below to visit the Reasons for Hope page of this tutorial.
[Reasons for Hope]
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