Banned Foods That the U.S. Still Allows

Brominated Vegetable Oil

Brominated vegetable oil (BVO) is a synthetic chemical food additive commonly used to keep citrus soft drinks from separating. Medical cases have shown that, when drunk in a high amount, BVO can build up and cause toxic effects like headaches, fatigue, memory loss and loss of muscle coordination.

Mountain Dew: Ever wonder what gives Mountain Dew its cloudy appearance? That's the BVO keeping citrus oil from separating and floating to the top.

• Replace with: Clear citrus sodas like Lime Bubly or Sprite.

AMP Energy Drink: AMP Energy Drink is another PepsiCo product that has yet to remove BVO from its ingredients. Luckily, if you're an AMP loyalist, they created an additional BVO-free version.

• Replace with: AMP Organic Energy

Sun Drop: The citrus soda from the Dr Pepper Snapple Group is another soft drink that still contains BVO. You can avoid BVO and reduce your sugar intake by opting for a lime flavored sparkling water.

• Replace with: Lime Sparkling Water

Artificial Colors

Synthetic colors can be found in more than just colorful candies. From savory pizza sauces to popular sweets, they are abundant in common grocery store products. Due to links to hyperactivity and inattention in children, synthetic colors are banned in the European Union.

Vanilla Frosting: You may have suspected it from colorful frostings, but most common vanilla frostings use one or more artificial dyes to achieve a white color, too.

• Replace with: Dye-free frosting is easy to make at home. All you need is a hand mixer, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, milk and butter. Several brands also offer dye-free frosting kits.

Potato and Waffle Chips:: Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but your favorite Cool Ranch Doritos chips contain not one but three banned artificial colors. This is not uncommon for the majority of popular chips.

• Replace with: Doritos Simply Organic Chips, Cape Cod Waffle Cut Sea Salt Chips

M&M's: This popular candy uses Blue 1, Blue 2, Red 40, Yellow 5 and Yellow 6 to create its classic colors.

• Replace with: Unreal Milk Chocolate Gems

RBGH and RBST

Recombinant Growth Hormone and Recombinant Bovine Somatotropin are genetically engineered growth hormones given to dairy cows to increase milk production. Several countries have banned the use of rBGH and rBST due to found risks to animal health. Studies are ongoing as to whether the increased presence of IGF-1 in milk from rBGH treated cows presents an increased risk for colon, pancreas, breast and prostate cancer in humans.

Haagen Dazs Ice Cream: While Haagen Dazs doesn't source milk or cream from cows treated with rBST, they state that the suppliers of “other ingredients” in their ice cream cannot guarantee it comes from cows not treated with rBST.

• Replace with: Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream

Philadelphia Cream Cheese: Owner Kraft Heinz stated that they use milk from both cows treated and not treated with rBST, and that all rBST-free products are clearly labeled.

• Replace with: Whole Foods 365 Organic Cream Cheese (or any organic cream cheese)

Land O'Lakes Butter: Land O'Lakes is one of the few remaining companies whose products are made with milk from cows treated with rBGH.

• Replace with: Organic Valley Salted Butter

Potassium Bromate

Potassium Bromate and Potassium Iodate are used as flour additives that allows dough to rise higher. Potassium Bromate has been linked to cancer in the kidneys, thyroid, and other areas of test rats and mice, while Potassium Iodate has been linked to thyroid related diseases.

General Mills Gold Medal Full-Strength Flour: Often sold in bulk sizes to restaurants, this flour is labeled as bleached, bromated and enriched.

• Replace with: King Arthur All-Purpose Flour

Great Value Hamburger Buns: Walmart brand Great Value bread products are created using Potassium Iodate.

• Replace with: Rudi's Organic 100% Wheat Hamburger Buns

Sara Lee Cinnamon Raisin Bagels: Several popular Sara Lee flavored bagels like cinnamon raisin, onion and blueberry are made using Potassium Iodate.

• Replace with: Dave's Killer Bread Cinnamon Raisin Remix Organic Bagels

BHA and BHT

Butylated Hydroxyanisole (BHA) and Butylated Hydroxytoluene (BHT) are food preservatives used to prevent oils from oxidizing. BHA is known to cause cancer in rats and is “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen.” Both BHA and BHT have been linked to impaired blood clotting and promoted tumor growth.

Froot Loops: In addition to artificial colors, Froot Loops contains BHT to preserve freshness.

• Replace with: Nature's Path Whole O's™ Cereal

Frosted Flakes: Frosted Flakes taste gr-r-eat, but are one of the many cereals using BHT to preserve freshness.

• Replace with: 365 Organic Bran Flakes

Cinnamon Toast Crunch: Cinnamon Toast Crunch is another popular cereal that uses BHT to preserve freshness.

• Replace with: Annie's Organic Cinnabunnies Cereal

As consumers become more and more health conscious, major brands are removing these FDA-approved ingredients from their U.S. products. The next time you go shopping, be sure to read ingredient labels carefully to see if your favorite brands are participating in this movement. When possible, opt for organic products to avoid foods treated with hormones, artificial colors, preservatives and other ingredients banned around the world. And since you'll be filling your home with many new, healthy ingredients, you may find your kitchen needs a little rework. Our ready-to-assemble kitchen cabinets make updating your kitchen easy, so you have one less thing to worry about!