Essay Example on Food labels are to an extent beneficial to consumers

Although food labels are to an extent beneficial to consumers most of the time these deceitful claims put the public's health at risk Sugar is eight times more addictive than cocaine and consuming high levels of this substance can lead to severe addiction and deadly diseases like diabetes Soechtig Olson Singbiel 2014 By placing puzzling terms such as low fat on products manufacturers trick consumers into thinking the food is healthy when in reality there is more sugar in the product than anything else Since many consumers are unaware of the grand amount of sugar that products labeled low fat actually contain they buy more of the aliment and without knowing so can slowly become addicted to sugar According to Fed Up Besides playing a part in sugar addiction and diabetes deceitful terms also contribute to the emerging obesity epidemic occurring throughout the world 2014 Most of the time food manufacturers will write significant information such as the calories and components of a product in minuscule letters By doing this it is easier for the public to be fooled into buying harmful products Not only do these terms and tricks by food manufacturers make it harder for consumers to know if what they are purchasing is healthy but it also plays a role in the obesity epidemic since many are ingesting fattening foods without knowing so As stated by Liebman 2016 alternative and perplex names for sugar such as fructose or glucose also contribute to the obesity epidemic and diseases like type 2 diabetes heart disease and LDL bad cholesterol 

This confounding terminology only causes for consumers to consume more sugar and fattening products The obesity epidemic continues to increase every day and if there is not stricter regulation by the FDA over manufactures over 95 of all Americans will be overweight or obese in two decades and by 2050 one out of every three Americans will have diabetes Soechtig Olson Singbiel 2014 Mislabeling done by food manufacturers affects both the entire population and the world since it is putting all of the individual s health at risk of chronic diseases Similarly the mislabeling of seafood has a severe negative impact on consumers especially on pregnant women Because it is so easy for seafood to get mislabeled the risk of eating fish high in mercury or other toxins is very high Cicero 2013 Mercury which is a very poisonous metal can be deadly when exposed to it In fact when in contact with an individual organism mercury stores itself in their organs and can cause organ damage In the other hand according to March of Dimes when a pregnant woman is exposed to mercury she runs the risk of her baby having brain damage and hearing and vision problems 2017 As seen exposure to mercury due to seafood mislabeling has severe effects on both adult and fetuses 

The fact that thousands of outlets sell mislabeled fish puts at risk the entire public since anyone can be exposed to mercury poisoning In addition not only does salmon have a vast amount of PCBs polychlorinated biphenyls which are deadly toxins such as lead but most of the time it is not labeled when it is artificially dyed As stated by PETA 2011 this mislabeling of its artificial coloring can cause retinal damage and the grand amount of PCBs it contains can contribute to cancer infertility and other sexual problems Consuming mislabeled fish can lead to a variety of illnesses some of which can leave permanent consequences or even lead to death By the same token mislabeling in the beef industry can severely harm those purchasing meat With the goal of seeming healthy meat is sometimes coined as having no nitrates Nitrates are food additives added to cured meats in order to enhance and preserve their physical state which converts into nitrites and can form nitrosamines compounds known as being carcinogenic 

Although the USDA has jurisdiction over the meat industry the FDA is in charge of regulating the labeling of food additives Even though some meats are labeled as containing no nitrates according to Consumer reports 2012 the term simply means there are no synthetic nitrates But natural nitrates using the same curing chemistry can be used These confusing terms found on cured meat cause the public to assume that there are absolutely no nitrates in the beef and that it is healthier This term can harm consumers since sodium nitrates and nitrites can form nitrosamines which cause cancer in lab animals Consumer reports 2012 This ambiguous term does not allow for consumers to know what they are actually ingesting and know the potential risks that can occur from consuming the product According to Consumer reports because beef is commonly mislabeled with such vague terms anyone can run the risk of getting cancer or lung disease or damage d lung tissue 2012 The consequences that can arise from such unclear terminology can be long lasting and even deadly