What Food Additives Should I Avoid the Most?

What Food Additives Should I Avoid the Most?

Updated April 2026

If you've ever flipped over a food package and felt overwhelmed by an ingredient list that reads like a chemistry textbook, you're not alone. The modern food supply contains hundreds of additives—preservatives, emulsifiers, artificial colors, flavor enhancers, and more. Most people have no idea what the majority of them are, let alone which ones are worth worrying about.

This guide cuts through the noise. We cover the food additives with the strongest evidence of concern, explain what the science actually says, and show you how to spot them on labels—and how the Trash Panda app can do it for you instantly.

Key Takeaways

  • Not all additives are made the same, some are potentially harmful, some are questionable and some are no cause for concern.
  • The most important additives to avoid are food dyes, high fructose corn syrup, sodium nitrate, BHA and BHT and sodium benzoate.
  • The easiest way to spot and avoid the most harmful food additives is to scan your products with the Trash Panda ingredient scanner app to get instant results.

Why Food Additives Are Used

Food additives exist for a reason. They’re used to:

  • Preserve shelf life by preventing spoilage from bacteria, mold, and oxidation
  • Make food look more appealing or replace color lost during processing
  • Amplify or create taste
  • Improve mouthfeel, consistency, and stability
  • Prevent ingredients from separating
  • Help baked goods rise and keep their structure

Many additives are harmless or even beneficial. The concern is with a specific subset—those where independent research has raised meaningful questions about safety that regulators have been slow to act on.

The Food Additives You Should Avoid the Most

1. Artificial Food Dyes (Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, and the Southampton Six)

What they are: Synthetic, petroleum-derived color additives used to make food look more vibrant. The most commonly consumed are Red 40 (Allura Red), Yellow 5 (Tartrazine), and Yellow 6 (Sunset Yellow)—part of a group often called the Southampton Six.

Where you'll find them: Candy, breakfast cereals, fruit-flavored snacks, sports drinks, flavored chips, certain yogurts, maraschino cherries, baked goods, flavored medications, and thousands of other processed products.

Why you should avoid them: A landmark 2007 study in The Lancet (the "McCann study") found that mixtures of artificial food dyes plus sodium benzoate significantly increased hyperactivity in children, both with and without ADHD. In response, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) required warning labels on products containing the Southampton Six:

"May have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children."

The U.S. took no equivalent action. Yet in the EU, major brands quietly reformulated products to avoid these dyes—while continuing to use them in U.S. versions.

Red 40 also contains trace amounts of benzidine, a known human carcinogen. Red 3 (Erythrosine) was finally banned by the FDA from food and ingested drugs in January 2025—35 years after it was banned from cosmetics—due to evidence it caused thyroid tumors in animal studies. California banned six artificial dyes from public school foods starting in 2028; West Virginia followed in 2025.

How to spot them on labels:

  • "Red 40," "Red 40 Lake"
  • "Yellow 5," "Yellow 5 Lake"
  • "Yellow 6," "Yellow 6 Lake"
  • "Blue 1," "Blue 1 Lake"
  • "Red 3"

How Trash Panda helps: Scan any product barcode with the Trash Panda food scanner app and it will instantly flag every artificial dye in the ingredient list and suggest cleaner alternatives—before you put the product in your cart.

2. High-Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS)

What it is: HFCS is a liquid sweetener derived from corn starch, processed to convert some of its glucose into fructose. Common forms include HFCS-55 (used in soft drinks) and HFCS-42 (used in baked goods and cereals).

Where you'll find it: Sodas, fruit-flavored drinks, bread, breakfast cereals, flavored yogurts, condiments (ketchup, barbecue sauce, salad dressings), canned soups, and many "diet" or "reduced fat" products.

Why you should avoid it: Fructose is processed almost entirely in the liver. In high amounts—typical of a processed-food-heavy diet—it can contribute to:

  • Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)
  • Insulin resistance and increased risk of type 2 diabetes
  • Elevated triglycerides linked to heart disease
  • Increased uric acid levels linked to gout
  • Disrupted hunger signaling and easier overconsumption

How to spot it on labels:

  • "High fructose corn syrup"
  • "HFCS"
  • Sometimes just "corn syrup" in U.S. products

How the Trash Panda app helps: Trash Panda flags HFCS and other added sugars when you scan a product, helping you quickly identify where sweeteners are hiding under different names.

3. Sodium Nitrite

What they are: Preservatives and color fixatives used primarily in cured and processed meats. Sodium nitrite (NaNO₂) is the active compound; sodium nitrate (NaNO₃) converts to nitrite in the body.

Where you'll find them: Bacon, hot dogs, deli meats (ham, salami, bologna, pepperoni), sausages, smoked fish, and some canned meats.

Why you should avoid them: When nitrites react with amino acids in meat during cooking—especially at high temperatures—they can form nitrosamines, compounds classified as probable human carcinogens by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).

IARC has classified processed meat as a Group 1 carcinogen (sufficient evidence it causes cancer in humans), with colorectal cancer the primary concern. The World Health Organization estimates that eating 50 grams of processed meat per day—about two slices of bacon—increases colorectal cancer risk by roughly 18%.

How to spot them on labels:

  • "Sodium nitrite"
  • "Sodium nitrate"
  • "Potassium nitrate"
  • Look for phrases like "cured with" or "preserved with" followed by these names

How the Trash Panda app helps: When you scan deli meats or packaged bacon, Trash Panda identifies sodium nitrite immediately and provides context about the ingredient so you can make an informed decision.

4. BHA and BHT (Butylated Hydroxyanisole and Butylated Hydroxytoluene)

What they are: Synthetic antioxidants used as preservatives to prevent fats and oils from going rancid. They’re chemically similar and often used together.

Where you'll find them: Potato chips, crackers, cereals, chewing gum, vegetable oils, butter substitutes, instant mashed potatoes, beer, and some food packaging materials (from which they can migrate into food).

Why you should avoid them:

  • BHA is classified as a possible human carcinogen (Group 2B) by IARC, based on animal studies showing tumors in the forestomach of rodents.
  • The U.S. National Toxicology Program lists BHA as "reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen."
  • BHT has shown mixed results—some studies suggest it may promote tumor growth under certain conditions.

Both remain on the FDA’s GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe) list. The EU allows them at lower levels than the U.S. and has proposed phasing out BHA from food. Japan has banned BHA from food entirely.

How to spot them on labels:

  • "BHA" (butylated hydroxyanisole)
  • "BHT" (butylated hydroxytoluene)

How the Trash Panda food scanner helps: BHA and BHT often appear at the very end of long ingredient lists in tiny print. Trash Panda surfaces them instantly when you scan a product.

5. Sodium Benzoate

What it is: A preservative (the sodium salt of benzoic acid) used to inhibit mold, yeast, and bacteria in acidic foods and drinks.

Where you'll find it: Sodas, fruit juices, salad dressings, pickles, jams and jellies, condiments, soy sauce, and many carbonated beverages.

Why you should avoid it:

  1. Benzene formation: When sodium benzoate is combined with ascorbic acid (vitamin C)—common in fruit drinks and sodas—a reaction can form benzene, a known human carcinogen. The FDA monitors benzene levels in beverages, but consumer advocates argue oversight is limited.
  2. Behavioral effects in children: Sodium benzoate was one of the compounds in the 2007 McCann study that found increased hyperactivity in children. Many products contain both sodium benzoate and artificial dyes, potentially compounding behavioral effects.

How to spot it on labels:

  • "Sodium benzoate"
  • "Benzoate of soda"
  • "E211" on some imported products

How the Trash Panda app helps: Trash Panda flags sodium benzoate and allows you to spot it before consuming the additive.

What to Remember About Additives

Additives are not all made equal. Some are more harmful than others and are more important to avoid. The Trash Panda app rates the different additives as either potentially harmful, questionable, or as an added sugar that way you know instantly which ones to avoid.

There is mounting evidence against certain additives and the Trash Panda food scanner helps you learn more about why these additives are being flagged. Thus, allowing you to feel empowered in the decisions your making when shopping.

Trash Panda is the best food scanner app for informing you about what additives you should be avoiding and easily finding healthier swaps for those products.