by Glen R. Taylor

Created on: July 16, 2008

This is a question that truly begs an involved discussion. Artificial ingredients (that is, chemically synthesized food additives) have been used for flavoring and other food purposes for many years, and not long after they were introduced the concerns began over whether anything "artificial" could be a proper ingredient in food. After all, natural foods came first, so we know they are good, correct? The very term "artificial" seems to indicate a substitute for whatever would be preferable. But is that the case?

In a lot of cases, that logic bears out quite well. If you want to bake an apple pie, you want to use apples, not some (hypothetical) artificial apple substitute. You know what apples taste like, and you can definitely trust an apple to meet that expectation. Likewise, many artificial flavoring agents are chosen either because they are cheaper than natural ingredients, or they hold up better to storage and shipping. They are still imperfect substitutes for the ingredients they are meant to replace.

However, the logic only goes so far. Many people take herbal supplements, for example, assuming that such "natural" medicines are safer and better for the body than synthetic medications. In truth, in many cases herbal supplements are sold with a reputation for benefits that have never been proven in empirical tests. In some cases, such as in guarana and ma-huang, these herbs may contain compounds that are dangerous or harmful to the body.

Another area of contention is between natural and artificial sweeteners. Natural sweeteners include sugar, honey, corn syrup, agave syrup, and a few others. All of these sweeteners are high in calories, though some have less impact on digestion than others. Artificial sweeteners, however, are chemically processed or synthesized to create a sweet taste, but not have the same calorie count as natural sweeteners. These come in various brand names, and the ones on the market currently are proven safe by medical studies. Their advantage is that they are not digested like sugars, and provide no nutrition (read: calories) to the body. If you need to lose weight, artificial sweeteners are safer than letting your weight get out of control.

And that doesn't even get into the complex debate over whether genetically modified crops are "natural."

Are natural ingredients always safer than artificial ones? No, you can't make that generalization. If you are putting something into your body, check it out for certain rather than simply looking for trite labels such as "natural" or "artificial."

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