{"id":35852,"date":"2015-01-07T07:15:26","date_gmt":"2015-01-07T12:15:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/?p=35852"},"modified":"2016-07-14T16:07:08","modified_gmt":"2016-07-14T20:07:08","slug":"what-are-natural-flavors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/health\/what-are-natural-flavors\/","title":{"rendered":"What Are Natural Flavors, Really?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"What
Photo: Pond5<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Look at the food label<\/a> of almost any packaged good you consume and odds are you\u2019ll spot the term “natural flavors.” But have you ever wondered what this mysterious additive actually contains? The answer isn\u2019t as clear as you might think.<\/p>\n

Though natural flavors may sound better than their presumably chemical-laden alternative \u2014 artificial flavors \u2014 it turns out they are not actually all that different from one another.<\/p>\n

We got to the bottom of the difference between artificial and natural flavoring \u2014\u00a0and what it might mean for your health.<\/p>\n

Why Natural Flavors Are Everywhere in Your Food<\/strong><\/h3>\n

In the Food Scores<\/a> database of over 80,000 foods created by the Environmental Working Group, \u201cnatural flavor\u201d is the fourth most common ingredient listed on labels. The only ingredients that outrank it: salt<\/a>, water and sugar. Yet, natural flavoring isn\u2019t nearly as simple as these three pantry staples.<\/p>\n

Added flavoring, both natural and artificial, could\u00a0contain anywhere from 50 to 100 ingredients.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

RELATED:<\/strong> Is Sugar Worse Than Salt When It Comes to Your Heart?<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cNatural and artificial flavors play an interesting role in food. They\u2019re essentially providing the taste and often they\u2019re added to make the food more appealing, or to potentially replace something that\u2019s lost through processing, storage or in some cases even from pasteurizing,\u201d says David Andrews, Ph.D., senior scientist at the Environmental Working Group.<\/p>\n

One place you\u2019ll often spot natural or artificial flavor is in orange juice<\/a> \u2014 manufacturers will add faux flavor to juice after it\u2019s packaged in the plant, to ensure uniformity. \u201cIt\u2019s to make sure that you have the exact same tasting food products across the country, any time of year,\u201d Andrews says. \u201cIt\u2019s become the signature of a lot of these products.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"What
Photo: Pond5<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Blurred Lines: Artificial vs. Natural Flavors<\/strong><\/h3>\n

So what distinguishes an artificial flavor from a \u201cnatural\u201d flavor? Not much, according to Andrews. \u201cThe largest difference is that natural flavors are coming from natural sources \u2014 the original ingredient is found in nature and then purified and extracted and added back<\/a> into the food.\u201d<\/p>\n

Artificial and natural add-ins might trick you into expecting flavors out of your foods that don\u2019t exist in real life.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

But, that doesn\u2019t necessarily mean the \u201cnatural flavors\u201d in your blueberry granola bar are simply\u2026crushed-up blueberries. Rather, they probably consist of a chemical originally found in blueberries, enhanced and added into your food in a lab.<\/p>\n

RELATED:<\/strong> 9 Healthy Homemade Energy Bar Recipes<\/a><\/p>\n

Artificial flavors, on the other hand, are usually entirely man-made, as opposed to being derived from a natural source. If the distinction seems fuzzy to you, you\u2019re not alone. \u201cThe differentiation is really down to the origin of those molecules, whether synthetically processed in a lab or purified in a lab but from a natural source,\u201d Andrews says.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s where it gets even muddier: Added flavoring, both natural and artificial,\u00a0could\u00a0contain anywhere from 50 to 100 ingredients. And all of the extra ingredients in flavors often aren\u2019t as innocent as you\u2019d hope they would be. \u201cThe mixture will often have some solvent and preservatives \u2014\u00a0and that makes up 80 to 90 percent of the volume [of the flavoring]. In the end product, it\u2019s a small amount, but it still has artificial ingredients,\u201d Andrews says.<\/p>\n

RELATED:<\/strong> Should You Go Non-GMO? Here\u2019s What You Need to Know<\/a><\/p>\n

Ultimately, the difference between natural and artificial flavors often comes down to miniscule distinctions. \u201cMost often, as far as I could find, the actual chemicals themselves could be identical or extremely close in terms of natural versus artificial,\u201d Andrews says.<\/p>\n

Could Natural Flavors Harm Your Health?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The amount of preservatives and solvents in natural flavors is too small to be linked to any ill health effects, Andrews notes. But, it still creates confusion, and may be leading consumers astray. \u201cThere\u2019s the general fact of transparency, it\u2019s hard to know what\u2019s in these ingredient mixtures,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

For example, artificial and natural add-ins might trick you into expecting flavors out of your foods that don\u2019t exist in real life. \u201cThe goal is to make a short intense flavor that quickly dissipates so you come back for more,\u201d Andrews says.<\/p>\n

Vandana Sheth, RDN, CDE, and spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics believes artificial or natural flavors may induce food cravings in some people. \u201cAs a consumer, it is important to be savvy about ingredients. Recognize that any food consumed in excess of your needs is going to affect your weight loss journey,\u201d Sheth notes. Numerous studies have linked artificial sweeteners<\/a>, which have the same super-sized effect on flavor, to weight gain and unhealthy dietary habits, too.<\/p>\n

RELATED:<\/strong> The 30-Second Trick That Might Stop Your Food Cravings<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cOne concern we have is the ability to make things more appealing than they may necessarily be,\u201d Andrews says. \u201cYou can make [foods that aren\u2019t as healthy] more appealing or even taste as if they\u2019re extremely fresh when they may not be.\u201d<\/p>\n

While you don\u2019t need to swear off natural or artificial flavors for life, Andrews advises sticking to a diet of whole foods<\/a> when you can. Because you can be sure the flavors in an actual <\/em>apple didn\u2019t originate in a lab.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Most packaged foods are bound to include artificial or natural flavors. Yet, the difference between these two additives isn’t as clear as you’d expect. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":53,"featured_media":35858,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,7],"tags":[51,71,341,352],"class_list":["post-35852","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-diet-nutrition","category-health","tag-food-choices","tag-nutrition","tag-tax1living-well","tag-tax2weight-loss"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35852","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/53"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35852"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35852\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/35858"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35852"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35852"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35852"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}