Food Additives Banned Elsewhere, Legal Here...

DETROIT (WWJ) - They sound like things that belong in a chemistry lab, but they're ingredients you can probably find in your pantry right now.

A new book called "Rich Food, Poor Food" identifies several common additives found in foods like cereal, sports drinks and poultry, but are banned by Canada and several European nations.

Doctor Michael Harbut, with Karmanos Cancer Institute, says those countries take a very different approach to food safety.  He said the U.S. falls behind other countries in regulating these additives.

"What we do is we take the chemical company's word for it and allow them to put additives and do modifications to our foods, and then ask someone to prove to us that it's dangerous," Harbut said.

"We are only now making up a list of chemicals which are known as endocrine disruptors —meaning the body recognized them as hormones," he said.  "We're not regulating them. We're just making up a list of what chemicals should be looked at. This is outrageous!"

See a list of some of these banned additives HERE.