Laughs
Ski boots off, hang up the jacket, and heat the oven to 400 degrees. A staple in every ski bum’s kitchen, a frozen pizza is the answer to any dinner dilemma. But something so good has to come at a cost.
In a breakdown of DiGiorno’s Rising Crust Sausage and Pepperoni Pizza, 1/3 of the 45 separate ingredients are practically unrecognizable. These mystery additives are used to preserve and enhance the food, but some can cause damage to your body.
From pancreas destroying chemical byproducts, to potentially carcinogenic preservatives, this frozen pizza has it all. Chances are, Butylated Hydroxyanisole (BHA) probably doesn’t come fresh off the vine.
But what’s a skier to do?? While the ingredients are sometimes frightening, its hard to say no. BHA is considered safe in small doses, but studies say it it is “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen”.
According to the FDA, BHA is categorized as GRAS/FS.
[GRAS/FS] substances are generally recognized as safe in foods but limited in standardized foods where the standard provides for its use.
Luckily, unless you eat a DiGiorno pizza to yourself every night, you will probably live to ski another day. We’ve all been 2,000 calories deep after a powder day, but these additives are ones to be wary of. Whether it is used to keep the meat from turning grey, or increase the shelf life… if you can’t pronounce it, you probably shouldn’t eat it.
