What's in a name, you say? When it comes to food additives — plenty!

In recent years a growing number of my friends and family have been discovering they have sensitivities to food and food additives. Reactions range from "I think this cordial makes my child hyper" through to "I need to carry an EpiPenA registered trademark for a commonly used adrenaline injection used to treat anaphylactic shock. because I may get an anaphylacticAn acute allergic reaction with rapid and severe onset that can lead to respiratory failure and life-threatening symptoms. response".

Originally my naive impression was that issues were probably isolated to a few individuals, because surely food standards and government regulation would prevent the use of substances that are known to be generally harmful. I know people who have been diagnosed with sensitivities to some food additives more than a decade ago, so this is not a new problem.

I expect most people may be aware of more common additives to avoid such as MSG and Sodium Benzoate, which have received a lot of media attention. The labelling on packages can be very confusing, though! Is "Monosodium L-glutamate" the same thing as "Monosodium Glutamate"? What does the "L-" mean? Is "E621 (Flavour EnhancerA natural or artificial compound used to enhance a foods existing flavour.)" safe to consume?

The introduction of standard E-numbers for food additives has been a very positive step. As more countries require E-number labelling for food packaging, consumers can make more informed choices without having to wonder if naming variations are actually referring to equivalent or different substances.

Unfortunately the E-numbers are only a first step to the complete information you need to understand a food additive and whether you should choose to consume it. I'd like to see extra information such as a description, common uses, government approvals, and the origin (animal, plant, chemical) for the additive. I'd also like to know about common adverse reactions, though understandably these may not affect everybody equally. I'd also love to discuss some of the challenges and experiences with other individuals so I can take better care of my family, friends, and personal eating habits.

Various sites and books provide some aspects of the information i'm interested in, but there is no single resource to see everything together.

Like its subject matter, the Foodditive name came about as a result of additives — in our case, two words. We wanted a simple name that would hopefully be memorable:

   Food + Additive = Foodditive

Would love to hear any feedback or suggestions on the Foodditive site or information!