Current Availability and Consumption of Carrageenan-Containing Foods

Abstract

Carrageenans appear on the FDA's GRAS list for food additives, however reports of adverse gastrointestinal and immunological consequences related to the consumption of food products containing carrageenan have been increasing. The goals of this study were to obtain current information on food industry use of carrageenans, the variety of foods into which they are incorporated, and estimate the level of human intake of carrageenans from these food products. Supermarkets, health food stores, and food manufacturers were surveyed to identify carrageenan-containing foods for the purpose of surveying consumers about their use of these products. One hundred ninety-eight carrageenan-containing food products were identified. A questionnaire was developed and used to collect demographic and food frequency data. These data when analyzed by demographic grouping revealed that the over 30-year-old, college-educated, female subject with normal to low body mass indices embodies the consumers most likely to have a high carrageenan intake.