I‘m often asked is Carrageenan safe. The answer is… it depends on where it comes from. For me, personally I struggle to reconcile that a naturally occurring seaweed could cause the issues that this one has been accused of. Maybe, just maybe this is another instance of blaming the natural when the unnatural is at the root of it. Is it the processing? Chemicals used and/or added? Or a host of other things. As an example, some people are sensitive to wheat, yet don’t react to gluten tests. They have the symptoms… but not the expected outcome. Then some try dropping white flour and switch to organic whole grains and the issue goes away. Coincidence? I think not. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to embrace this little seaweed unless I know it is coming from some place safe.
Here is doTERRA’s info on it:
doTERRA International Press Release Carrageenan March 2014
It has come to our attention that there are concerns with the ingredient “carrageenan” that is used in our vegetarian softgels. At dōTERRA, your health is very important to us and we would never use an ingredient that wasn’t thoroughly researched and known to be safe.
Carrageenan is a natural fiber extracted from seaweed and is used as a thickening agent in our vegetarian softgels. Seaweed and seaweed fiber are used safely and extensively throughout the world and have well-established safety records supported by numerous clinical studies. Carrageenan is GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) and is approved for use by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the U.S., by the European Parliament and Council, by the Joint World Health Organization, and by the Food and Agriculture Organization Expert Committee on Food Additives.
dōTERRA only uses long chain carrageenan molecules—which have been shown to be safe—in our products. Carrageenan is simply a type of fiber that is not digested or absorbed by the intestinal tract. It is therefore unable to enter the blood stream by ingestion.
We thank you for your concerns and hope you will use our softgel products with confidence, knowing that they are safe for your body. For additional questions regarding carrageenan, please contact productsupport@doterra.com.
So for me… I’m comfortable recommending doTERRA’s products that have Carrageenan in them. But that doesn’t mean that I’m comfortable with it elsewhere.
PS: in one bowl of ice cream you’ll get more carrageenan than in a lifetime of taking our
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