Discuss one of the major issues in toxicology from any perspective.

A controversial issue of toxicology is the use of chemical additives in food.

Food additives are substances intentionally added to foods for the purpose of preserving, enhancing or modifying their physical, chemical, biological or sensory properties without impairing their nutritional value. However, it is necessary to control the use of these substances, as ingestion of these substances may pose health risks.

Additives are found in most processed foods, such as cookies, breakfast cereals, soft drinks, jellies, artificial juices, candies and a host of other foods in the diet of Brazilians, especially children.

Thus, its consumption should be controlled, as the health risk is confirmed by a sum of scientific studies. The three main ills associated with excessive consumption of these substances are cancer, food hypersensitivity and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Some audiences are even more vulnerable to consumption, such as pregnant women, the elderly, people with little food and children under three years. In the case of children the attention should be greater because the digestive and urinary systems are not yet fully prepared to process these substances.

The more industrialized the product, the more chemical additives it will have. The ideal is to prepare fresh products at home. However, as is often not possible, it is important that you read the label and choose the products with the least additives.

halogen, any of the six nonmetallic elements that constitute group 17 (group viia) of the periodic table. the halogen elements are fluorine (f), chlorine (cl), bromine (br), iodine (i), astatine (at), and tennessine (ts).