Controversy
In the 1970s, Dr. Benjamin Feingold, a San Francisco medical doctor who established the Feingold diet, claimed that BHT could produce hyperactivity in some children. In addition, some controversy surrounds the link of BHT to cancer risk, some studies showing the potential to increase and some showing a decrease in risk. Some food industries have voluntarily eliminated this additive from their products, and since the 1970s it has been steadily replaced with the less studied BHA. Some foods labeled as "no preservatives" or "no preservatives added" actually contain BHT that was present in the ingredients used to make the product but which does not require disclosure on the label.
BHT is marketed as a health food supplement in capsule form. It has been reported to have anti-viral effects, particularly in use against herpes family viruses and in combination with -lysine and vitamin C. This latter use has made it into some of the more popular literature.
Closely related phenol antioxidants exhibit low toxicity. For 2,6-di-tert-butylphenol, the LD50 is greater than 9 g/kg.
Read more about this topic: Butylated Hydroxytoluene
Famous quotes containing the word controversy:
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