Does tertiary butylhydroquinone (tBHQ) sound like a tasty treat fit for your children? As reported by CNN and Bloomberg, this is exactly what you are serving them if you allow them to eat McDonald’s Chicken McNuggets… along with dimethylpolysiloxane and hydrogenated soybean oil, the risks of which warrants an entire article of its own.

Here is the complete ingredients list according to McDonald’s Website:

Ingredients: White boneless chicken, water, food starch-modified, salt, seasoning (autolyzed yeast extract, salt, wheat starch, natural flavoring (botanical source), safflower oil, dextrose, citric acid, rosemary), sodium phosphates, seasoning (canola oil, mono- and diglycerides, extractives of rosemary). Battered and breaded with: water, enriched flour (bleached wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamin mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), yellow corn flour, food starch-modified, salt, leavening (baking soda, sodium acid pyrophosphate, sodium aluminum phosphate, monocalcium phosphate, calcium lactate), spices, wheat starch, whey, corn starch. Prepared in vegetable oil (Canola oil, corn oil, soybean oil, hydrogenated soybean oil with TBHQ and citric acid added to preserve freshness). Dimethylpolysiloxane added as an antifoaming agent.

McDonald’s Chicken McNuggets Explained

Let’s take a more in-depth look at some of the ingredients found in McDonald’s Chicken McNuggets:

tertiary butylhydroquinone (tBHQ) – may be a carcinogen, may cause liver damage and may have reproductive effects, according to the Environmental Working Group’s Cosmetics Safety Database.

dimethylpolysiloxane – an “anti-foaming agent” used in many cosmetics products in addition to foods.  It may be benign but also has undergone very little safety testing.

hydrogenated soybean oil – An unhealthy trans fat created through an unnatural chemical process known as hydrogenation which McDonald’s had promised to remove from its foods years ago. This is an example of one of the same trans fats that were banned in so many places due to the substantial health risks associated with them.

I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that most of the rest of the menu at McDonald’s and other fast food chains is no more healthy than the Chicken McNuggets – and some items may even be worse.  With big business constantly lobbying to include more and more dangerous and/or unknown chemicals in our food, it has never been more important to be extremely conscious of exactly what you eat and where you purchase it.  Check out my recommended viewing and reading lists for some excellent documentary films and books that will give you even more insight to exactly how our food is produced.