Wax on apples and other fruits may improve their appearance but is not so good for your health.
Who doesn’t love fruit? It’s the sweet and tasty natural food group that we have come to depend on not only for a healthy sweet fix but also for necessary vitamins and other wide-ranging health benefits.
But did you know that so many fruits that are sold for human consumption in supermarkets are covered in wax? This wax is not the natural wax found on fruits that are picked straight from their trees or plants, this is artificial wax.
But what is more worrying, is that this wax is often made from the same ingredient that motor oil comes from and can be extremely bad for you.
Why do they use wax on apples and other fruits?
Most farmers apply wax on apples and other fruits in order to preserve them. They, first of all, remove the natural wax that is already on the fruit by washing it and then coat the fruit in a man-made wax that is based on petroleum.
They justify the use of the wax by saying that it preserves the fruit and keeps it from getting fungus and bacteria. However, we also know that the wax adds to the color of the fruit, making it look more appealing. Is the real reason they use the wax to increase sales?
What’s in fruit wax?
Because the wax does not constitute as a food ingredient, manufacturers are not required to disclose the ingredients used. We do know that the wax includes some dairy, gluten, and soy – allergens to some people. Most wax coatings also include preservatives and fungicides, as well as artificial colorings to improve the appearance of the fruit. These dyes have been linked to an increased risk of developing cancer upon consumption and are best avoided at all costs.
Avoiding dangerous wax
Try to buy your fruit only from companies that can prove exactly what ingredients go into their wax and that it is made only from natural ingredients. This is easy enough to do thanks to the bad press that wax coating manufacturers have had about their ingredients.
Examples of natural wax creators include Syncera, Tal-Prolong, and Semper Fresh. You can also choose to buy your fruit from organic fruit sellers, who use a combination of natural ingredients such as beeswax, wood resin and carnauba wax instead of the unnatural and dangerous chemicals some companies use.
You can also find unnatural wax-free fruit at local farmers’ markets, where the fruit comes directly from the farms and is only covered in its own natural wax.
Watch the video below to learn how to check if there is wax on your apples:
