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Common Food Preservatives Linked to Major Heart Problems
- May 21, 2026
- Stephanie Brown HealthDay Reporter
That grab-and-go snack or frozen meal may be doing more than lasting longer on the shelf — it could also be raising your risk of heart disease.
Preservatives are used in hundreds of thousands of industrially processed foods.
"Experimental studies suggest that some preservative food additives may be harmful to cardiovascular health, but we have not had enough evidence on the impact of these ingredients in humans," said co-lead author Anaïs Hasenböhler, a nutrition researcher at the Sorbonne Paris North University and Paris City University. "As far as we know, this is the first study of its kind to investigate the links between a wide range of preservatives and cardiovascular health."
The study, published May 20 in the European Heart Journal, tracked the dietary habits of more than 112,000 adults in France for up to eight years and linked several common food preservatives to higher rates of high blood pressure and cardiovascular events.
People who consumed the most non-antioxidant preservatives — used to prevent mold and bacteria growth — had a 29% greater risk of high blood pressure and a 16% greater risk of heart attack, stroke and angina, the study found.
Those who consumed more antioxidant preservatives — used to prevent foods from browning — were also 22% more likely to develop high blood pressure.
The researchers identified eight preservatives tied to high blood pressure, including sodium nitrite, potassium sorbate and citric acid. One additive — ascorbic acid, also known as E300 — was specifically linked to heart disease.
Co-lead author Mathilde Touvier of Sorbonne Paris North University said the results point to the need for agencies like the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Food Safety Authority to re-evaluate the risks and benefits of these food additives.
"In the meantime, these findings support existing recommendations to favor non-processed and minimally processed foods, and avoid unnecessary additives," she said in a news release. "Doctors and other healthcare professionals play a key role in explaining these recommendations to the public."
More information
The World Health Organization has more on food additives.
SOURCE: HealthDay TV, May 21, 2026
