8 common food additives linked to high blood pressure and heart disease: what a new review found

Reading supermarket labels has become a steadily more complicated exercise. A new international review, summarised in Science Daily, lays out where the evidence stands for eight common food additives in relation to high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.

The authors pooled 96 clinical and epidemiological studies published in the past 12 years. Total participants reached roughly 600,000. Eight additives stand out: sodium nitrite, monosodium glutamate, sodium phosphate, polysorbate 80, carboxymethylcellulose, Blue No. 1, Yellow No. 5 and aspartame. All appear frequently on labels.

The first group is the most traditional: sodium nitrite in processed meats. The link to cardiovascular risk was already well documented; the new meta-analysis shows that intake above 0.5 mg per day raises cardiovascular disease risk by about 9%.

The second group covers structural fibres and emulsifiers: polysorbate 80 and carboxymethylcellulose. Present in many sauces, creamy dairy and ready meals, these two compounds appear to reduce gut microbiome diversity, which feeds low-grade systemic inflammation. The effect in humans remains debated, but some models suggest long-term low-grade inflammation gradually damages the cardiovascular bed.

The third group is food colourings: notably Blue No. 1 and Yellow No. 5. Direct cardiovascular evidence is weaker here than for the others; the effect runs through indirect pathways such as behavioural changes and gut microbial shifts. The authors note that visual colourings are essentially non-essential aesthetic ingredients, so the risk-benefit calculus skews naturally toward the lower side.

The fourth group is sweeteners: aspartame is a classic case argued over for years. The new review combines refined cohort data from the past three years to find that intake above 50 mg per day raises systolic blood pressure by an average of 1.1 mmHg. At an individual level this is small; in populations prone to clogged arteries, the cumulative load matters.

Fifth come monosodium glutamate (MSG) and sodium phosphate. MSG's reputation for raising blood pressure has long been overstated in popular culture, and structural science has rebutted the effect for years. But the new review suggests MSG, when consumed together with sodium phosphate rather than alone, may modulate sodium reabsorption in the renal tubules.

The general message: no single additive carries a risk on the scale of smoking or uncontrolled hypertension. But the parallel intake of multiple compounds through three or four products a day adds up to a load worth noticing. The review's central recommendation is therefore framed as "reduce the share of ultra-processed foods, rather than ban one ingredient."

Three practical steps stand out for consumers. First, limit processed meats to one or two portions per week. Second, swap ready-made sauces for those with the shortest ingredient lists. Third, cap the number of sweeteners across packaged drinks at one or two per day.

On the regulatory side, EU and US food authorities declined to comment on the review. The European Food Safety Authority last year announced it would re-examine polysorbate 80 and carboxymethylcellulose; the new review adds the evidence weight likely to keep that process visibly on the agenda.