I love pizza! It’s one of my top favorite foods next to kale and cake. And I know I’m not the only one that loves it, either. Recently, the USDA conducted a study which revealed the enormous amount of pizza we consume in the United States. American consumption of cheese increased by nearly 30% in 10 years because the dairy industry is spending big bucks to promote pizza and partner with big chains like Dominos. Congress even voted to declare pizza a vegetable in the school lunch program. The government wants us to eat pizza – a lot of it. But there’s a lot going on behind closed doors that nobody wants us to know or talk about, and it all starts with the ingredients.
When I started researching pizza ingredients, one thing became abundantly clear. Pizza restaurants did not like the questions I was asking.
The only way to find out what may be lurking in your pizza is to review its complete ingredient list, which is often concealed from the public. I began calling the top pizza chains and easily found a couple ingredient lists online. But, when I called most pizza restaurants and began asking questions, they blatantly refused to share ingredient lists and their customer service reps were oblivious to what their ingredients were – they had no clue.
Little Caesars, California Pizza Kitchen (CPK) and Mellow Mushroom have all refused to answer my questions about their ingredients. I was told by Mellow Mushroom’s corporate offices that they will only comply with minimal government regulations, which require them to publish an allergen list.
After sending me their dough ingredients, CPK suddenly claimed that due to “proprietary restrictions” they can’t disclose their full ingredient lists. They went on to tell me that they “don’t have an easy way to perform a search by individual ingredient” and would need to call each vendor first. While traveling, I stopped into a CPK in an airport to ask questions face to face. Both the manager and store clerk had zero access to ingredients. I even asked to look at the packages of their dough and other ingredients that got shipped to the store in and they said they did not have them.
I called many local pizza restaurants and was informed that it’s their policy to NOT disclose ingredients to their customers. Little Caesars literally told me that if I was concerned about what was in it, I “just shouldn’t eat there…” Ha! Don’t worry, I won’t!
Papa John’s also has repeatedly refused to release their ingredient list, which really caused a stir last year with my friend Melanie Warner, author of the processed food exposing book “Pandora’s Lunchbox“. How can Papa John’s claim to have “Better Ingredients… Better Pizza” without telling us what’s really in it? While they say their lack of transparency is due to the proprietary nature of their recipes, they could be hiding some seriously harmful ingredients. After repeated calls to corporate offices and some helpful photos sent to me by Melanie Warner, I was finally able to uncover some details about what is really in their pizzas.
Why are the ingredients so hard to find? Why are they refusing to share their ingredients? What is it that these pizza restaurants don’t want us to know?
Well, I’ll tell you what they’re hiding: Lots and lots of hidden MSG!
Restaurants don’t want to get a bad rap by putting monosodium glutamate (MSG) on their ingredient or allergen statements, so they have found another way to secretly add this potent flavor enhancer to your food, without the average customer realizing it. Instead of letting you know that they are putting MSG in your food, they are using an FDA loophole to sneak processed free glutamic acid into your food, which has the same effect as MSG – all without warning you. They simply use other forms of free glutamic acid (such as Hydrolyzed Soy Protein), which is the main component of MSG. This allows them to have “clean labels” and deceive us into believing their product contains no MSG – when it actually does!
While it’s true that tomatoes and cheese are naturally high in glutamates, they do not have the same effect on the brain as added manufactured free glutamic acid additives. When I talked to Papa John’s, they admitted that these additives are used as a replacement for MSG by the food industry.
It will blow your mind – literally
MSG tricks your brain into believing that what you are eating tastes so great that you want more of it. Your taste buds sense that there is more protein in the food than there really is – which is great for food manufacturers that want to save money by using less or lower quality meat. These ingredients also promote an addiction to pizza so that you keep coming back to order more. Repeat business keeps their pockets lined with lots of cash. Ever wonder why you can’t stop at one slice? This is why.
MSG and hidden MSG additives are known to commonly cause headaches, obesity and depression – and this is just the tip of the iceberg. As an excitotoxin, its effect on the brain is so toxic that it has been linked to learning disabilities, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and Lou Gehrig’s disease. Board certified neurosurgeon Russell Blaylock, M.D. warns that, “Excitotoxins have been found to dramatically promote cancer growth… It also causes a cancer cell to become more mobile, and that enhances metastasis, or spread… When you increase the glutamate level, cancer just grows like wildfire”.
This is serious stuff. But the industry will tell you it’s harmless and that you are crazy for being concerned.
Don’t make the mistake of thinking that it is okay to eat this stuff occasionally, because these ingredients can stick around in your body for a long time, leach nutrients from your system, and can make you really sick. As put by my pal Kristen Michaelis at FoodRenegade.com, “Not only is MSG not a traditional food, not only are many people immediately sensitive to it, but it can also interrupt the hormonal and biological development of children! Lest you think this is all fanciful, it’s important to remember that a number of studies have found that the effects of MSG can occur cumulatively over time with subsequent exposure.”
Toxic hidden MSG ingredients buried in popular pizza menu items:
- Autolyzed Yeast Extract (Hidden MSG)
- Textured or Hydrolyzed Proteins (Hidden MSG and GMO)
- Hydrolyzed Corn (Hidden MSG and GMO)
- Modified Starches (Hidden MSG or Possible GMO)
- Natural Flavors (Possible Hidden MSG)
- Disodium Inosinate or Disodium Guanylate (MSG enhancers)
The additives Disodium Guanylate and Disodium Inosinate are not added to a product that doesn’t contain MSG because they are considered expensive additives that are ineffective without MSG ingredients. The presence of Disodium Guanylate or Disodium Inosinate in a product is a strong indication that a product contains hidden MSG.
I’m talking about more than MSG here
The ingredient lists that I could get my hands on are riddled with artificial colors, artificial and natural flavors, partially hydrogenated oils, cellulose (wood pulp) to keep the already shredded cheese from clumping, and GMO soybean oil.
Partially Hydrogenated Oils (Trans-fat) – There is absolutely no reason for anyone to still be using this. These oils are so bad that even our FDA has woken up and warns that it’s not safe to eat this in any food. Partially hydrogenated oils block arteries and the CDC estimates that they could cause up to 20,000 heart attacks every year! I found these dangerous oils in Pizza Hut’s hand-tossed crust, Round Table’s Creamy Garlic sauce, Papa John’s dipping sauces and Dominos Philly Steak pizza. Partially hydrogenated oils are found in 21 menu items at Cici’s Pizza – it’s even added to their cheese!
Soybean Oil (likely GMO) – You’d hope to see just olive oil in there, but soybean oil is the oil of choice for most pizza restaurants. It’s in the dough and pizza sauces, so it basically makes its way into every pizza. This genetically engineered inflammation causing oil is being used at these restaurants:
- Papa John’s
- Domino’s
- Pizza Hut
- Uno Pizzeria
- Papa Murphy’s
- Little Caesars
- Cici’s
- Mellow Mushroom – “Soybean oil is a major ingredient in our pizzas”
- California Pizza Kitchen – “our Ciabatta Bread and our Wheat Dough do contain Soybean Oil”
- Round Table Pizza – Creamy Garlic sauce
BHT/BHA (Butylated Hydroxytoluene.Butylated Hydroxyanisole) – BHT is used in embalming fluid and to fuel jets. BHA is toxic to your organs and linked to cancer. These were found in the pepperoni on every ingredient list I looked at from Uno’s to Dominos.
Sodium Nitrite – Whenever this is added to a meat, there is a really good chance that it contains cancer-causing Nitrosamines. Nitrites are often found in the pepperoni, ham, bacon and sausage toppings.
Enriched Flour – This is a dead food that has had some vitamins and minerals artificially replaced. It’s absorbed by your body as a starch, rather than a whole grain. This flour is used in pizza dough, except the gluten-free versions.
Artificial Colors – These are petroleum-based colorings linked to asthma, allergies and hyperactivity. I found them in the banana pepper toppings, the cheese at Cici’s, and specifically in the garlic oil used by Domino’s.
Caramel Coloring – This is often made by heating ammonia and sulfites under high pressure which creates carcinogenic compounds. You’ll find this very controversial coloring in the bacon at Pizza Hut, the Italian sausage at Round Table, the beef at Little Caesars, the zesty pizza sauce at Cici’s and in the BBQ Chicken pizza at Uno’s.
BPA (Bisphenol A) – You won’t find this on any ingredient label, but BPA leaches from the cans that hold pizza sauce in some restaurants. Many fast food pizza chains use canned tomato sauce that could have BPA. This substance exposure increases your risk for cardiovascular disease, breast cancer, prostate cancer, diabetes and a slew of other medical problems.
How these pizza restaurants stack up
Papa John’s – They add a lot to their “Better Ingredients”. For instance, their “100% Beef” topping is a lot more than just beef! It contains corn syrup, maltodextrin, natural flavor, natural smoke grill flavor, beef flavor and seasonings. Also, so much for believing that there is 100% real cheese topping their pizzas, as they add modified food starch (hidden MSG), preservatives and powdered wood pulp (cellulose) to their cheese blend. They also add natural flavors to their thin crust, pepperoni, and chicken topping, as well as hidden MSG (autolyzed yeast extract) to their garlic ranch and spinach alfredo pizza sauces. Those little dipping sauces that come with your pizza are loaded with partially hydrogenated oil, GMOs and (you guessed it) more hidden MSG.
Update: In June 2015 Papa Johns announced they’re removing 14 ingredients by the end of 2016, including artificial colors, caramel color, the preservative sodium benzoate, and hidden MSG ingredients like autolyzed yeast extract and hydrolyzed proteins. They have also listed ingredients on their website (however this list is not entirely complete as they don’t publish the ingredients in some of their seasonings, such as in their beef topping).
Domino’s – One of the few pizza restaurants that openly publishes their ingredients online – and their ingredient list has hidden MSG written all over it. It’s almost impossible to avoid at Dominos, as it’s in their cheese, marinara sauce, white sauces, BBQ sauce and a slew of toppings (chicken, beef, Italian sausage and Philly steak). They also add “flavors” to their pan crust, cheese, pepperoni and shake-on seasoning. The garlic oil used on nearly every pizza is NOT what you’d expect (garlic & oil). It’s actually a toxic combo of over 20 ingredients including artificial colors, artificial flavors and TBHQ.
Pizza Hut – You get a lot more than “100% Real Beef” in this topping loaded natural and artificial flavors. Their sausage and bacon toppings have hidden MSG (autolyzed yeast or hydrolyzed proteins), and you are eating modified starches in their cheese, chicken and cream sauce (starches usually derived from GMO corn). The garlic sauce and seasoning used on every hand-tossed pizza is loaded with natural flavors, artificial flavors and partially-hydrogenated GMO oils. Pizza Hut recently reformulated their hand-tossed crust by replacing the high fructose corn syrup with sucralose (Splenda) – an artificial sweetener that has been shown to cause DNA damage to the gastrointestinal tract, reduces beneficial gut bacteria, and is linked to inflammatory bowel disease. Recent research indicates that sucralose is linked to leukemia.
Round Table – “The Last Honest Pizza” honestly adds straight “Glutamic Acid” to their creamy garlic sauce. They add hidden MSG ingredients to their pizza sauces, chicken and sausage toppings. Their cheese is far from “100% real” with “Natural Smoke Flavoring” and cellulose.
Little Caesars – Although their corporate office told me that their ingredients are top secret, the first gal I talked with admitted that there is yeast extract in their beef topping. I also called a local store and found that their super-secret ingredients were listed right there on the package for anyone in the kitchen to read. According to my local restaurant, their sauce contains natural flavors and the cheese contains wood pulp (cellulose). They also rattled off the beef topping ingredients to confirm it contains yeast extract, beef flavorings and caramel coloring.
Mellow Mushroom – One of the most tight-lipped restaurants I talked to would only admit to the use of soybean oil, which is likely GMO – “Soybean oil is a major ingredient in our pizzas” they wrote to me in an email. Furthermore, when I asked about hidden MSG ingredients, they told me that they weren’t required to tell me since they are not one of the 7 major allergens designated by the FDA and don’t list them on their allergen list. So I decided to go use their allergen tool to see what they do list and found something shocking. The tool gives misleading, inaccurate and potentially dangerous information if you have a soy allergy. For example, I confirmed their crust uses soy, but when you use the tool, it says there are plenty of pizzas without soy. The information doesn’t add up and regardless of whether if you have an allergy, I would not trust Mellow Mushroom until they release the full ingredient lists for their menu.
Uno Pizzeria – They are not much better than the rest with hidden MSG in their BBQ Chicken pizza, Harvest Vegetable pizza, sausage topping and gluten-free crust. I was a bit surprised to see that they also add caramel color, artificial flavors, and a large amount of natural flavors to their BBQ Chicken pizza – it’s totally unnecessary.
California Pizza Kitchen (CPK) – As they were being very difficult in sharing ingredients, I was only able to confirm that the Thai sauce, tomato pizza sauce, pepperoni, salami, bacon, romano cheese, and chipotle sauce do not contain any of the hidden MSG ingredients that I listed. Because they refuse to share an ingredient list, I have no way of knowing whether they contain other additives or hidden MSG that I didn’t ask about – so don’t be convinced that these menu items are clean! I also inquired about hidden MSG ingredients in their other cheeses, BBQ sauce, chicken, sausage and ham toppings – and they have not responded at all regarding those items. Again, I will take their lack of a response as an indication that they do contain hidden MSG until they inform us otherwise.
Papa Murphy’s – It’s all about the sauces at Papa Murphy’s, where there’s yeast extract in their basil pesto sauce and modified food starch in their BBQ sauce, buffalo sauce, creamy garlic sauce and sweet chili sauce. They also add “flavors” to nearly every meat topping available and to their cheese.
Cici’s – They don’t really hide it by adding straight MSG to 10 menu items including their “Zesty” pizza sauce. Cici’s further adds hidden MSG to their buffalo sauce, ranch dressing, bacon cheddar sauce, sausage topping and beef topping. Quite frankly, I can’t believe how bad their “cheese” is – modified food starch, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, (added) casein, aluminum, natural flavors and artificial color! I was also astounded to find high fructose corn syrup in their BBQ sauce and dessert pizzas, as well as carrageenan and propylene glycol in several of their sauces, including the Alfredo.
Are you wondering about your favorite pizza place?
The good news is that you can do the exact same thing I did at your favorite pizza place, and please share the outcome with me!
To get the best results, plan to visit your pizza place during a slow time and not during their dinner rush. This way their employees won’t be rushed and will have time to answer your questions. Right off the bat, ask them if they have an ingredient list to share with you. Most likely they won’t, but it’s worth a try. If their ingredients are not readily available, here’s my game plan for navigating the menu and asking the right questions:
- Typically the safest bet is to stick with a veggie pizza without cheese. This is dependent on what they have lurking in their sauce and crust, so it’s really important to find out what is in those items! Ask them to read you the complete ingredients in the sauce and dough.
- Hidden MSG is most often found in meat toppings, seasoning mixes and creamy sauces – so if you plan to order those things I would ask specifically about hidden MSG ingredients. Ask them if monosodium glutamate, autolyzed yeast, hydrolyzed proteins, modified starches, or natural flavors are in any of those menu items. Which ones?
- GMO soybean oil is usually found in the crust and the sauces. Ask them if they use soybean oil – and in what menu items. Is soybean oil used in their pans? Can they make you a pizza without it?
- Ask them directly if any of their ingredients are GMO. You may be surprised as they may have no clue what you are talking about. Use this as an opportunity to briefly share with them what a GMO is and why you don’t eat GMOs. Let them know that most soy is GMO so if they use soy in any products, it is probably GMO. Their allergen statement should also be able to tell you if soy is used in any product.
- Remember that “garlic oils” and “shake-on seasonings” may contain a bunch of questionable ingredients and MSG. Ask them if there are any specialty oils, butter sauces, or seasoning mixes used on their pizzas. If they can’t tell you the ingredients in those, ask them not to use it on yours.
- Do they use high fructose corn syrup or other sweeteners in their sauces or dough? These sweeteners are probably derived from GMO sources – including “sugar”.
- Most vegetables will not be GMO, unless they have corn, tofu, zucchini or yellow squash toppings. I would avoid those.
- What about cellulose in their cheese? Are flavorings and preservatives added to the cheese as well?
Beware that often times the restaurant employees truly do not know the answers to your questions, and will give you incorrect answers. For instance, they may tell you that their cheese is “100% real cheese”, without realizing that the pre-shredded bag of cheese in the back contains an ingredient list. On that ingredient list, they will likely find cellulose, some preservatives, and possibly some flavors and colors. It’s good to remember that it’s not all that it seems on the surface, and in order to find out what is really in their food they will need to read the ingredient list on the box, bag or can that the menu item comes in. The bottom line – If they won’t tell you what is in their food, don’t eat there.
They don’t expect the average customer to demand answers about their food!
Only four of the restaurants I investigated publish their current ingredient lists online – Dominos, Uno’s, Papa Murphy’s, Cici’s. (Pizza Hut publishes them online, but they admitted to me they aren’t current in an email). As in my Chipotle investigation, I had to be extremely persistent over several months to get the limited information that I did from the other restaurants. This took multiple phone calls, voicemails, emails, and website contact forms – which often went unanswered. I had to ask specific questions about obscure ingredients. They are counting on the average customer to not do this!
On Papa John’s website, they say that their cheese is “crafted from 100% mozzarella and high-quality milk by one of America’s finest cheese producers” – But the ingredients tell the real story. Now we know their cheese also contains wood pulp and modified food starch… and that IT’S NOT 100% CHEESE. When Papa John’s claims in all of their advertising that they have “Better Ingredients”, yet they won’t openly tell us what they are, it’s a safe bet they’re hiding something.
I wonder if any of these restaurants will have the courage to discuss this issue. Will they do the right thing now that we are calling them out, like Chipotle did when they finally released their full ingredient list online for everyone to see? These companies do not deserve our business, until they publish their ingredients online and make them easily accessible to the average customer.
What to eat instead:
Okay, this is the good part! I’m thrilled to say that I’ve found some pizza places that are doing it right!
Pizza Fusion – I called up a Pizza Fusion restaurant and they freely answered every question I had about their ingredients – a big WIN in my book! Their sauce is super simple: organic tomatoes, olive oil, water – and no nasty additives or hidden MSG. They only use olive oil in the restaurant, so you won’t find any GMO soybean or canola oil here. They confirmed with me that their gluten-free crust no longer contains canola oil and that they are diligent about preventing cross-contamination with gluten. I was really happy to find out that all of their meat toppings are antibiotic-free! Their chickens are also fed a non-GMO diet. Many of their veggie toppings are organic and local, and all are non-GMO. This varies and depends on what is seasonally available, so simply ask them which veggies are organic when you order. They have about 12 locations right now, and I really hope they grow into a larger chain so that more of us have access to pizza places like this!
Pure Pizza – I simply love this place. If you are ever in Charlotte, this is the place to go. They have an amazing organic sprouted grain crust, and source their toppings locally.
Truly Organic Pizza – This pizza chain in Florida is USDA certified organic. Because of this, none of their ingredients can be GMO, and all of their meats are antibiotic-free and not injected with hormones. I called them up and asked specifically about hidden MSG ingredients. They told me that they do not use any flavor enhancers such as autolyzed yeast extract or hydrolyzed proteins to season their food. They cook their meatballs and chicken from scratch and only season them with basic seasonings like what we would use at home! This is another great option if you are in Florida.
My Favorite Homemade Pizza Recipe – If you don’t have pizza restaurants like these in your neck of the woods, my homemade pizza recipe is super simple and will be ready in less time than it would take you to order and have it delivered – I promise! This recipe cures my pizza craving in no time!
If you know someone who is ordering or eating pizza with these terrible ingredients, help them make the switch by sharing this very important information with them!
Together we are changing the world, one company at a time, by sharing the truth.
Xo,
Vani
Very informative article! I am wondering if our favorite pizza point in San Diego (Fresco Pizza and Grill) is a better option.
who cares pizza not killing no one someone has alot of time on their hands. Do us all a favor and jump on a cliff and never look up
I once had a food addiction to Chinese food, I knew it was the MSG . Anytime I see that pull towards a particular franchise, I detox and prepare more of my own meals
Not killing ANYONE.
Please in the future if you are going to leave comments on anything try to make them understandable and even the least bit grammatically correct.
And no one cares about YOUR comment…
Although it is funny that you are requesting that they jump ON a cliff and never look up.
These places don’t even serve real pizza so NO, it doesn’t blow my mind. This may be “pizza” for the rest of the country, but any true pizza connoisseur (living in the Pizza Belt up north–similar to the bible belt, but for amazing pizza!) KNOWS these places are no better than McDonald’s. What else would you expect? This article is almost humorous in it’s expectation of quality from these fast food restaurants. These places are all chains. Since when do chain restaurants have “authentic, all-natural, healthy” food. Some of these places cook pizza using a conveyer belt! With that said, I understand those who don’t have better options because of their geographic locale would like to at least know what they are eating. Just go to a local “Mom & Pop” pizza place. I think you have a better chance of eating something with real ingredients.
Agreed! Can’t hardly choke down anything from any of these places. Give me the neighborhood pizzeria or homemade any day.
AS A FORMER OWNER/EMPLOYEE OF PAPA MURPHYS I FIND YOUR OBSERVATIONS OF ADDING FLAVORS TO PRODUCTS ON THE PIZZAS MISSGUIDED. THE FLAVOR ENHANCERS MAY BE ON/IN THE PRODUCTS USED WHICH WE PURCHASED BUT WE DID “NOT” ADD FLAVOR ENHANCERS TO ANY PART OF OUR PZZAS. WE DID NOT ADD FOOD STARCHES TO THE MEAT. MAYBE ALREADY ON IT WHEN PURCHASED, PLEASE HAVE YOUR facts for sure right
That’s a decision made by your corporate office to source those specifically so yes essentially they add it. Don’t get held up on semantics. Instead of all you people getting pissy about the info in the article why not do some of your own research….or do tongue to take stuff spoon fed to you. Probably don’t think corn starch is a problem either.
What is wrong with corn starch?
To clueless shouting woman: If you assemble a pizza out of garbage, and claim it isn’t you because you didn’t do it, you are too morally impaired to be part of the conversation.
John: your comment = amazing.
Wow…impressive
Umm….when I make my own pizza I cant stop at 1 slice either. While I prefer not to eat msg ridden products, I hardly blame the lack of control on the additives. I am a pizza monster!
Your article was very interesting. But there are a few things I want to point out, as a scientist and having worked in a local pizzaria for several years.
1. If a pizza joint is any good, they’ll use actual cheese and tomato sauce because that’s what customers expect from a decent shop; you don’t need to go to a fancy organic joint to get good, fresh pizza with regular ingredients. The issue regarding chains is really just a matter of you get what you pay for.
2. Glutamic acid is NOT the same as MSG. It’s a naturally occurring compound that occurs in things like garlic and tomatoes, and is partially responsible for the distinctly strong taste of those things. It’s an amino acid (that your body actually produces, btw) and is vital for cell function, as it is one of the basic foundations of the proteins in your body. In general, you need to remember that, in chemistry, things that sound similar or are even chemically similar are not the same and most certainly do not behave the same. Consider H20 (water) vs. H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide).
3. Regarding the disodium compounds you mentioned, those don’t necessarily mean there’s hidden MSG in something – they are also added to things that contain regular old glutamic acid, like tomatoes, since glutamic acid produces the same taste-enhancing effect that MSG does with the disodium compounds.
4. Carragenean won’t hurt you in the slightest. It’s a gel-like substance that occurs naturally in algae that’s used as a thickener in nearly everything nowadays. Don’t make it sound so ominous, and don’t be surprised to find it in your food. It’s in everything from ice cream to toothpaste, since it’s cheap and harmless.
5. I would remind the author in her use of the phrase “dead food” to describe flour that all things you consume are technically dead at the time of consumption (even freshly cut leaves and such)
Interesting article to read, thanks.
Carragenean does hurt some people and I am one of them. It is a natural product, but in doing my research, it causes severe inflammation in some people and I am one of them. I can’t digest dairy and was buying almond milk and when I found some information on-line about his product I now am fine. I read all labels carefully as its in a lot of products. My sister and daughter have the same problem. Making sure we do not get this cheap thickener has solved out problem.
Trading on the ambiguity of the term “natural substance” is dishonest. I expect you are a shill but if not, maybe there’s some cognitive dissonance going on.
I’m not a shill, and I don’t work in the food industry; I work with water chemistry and plant research for a landscaping company. I’ve done some work with algae so I knew how carrageenan is made and why we use it, but I wasn’t aware that it could cause stomach inflammation in some people. I know that all foods can potentially cause an allergic reaction in people, so I should not have used the term harmless so generally. The point I was trying to make is that you really need to fact-check everything you read, especially alarmist articles. Even a cursory look at something like wikipedia can help you make an informed decision for yourself.
My friend showed me this article on a whim, and I was just curious about expressing my opinion. Please do not insult me personally on it just because you disagree with my opinion.
Did you really say this, “Typically the safest bet is to stick with a veggie pizza without cheese. This is dependent on what they have lurking in their sauce and crust, so it’s really important to find out what is in those items! Ask them to read you the complete ingredients in the sauce and dough.” Why bother? I don’t think anybody sets out to eat pizza because they think it’s healthy. When I’m going to eat a cookie, I eat a real cookie. When I’m going to eat pizza, I eat pizza. If I want vegetables, I will eat real vegetables. All this extreme obsession with food is like any other obsession. Whatever you believe is, and it will affect your body based on what your mind tells it.
I think you’re missing the bigger picture here. Sure, Food Babe is saying these additives are staple ingredients in food chain pizza are bad for you. Obviously she doesn’t eat them for that reason. Throughout this post (and other topics she’s covered), she tells the reader to CHECK LABELS. Maybe you don’t necessarily agree with what she’s saying, and maybe you want to continue to eat foods that are bad for you. That’s life. Most people indulge every once in a while. She’s trying to encourage people to pay closer attention to what they’re putting in their bodies; it’s the only one you have. Might as well treat it right while you can. I’ve switched to making most of my own meals with organic ingredients…my food tastes exponentially better, I’ve lost weight, have a ton more energy, and my skin is absolutely glowing. As a result, I feel so much better about myself and my future. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that and would encourage anyone to consider the same.
Beliefs about food are the same as beliefs about anything. I don’t ever want to eat foods that are bad for me, and I don’t fill my head with a lot of that kind of thing. I have been pain free, medication free and doctor free for over a decade now after having an undiagnosed illness for 7 years. I have cleared the mental and emotional crap that created it. I did not subscribe to these beliefs about food, and I did not create fear about food. We each have our own thing, and whatever you believe is so, is. I believe our mental and emotional stuff creates our wellness and wellbeing or lack of it, and I have proven that in my own life. It’s like anything else. Do what works for you. People with food issues/obsessions tend to want to really go overboard and create a lot of fear and make statements that are not true to anyone but those who believe them, and they want to convert everyone else to their way of thinking, and it doesn’t serve everybody. I am a prime example of that.
To Michelle Barr: Your problem is that you are in denial of truth. You said, “I did not subscribe to these beliefs about food, and I did not create fear about food.” People aren’t afraid of food, but the toxins, which AREN’T food. The point of the info in this article is that toxins found in food (pizza) are NOT food, which is why it’s dangerous to continue ingesting them. It’s your choice to happily eat all the toxins you wish, but some people don’t want to be poisoned!
Hi, Steph, you see this is exactly what I am talking about. I know some people who eat healthy and obsess over every thing that goes into their mouth and their bodies, and their emotions and thoughts and feelings are so toxic, they are not well. Why do you have a need to make me believe what you believe? You are projecting on me, telling me I am in denial of “truth.” (Very similar to those who are “saved” damning everyone else, huh?) I’d be very careful throwing that around. Your “truth” is not my truth. I don’t accept it. I do know that the way I have chosen to live and believe works for me. I don’t need to do what you do, and you don’t need to do what I do. But, why does it drive you so crazy that I don’t that you are going to forcefeed me your “truth”? Frankly, I’d rather have the toxins. I have a thriving, happy successful life, and you just can’t argue with that. I have a great marriage. I am financially healthy and mentally and emotionally healthy, and physically healthy, and Spiritually healthy. It’s how I live, and it’s what I do for a living. I have created a life I love and a business that supports and sustains that. I am doctor free, pain free, drug free, medication free and have everything I want. I worked to get it, just not the way you say it has to be. If it works, why argue with it? All I really hope is that you don’t run around forcing your “truth” on others who don’t want it and aren’t looking for it. That’s why I took issue with this attitude and addressed it.
Michelle Barr: I will reiterate that it’s your choice to eat all the toxins you want, but don’t try to force everyone else to accept poisons in their food. If you don’t like what this website says, you shouldn’t be on it, since this is for people who care about their health. By the way, truth is not subjective, it’s based on facts.
If you don’t care about this then why are you here? Eat what you want and believe what you want – this is about providing information. It doesn’t mean everyone is has to be perfect about eating healthy, but it’s helping people become informed and more aware of what’s happening in our world. And there is more to what we are eating than just “food beliefs”. Is it a food belief when a person can turn around diabetes, for example, largely with diet?
Vani, great work… loved reading this and have passed it on.
What if I’ve already eaten Papa John’s, etc, in the past? I know you can always make positive changes from here on in, but I feel like I’m not “starting with a clean slate” as my body likely has MSG lurking in it from the past.
What to do?
Corinna, you’re fine. Don’t buy into their fear tactics. It may or may not be your reality. You get to choose. And whatever you choose, is. So, how are you going to choose in this moment that is best for you?
Subjective Michelle.
Am I the only one who doesn’t like pizza???? I seriously have never met anyone else that did not care for it……. ??
Thank you! I don’t understand the obsession with this food either! The article’s references to pizza ingredients having addictive qualities makes sense to me: as a cultural reference (on a sit-com, a commercial, at any form of committee or corporate meeting that might run longer and not well, or a children’s activity) if things are not going well, all someone has to say is, “Let’s order pizza and take a break!” Children and most adults look like crack addicts who’ve just been told its legalized and can be bought for a dime a hit at any drug or convenience store.
Suddenly, the meeting takes a turn and everyone agrees and votes unanimously on all issues, after a couple of slices are consumed.
There are exceptions: properly made (as in homemade) pizza I’ve had made by fine pastry chefs who know how to make an excellent crust and make all their own sauces from scratch using ingredients without additives, etc.; real mozzarella cheese; toppings that are fresh and interesting (for a ready made pizza of this style try Whole Foods portobello mushroom with pesto instead of tomato sauce) make a lovely experience. As in the classic Italian style made in Italy, pizza rarely has more than 2 or 3 toppings that are selected to be complimentary and/or contrasting, not just a conglomeration of unrelated foodstuffs and overloaded with fake cheese.
I can count on one hand the number of times a year I indulge in fast food ( I normally cook everything myself from ingredients on which I’ve vetted the labels with assidious care because I have a serious, chronic fatal disease (a viral infection unrelated to food) and nutrition is literally life or death for me, and besides, I can’t afford to dine out) and I grew up in rural North Alabama in a working class family where we couldn’t afford to shop in a grocery, so we grew a massive garden with every vgetable and legume under the sun; swapped vegetables with farmer friends for their pork and beef to fill the freezer with enough meat that we could have it 3 or 4 times weekly. But by and large we had a vegetarian diet. I’m 58 and lived through a half-dozen life-threatening diseases that should have killed me I’ve attended the funerals of countless friends with my condition who have died from the same conditions in their late 20s and 30s, etc. and spent years living in agonizingly poor health. I account my lifelong clean diet for my strong constitution more than any other cause.
Before my condition put me on disability 7 years ago, I enjoyed a brilliant career and social life, living in NYC and LA for the majority of my adult life and meeting and befriending fascinating circles of people. I was able to move in much more sophisticated and highly interesting circles because of my highly skilled cookery and ability to entertain with style and panache at home; my successful, exciting (and many also very wealthy friends) reciprocated with invitations to the finest restaurants in NYC and LA, evenings out at the opera and symphony, opening night screenings of new films, etc.)
Before that, I had left Alabama and secured a brilliant college education, through which I cooked all my meals myself as I couldn’t afford fast food and takeout; I learned early how to prepare vegetables in the French and Italian styles, and Indian cookery. Even with a schedule that was packed with at least 4 hours of piano (major) practice a day, all my other studies, and working 25 hours weekly to get through school, I managed to eat healthfully.
I learned from Julia Child how to cook vegetables in the French manner, using butter and never margarine, from Italian books I learned the values of good olive oil and garlic, etc. My own cooking was so luscious I couldn’t muster any appetite for fast and processed foods.
So much for my life story via nutrition. I hope this has been of some encouragement and help to someone, and may serve as a testimony to the value of being knowledgeable about what one puts in one’s body. But more importantly YOUNG FAMILIES HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY to nourish their children AND NOT TAKE THE EASY ROAD to fast food diets and garbage.
The results show up, if not in childhood and adolesence (manic/depressive sugar highs and lows, tempermental, ill-behavior, poorly developed colon function, etc. and picking up every infection that passes) but it seems we live in a culture where it is accepted that, my 50 or so, the majority of the population suffers from some ungodly cancer at life becomes fraught with fibromyalgia, arthritis, the list is endless and I firmly believe much can be placed at the altar of poor nutrition because “I don’t have time to cook.” You might as well say in the next breath, “and I don’t have time to be concerned about my childrens future health condition, or all the allergies and “tummy aches” they have presently, or their “ADD” and general inability to concentrate.”
That all said in the name just because I don’t understand the pied power piper of pizza.
Thanks for the heads up. I like to have the Freshetta frozen pizza with the rising crust. I’ll have to check their ingredient list to see what I’m putting into my system.
Opens up our minds further and educuates more people on how they could make better choices for themselves and their kids; especially at school. Another great article. THANKS
i have worked for pizza hut in in the past and i can tell you though they do make good pizza i still prefer to make my own, it tastes far better. i have also worked for mcdonals, burger king, burger chef, roy rogers, arby’s, wendy’s, sonic and a few places that were local to the places i have lived over the last 35 years. and, in every place i have worked i have noticed that they all have the same ingredients in their food especially when it comes to the meats they use. and none except arby’s use reprocessed meats and other items.
nice work by exposing the truth . good job young lady
And how did you get the ingredients if they were hard to get in the first place?
I WOULD LIKE TO ASK YOU WHEN WILL SUBWAY SUB SANDWICHES TAKE THAT ADDATIVE OUT OF THERE BREAD USED IN SHOE SOLES
What about Z Pizza?
They claim to use organic ingredients but I can not find the full list published anywhere.
cpk is sold in the gocery store with the ingredients on the side of the box
We all have to die sometime. What about those who are picky about their ingredients and then go motorcycling or sky diving. Everything in life has a risk. Live an enjoyable and tasty life.
Have another cigarette.
Ever think for a second that they don’t want to disclose exactly what is in their recipes because they don’t want someone making pizza that is an exact clone of theirs? KFC literally keeps their ingredients list locked in a safe. Is it so we don’t see what garbage & preservatives are in it? You should already be smart enough to know that if you’re eating KFC, you’re eating crap. So no. It isn’t. It’s because they don’t want copy cats out there making chicken that tastes exactly like theirs. Fast food is full of junk. I don’t need a someone with a website telling me that.
Yes, Pizza is not nutritious.
These pizza chains cater to young and/or drunk people who don’t really care about nutrition, or those to enjoy the high carb, high cholesterol diet. Or the folks who end up getting a pizza once a month, it’s great to be health conscious but pizza isn’t really all that healthy of a food unless you take all the cheese and bread out of it, even if you make it yourself, its high in carbs.
I am not surprised unhealthy food is unhealthy
Vani, Can you tell me if Whole Foods has any of these bad ingredients in the fresh pizzas they make and sell?
Good article and true! One very important message missing in this investigative reporting is the costliest of product that it takes to make a pizza. While focusing on MSG, the writer did not delve into the cheese that big chains utilize. It is not “Real”, it is processed, homogenized oil and soy based. Hence the price you pay, as opposed to purchasing from a truly authentic and independent pizza place. I find it rather amusing when I receive phone calls from customers who tell me that my prices are too high! What’s killing the independent who serves you wholesome product with “Real” cheese is the government control of the fabricated cheese market. Currently the price of block cheese is the highest it’s ever been in the history of cheese! Due to these fabricated costs, many of your independents will not survive, and the consumer will have no choice but to eat “the McDonalds” type of pizza , provided by the Government backed pizza corporations. Eat well, and choose an independent, you will not be disappointed.
Wow, you have a lot of argumentative people on here posting comments, some that are pretty rude so you might not even read them for your own sanity.
Thanks for your research! I was going to post that my own experience with pizza has supported your research. When I make it myself I eat a slice or two and move on but when I buy pizza it doesn’t taste as good yet I can’t stop eating! I knrw from that they were putting chemicals in. I also can taste the chemicals in Pizza Hut and BJs crust coating. I researched and found they use a Phase Oil Butter Substitute! To me it tastes like chemicals but to my friends it tastes like butter! I looked it up….I wouldn’t eat it.
I applaud this article and wish it was written 7 years ago when I started having anaphylactic reactions (life threatening allergic reactions).
After months of migraines, intermittent nausea, heartburn and bouts of severe diarrhea, none of which I ever had, I had an allergic reaction that almost killed me. The docs blew it off but 2 weeks later the same thing happened, and another 2 weeks after that. Thank God I had an epi pen because without it I would have been dead the second time.
After months of testing at Mayo clinic, they decided that I had “Idiopathic Anaphylaxis”. In other words, I was told I had a life threatening allergic reaction to an unknown cause. I
I kept a food diary for two years and long story short, figured out it was MSG and ALL of the derivatives on the list in this article. I’ve since omitted them from my diet and no longer have reactions and am not on any meds as I once was. It has been 4 years since my last reaction. However, in that time, I know three people that began with the same initial symptoms; two of which began having anaphylactic reactions as well. One is my sister and although I have no expertise in this area, I believe there may be a genetic component. The other two people are also siblings.
Please be careful what you eat. Read labels – there are ways to make delicious, healthy food. I recommend chocolate! 🙂
When you had migraines would u have slurred speech, get confused, unbalanced, and have one side of your body go numb? Thats what happens to me when I get migraines and i’m trying to figure out what causes it…
I do not have any of those symptoms, fortunately. I would speak to a doctor about themthose and/or omit the things on the list in the article from your diet and see if the headaches go away or are less severe. Let me know if u have any other questions. Good luck!!
Why so socked everything has MSG now a days. The only groceries stores that don’t are store like whole foods and central market.
Ya know, it’s interesting how the Fox News approach seems to be growing in the private sector…. The issue I have here is that no information is turned into hard assumptions. I’ve seen this in quite a few articles where if info is not turned over on request it assumes all things are bad. No information is exactly that, no information. IMHO you can not presume guilt on lack of evidence. I actually have no allergies or problems with MSG so, to me at least, this whole article is a bit extreme in it’s damnation of the pizza industry. The proposal that they use MSG to make it taste better sounds a bit like ‘And they use ice in the drinks to make them seem colder’. And honestly, with the exception of Mellow Mushroom, I don’t do the chain / delivery pizzas anyway. I got to the local Mom and Pop shops for most of my round food and keep MM for those special occasions. Sorry Food Babe, but you should not have picked on the stuff of my holy communion without a whole lot more info and something a little more devious than hidden MSG…
I like that you are interested in knowing what you’re eating…something that every American should do. Rather, they want to rely upon governments to do that for them. So, eating local, eating fresh, and knowing the people who are raising and producing your food is important.
The takeaway from your article is simple…avoid chains (people vote with their wallet, and if its cheaper, they’ll buy it. We know how chains can make something cheaper now…), cook at home more, and share your knowledge and skills with your family and friends.
What a bummer that Mellow Mushroom chooses to respond in such a manor. I used to go to their restaurant, but not now. Not until I know what they are feeding their customers.
In Domino’s Pizza’s defense, they are changing many of the products in which they use in their foods. I’ve been working there for the past three years and I can definitely say that when I started there, a lot of modified foods and such were going into our products. We now use 100% real cheese, we have a new supplier for our dough which eliminated some artificial preservatives, we have a new supplier for all of our sauces (not sure about ingredient change yet), and we offer gluten free crusts.
Not saying Domino’s is a healthfood place, but at least they’re making an attempt to fix some controversial health issues.
I respect your research, but would be intrigued to see what your shopping list looks like; what you shop for, what you do not shop for. Seems like your investigation list limits consumers. I do respect that you’re giving the consumer the option to shop, eat with the knowledge that your provided. If the object is to eat “organic”/ “clean”/ “pure” with all the chemicals that are in the air, is there anything really “organic”?
I found this information very informative. Thanks for all the leg work and effort. I also appreciate all the latest info about the chains using pink slime instead of real hamburger. I no longer eat McDonald’s but keep in mind it is Pizza. It is NOT low in carbs or fat so one is making an unhealthy decision anyway. It’s all about moderation. I say do what you can and don’t stress about what you can’t.
Response given to me from Mellow Mushroom ( note that I did not ask them about MSG ):
Thanks for your inquiry about ingredients in Mellow Mushroom products. We are now, as we have always been, committed to serving wholesome, nutritious food and we’re very proud of the quality of product that we deliver to our guests. We make a strong effort to serve all-natural products anywhere possible. We do not publish our full ingredient lists because many of our products are proprietary recipes. However, if we receive inquiries about specific ingredients we will always make our best effort to address any of our guests concerns.
Currently, the only product we serve which contains MSG is our lite ranch salad dressing. We also do not have azodicarbonimade in our dough or any of our other bread products. Regarding, GMOs, unfortunately, at this time we have not been able to find a viable source to supply us with an oil that works for our application in the quantity that we require. We are continuing to search out a product, and we have let our vendors know that this is of importance to us, and hope that they will see the consumer demand and find a way to source appropriate products.
Regarding our current product, the product(s) may have been derived from a genetically modified source material, but should not contain modified DNA and/or proteins derived from genetically modified DNA due to the processing of refined oils. Its exact status cannot be determined due to intermixing of genetically modified and non-genetically modified varieties at the source.
If there are any other ingredients you may be concerned about, please feel free to contact me directly. We appreciate your business and I want to personally thank you for taking time to contact us about your concerns. Feedback from our guests helps us to understand what is important to you, and assists us with guidance in our decision making processes.
Reading some of these comments are quite simply…hilarious. The Chemist takes the cake for the most hilarious with his “placebo” effect comment. You are not a chemist…or probably never have taken a chemistry class. If you did, you would know that MSG the “flavor enhancer” and the Monosodium glutamate that is produced by the human body are two different things. The human body creates a lot of different amino acids and too much of them can be harmful. This is basic stuff taught in Pre-Med. It is a proven fact that one can get migraines from too much MSG…(me included and I read every label and will never touch the stuff) or cocoa or lactose etc…so with that said, I understand that this is just research by one blogger, the Food Babe but I happen to applaud her for bringing some of this to light. If you want to still eat Papa Johns…because you are a Peyton Manning fan, then go for it. Its all about choice…informed or not. I am out. Peace
Trust no one. It’s the best policy.
People put poison in their bodies and wonder why they get sick. I love how we’re the ones saying don’t poison yourselves anymore and somehow that makes us crazy.
An excellent chain in Massachusetts is Flatbread’s pizza, all of their ingredients are local and organic! They are a wonderful company that has grown in the past 15 years, check’em out Food Babe
I thought soy was supposed to be good for us.
In my opinion, nothing tastes better than fresh ingredients and therefore its a win win, healthy and tastes great.
I contacted Mellow Mushroom Pizza after this.
One of their VPs got back to me and was really nice. She said that the ONLY ingredient that they serve that has MSG or a MSG biproduct is the Ranch Dressing.
I was happy to receive her email and she said she would offer me information on any ingredient I wanted.
I’m not saying it’s organic, or clean to eat, but they seem to be more cooperative than Food Babe mentioned….
PS – Food Babe, Hello my name is Ross. Love what you’re doing sweetie. Keep it up! 🙂
Thank God you’ve pulled the curtain back on the evil plot of the pizza industry and their master plan to take over the world with MSG. I’m sure we can all sleep better now.
As a New Yorker, I would not even consider eating pizza from one of these places you generously call “pizza restaurants”. Try going to a real pizza place, usually a family owned and run business. You will find them using ingredients as good as or better than you would use at home.
I appreciate all the work that went into researching this. And I am not the least bit surprised at your findings. The list of pizza places you list is bewildering. Americans need to get away from eating in places like this PERIOD. We don’t need an in-depth study on ingredients to know that what they are serving is toxic. The answer is to cook at home, or to eat at real restaurants, owned by actual human beings, chuffed by actual human chefs–not corporations, whose only concern is the bottom line. The damage that these restaurants does to the soul must be equal or greater to the toxic affects on the body.
MSG is a flavor enchancer, not something to brainwash you into eating more food. I ate Chinese take out last month; that doesn’t mean I want to keep eating it over and over.
Also not every place has the same pizza joints as you do. Duuuuh.
I’m sorry I cannot share your enthusiasm for Pizza Fusion – certainly one of the least tasty and most expensive pizzas I’ve had. My grandson told me he didn’t want to go back. The local Pizza Fusion in our are stayed in business less than a year.
The correct word for your title is “figuratively”. “Literally” couldn’t be more wrong in this context. Unless, of course, that your mind would literally explode if you eat a Papa John’s Pizza. Other than that, excellent article.
And to all the people who are referring to the 72-year-old as a cannibal. Um…he wasn’t talking about eating her (literally). Still a gross comment, however.
As the owner of an independent pizza restaurant in Manhattan Beach CA. (Union Pizza Company) , I applaud your article and am not at all surprised by this.
That is why when I decided to get into the pizza biz 2 years ago I knew I wanted to make everything all natural. It took me a long time to source the products we use. Both our Chicago deep dish and NY style pies use 100% all natural ingredients. Everything made fresh in store. All of our toppings are all natural and meats contain no nitrates or nitrites. No one else does this. Why? Because it costs them a lot more. But it is worth it . My customers like it and I know it makes a better tasting pizza. I can only hope that people will wake up to the fact that cheaper chain pizzas are really not so good for you but independent places that go out of their way to make a natural pie are worth the extra bucks.
Spread the natural pizza love!
Ever wonder why you can’t stop at one slice? This is why.
Hmm, my reply would be: because pizza is generally pretty bad-ass and tasty. But home made pizza is the real don here, so much nicer, healthier and cheaper than chain-pizza places. And easy as **** to make.
For those in or visiting Minnesota – Pizza Luce http://pizzaluce.com/
is pretty stellar. I wrote and asked them about ingredients in the pizzas my family (kids & hubby & I) enjoy – including their gluten free versions (I can’t handle gluten.) They got back to me fairly promptly – after digging up all the details. The only issues are non-organic wheat flour (in the regular crusts; potential GMOs) and a blended oil which contains canola in that crust and the sauces as well. The rest is actually all natural ingredients – including many organic crust ingredients in the gluten free version (which is dairy, egg, nut, and soy-free as well!) and some of the toppings. I have to give them a shout-out for this! Pretty good – and by going with a gf crust – you can avoid the wheat altogether. Woot! Here’s hoping they take my suggestions (organic wheat flour and no canola oil) into consideration for the future 🙂
I am so glad that the only pizza I eat, I know is made from honest ingredients.
I watch the dough being made, the cooks grate the cheese themselves, slice most of the ingredients that come fresh, and make the marinara sauce from scratch, too!
There isn’t a single thing on the menu at that restaurant that I wouldn’t eat for fear of it not being made right there in that kitchen.
Bella Vista Restaurant in Peters Creek, Alaska.
I have personally contacted Papa John’s a while back ago when I first started paying attention to ingredients and asked them if they use cheese from cows treated with artificial growth hormones/rBST or rBGH and they told me that they “do not eliminate suppliers who treat their cows with rBST.” Which translates to: probably all or most of their cheese is from cows treated with artificial growth hormones. That’s nasty b/s right there! No thanks!
The sprouted tortilla pizza recipe on this blog is amazing! I started making it all the time. It always feeds my pizza cravings! I know exactly what I am eating and can eat organic ingredients at a fraction of the cost (and time!)
Sheri – Thanks for sharing your experience. And I LOVE that you love the recipe… makes my day!
Shocker pizza is bad for you. What are you going to enlighten us next? Fried chicken is bad for us?