I got this note in my inbox with a screenshot of Crumbl Cookies ingredients:
“THIS is one of the fastest growing dessert shops in America?!?!?! This needs to be exposed. I think their motto should be ‘Cancer dressed up in a cookie’ – Thank you, Julie”
Crumbl Cookies is indeed the fastest growing dessert shop in America right now. They’ve opened up more than 750 shops in the last few years…so you probably have one near you or will soon.
When I researched Crumbl’s ingredients, I was shocked and knew I needed to share this ASAP!
Watch this short video to see the alarming ingredients found inside Crumbl Cookies, many of which are linked to cancer and inflammation:
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Take a look at what’s in Crumbl’s Classic Pink Sugar Cookies:
CRUMBL PINK SUGAR COOKIE INGREDIENTS: Powdered Sugar (Sugar, Corn Starch), All Purpose Flour (Bleached Wheat Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Niacin, Iron, Thiamin Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Sugar, Butter (Pasteurized Cream, Salt), Heavy Cream (Heavy Cream, Carrageenan, Mono And Diglycerides, Polysorbate 80, Egg, Salt, Baking Soda, Corn Starch, Flavoring (Water, Sugar, Glycerin, Vanilla Extract (Water, Alcohol, Extractive Of Vanilla Beans), Natural Flavors, Fruit Juice (Color)), Almond Extract (Water, Alcohol, Oil Of Bitter Almond), Salt, Cream Of Tartar, Red Color (Water, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Glycerine, Sugar, FD&C Red 40, Modified Food Starch, FD&C Red 3, FD&C Yellow 5, Carrageenan Gum, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate, Xanthan Gum, Citric Acid.
Ingredients in some more popular Crumbl Cookies…
Crumbl Ultimate Peanut Butter Cookies:
Crumbl Strawberry Shortcake Cookies:
Crumbl Dirt Cake Cookies:
Crumbl Red Velvet White Chip Cookies:
Crumbl Banana Cream Pie Cookies:
Here’s why I avoid these ingredients like the plague:
TITANIUM DIOXIDE: Banned in Europe after scientists at the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) found it “no longer safe to eat” based on their review of hundreds of scientific studies showing that it has genotoxic effects. This means that it has the ability to damage DNA, leading to cancer. (1)
ARTIFICIAL COLORS: Dyes derived from petroleum, linked to several health issues including allergies and hyperactivity in children, which require a warning label in Europe. Recent research shows they may also disrupt the immune system. (2)
RED 3: The FDA banned this artificial color from cosmetics in 1990 after it was shown to cause cancer in animal studies, but they still allow it in our food! A bill is currently pending in both California and New York that will ban Red 3 from food…but for now it’s up to us to read the ingredient list to avoid it. (1)
NATURAL & ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS: Proprietary mixtures that make food taste irresistible so that you keep coming back for more. Preservatives, emulsifiers, solvents and other additives can make up 80% of the formulation (such as: sodium benzoate, glycerin, potassium sorbate, and propylene glycol) – None of which are labeled. With these flavors, chemists can make anything taste like “strawberry shortcake” without any actual strawberries (or any real food for that matter), which is a really horrible thing if you care about health. But it’s a great thing for food manufacturers because these flavors are much cheaper than using real food. (2)
BHA: Shown to be an endocrine disruptor, linked to cancer, causing tumors in animal studies. The International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies BHA as “possibly carcinogenic to humans“ and it’s been deemed a “reasonably anticipated human carcinogen” by the U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services, National Toxicology Program. (2)
TBHQ: Controversial preservative that may harm the immune system and increase the risk of food allergies. Scientific research has shown that TBHQ negatively affects “T-cells” in the body (which are generally used to fight infections) in a way that promotes allergies to tree nuts, milk, eggs, wheat and shellfish. (2)
POLYSORBATE 80: An emulsifier linked to weight gain, inflammation and digestive problems. (3)
CARRAGEENAN: A thickener and emulsifier that can cause digestive problems and intestinal inflammation. Tests have found that “food-grade carrageenan” is contaminated with up to 25% of “degraded carrageenan” (the kind not supposed to be used in food and drinks). Degraded carrageenan is classified as a “possible human carcinogen” by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. (2)
MONO AND DIGLYCERIDES: This emulsifier is a byproduct of oil processing – including canola and soybean oils – which may contain trans fat that is detrimental to our heart health. (2)
HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP (HFCS): This heavily processed sweetener made from GMO cornstarch that contains more fructose than regular corn syrup. Studies have shown it increases appetite and the risk of weight gain, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, cancer and dementia. HFCS especially contributes to type 2 diabetes in children. (2)
ACESULFAME POTASSIUM: An artificial sweetener that the Center for Science in Public Interest says to avoid it because safety testing was inadequate and some research links it to cancer. (2)
HYDROGENATED VEGETABLE OILS: These contain small amounts of artificial trans fats which are detrimental to heart health. According to EWG – the FDA has found low levels of trans fat in fully hydrogenated oils. Refined oils go through an insane amount of processing at high temperatures with chemicals to transform them into clear, bland, and odorless product. (4)
SOYBEAN OIL: This unhealthy oil is too high in omega-6 fatty acids and increases the risk of obesity, inflammation, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and autoimmune diseases. (2)
BLEACHED FLOUR: This is the worst type of flour because it’s been stripped of fiber and nutrients, and comes from a heavily hybridized wheat crop, which may have been pre-harvested with Roundup weed killer, linked to cancer. Treated with up to any of the 60 different chemicals approved by the FDA – including chemical bleach. (2)
And let’s talk about that ice cream they serve at Crumbl…
The ingredients in Crumbl’s ice cream are just as processed as their cookies. It is full of high fructose corn syrup and emulsifiers that can affect gut bacteria and trigger inflammation and other changes in the gut (2, 3), as well as obesity and metabolic syndrome:
- Cellulose Gel
- Cellulose Gum
- Polysorbate 80
- Carrageenan
No thanks!
If you love Crumbl Cookies, don’t despair! I have incredible recipes for you made without processed ingredients:
- Flourless Chocolate Chip Cookies (Gluten-free and amazing!)
- Classic Real Ginger Cookies (Soft, sweet and downright addictive)
- Almond Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies (Love these around the Holidays, but good any time of year!)
My BRAND NEW book, Food Babe Family, has recipes for Homemade “Oreos” and Oatmeal Cream Pie Cookies! Don’t these look delicious??? (They are!)
Order your copy of Food Babe Family here today and you’ll qualify for some incredible pre-order bonuses coming this Summer!
If you know anyone who loves Crumbl Cookies, make sure to share these ingredient lists with them. Here’s to making delicious cookies for our families without toxins!
Xo,
Vani
P.S. Subscribe to my free email newsletter to get my latest investigations in your inbox each week + updates on the free bonuses you get when you order Food Babe Family. I have some really fun stuff planned for you. You don’t want to miss it!
References:
- https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/red-dye-no-3-titanium-dioxide-potassium-bromate-brominated-vegetable-oil-propylparaben-california-ban-bill/
- https://foodbabe.com/ingredients-to-avoid/
- https://www.cbsnews.com/news/food-additives-linked-to-obesity-digestive-problems/
- https://www.ewg.org/research/hidden-plain-sight
Thank you for once again publishing these toxic ingredients – much appreciated!
Although these cookies look yummy, they are toxic little suckers!
Yes, thank you. I am in a two day migraine after eating two crumbl cookies. I have an aldehyde dehydrogenase insufficiency and wondered about the extracts since they do not fully bake their cookies. I had no idea about all the other ingredients. Thank you
No wonder EVERY time I eat these cookies I have painful cramping within a half hour. Never again.
I don’t know how to explain it, but I have a sixth sense sometimes about food I’ll eat. I was just a few bites, I notice or feel something isn’t right or is very good about the food. I’ll check my self, and wonder what I ate and what I am sensing. It started with Carrageenan In cereals and skim milk and 2% milk. Gave me brain fog(But the fat in whole milk and half-and-half and ice cream blocks the absorption of it) Then with sodas that gave me an overall very light odd nerve sensation in my head and body. Long story short, I end up discovering is because of the high fructose corn syrup. Because similar products with cane sugar give me zero negative feelings. Then I started noticing artificial coloring, artificial & (un)natural flavors and artificial sweeteners I could taste. And many other things that I haven’t put a finger on. I think I can sense titanium dioxide. When I took a few bites of a Crumbl cookie I knew something was off. One or two the cookies weren’t so bad Without the frosting. (My daughter had call the number of them) But overall I knew something was up. So I eventually looked it up online and found this website. A give God the Glory for this awareness.
When I took a few bites of a Crumbl cookie I knew something was off. One or two of the cookies weren’t so bad Without the frosting. But with the frosting, not good. (I was able to taste many of them because My daughter had bought a number of them and slice them up for us to try) But overall I knew something was up. So I eventually looked it up online and found this website… I don’t know how to explain it, but I have a sixth sense about food I’ll eat. I eat just a few bites, & notice or feel something isn’t right; or is very good about the food. I’ll check my self, and wonder what I ate and what I am sensing.
About the bad Ingredients, It started with Carrageenan In cereals and skim milk and 2% milk. It gave me brain fog (But the fat in whole milk, half-and-half and cream blocks the absorption of it). Then with all Sodas with high fructose corn syrup; I felt an overall light and odd nerve sensation in my head and body: Long story short, I end up discovering it comparing similar products with cane sugar; which gave me zero negative feelings. Then I started noticing artificial coloring, artificial & (un)natural flavors and artificial sweeteners, which I could taste. And many other things that I haven’t put a finger on. I think I can sense titanium dioxide.
I give God the Glory for this awareness.
Edited
What about the malt barley? Can we get some more clarification what is in that?
I had a panic attack one night after eating a crumbl pink sugar cookie and now I’m searching the internet (almost a year later) trying to figure out what my food triggers are and landed on this site. I believe I have histamine intolerance, for what it’s worth. Some of these ingredients are high histamine. After I had covid last year, food triggers and probably histamine intolerance caused me to begin having panic attacks for the first time. Another day I ate a donut and had the same issue. After looking at the ingredients of that particular store bought donut, I see overlap in several ingredients including the flour and red dye. I’m also investigating a gluten sensitivity, but for now I’m doing low histamine and gluten free just to be safe. I feel a lot better already. Thanks for posting. We really have no idea what we’re eating.