BHA Butylated Hydroxyanisole

Commonly Used in:
Baked Goods
Beer
Butter
Cereal
Chewing Gum
Desserts Mixes

(BHA) Butylated Hydroxyanisole (butylated hy·​droxy·​tol·​u·​ene) is a synthetic food additive that is used as a preservative to keep the fats in food from spoiling. The food industry prefers to use BHA because it can remain stable at higher temperatures than vitamin E.

The FDA recognizes BHA as safe for human consumption but, other organizations like The National Institutes of Health describe BHA as a carcinogen (cancer-causing agent) for animals and a Group 2B carcinogen for humans. There is enough evidence from studies on experimented animals to anticipate that the additive is also a human carcinogen.

Bottom Line: BHA is, believed to be safe in low doses, but there are foods available without them. If you want to avoid BHA, read food labels carefully and make your foods from scratch at home.