Seaweed is used in most ice creams as a thickening agent. The food additive, carrageenan, is made from edible seaweeds and is often listed on the labels of ice cream and other products. There is some controversy over its use in foods that are labeled as "all-natural" or "healthy." The issue over carrageenan is that some studies have suggested it might cause inflammation in the intestines, while others have indicated that it might even contribute to the production of cancer cells. However, many scientists have found these studies to be flawed and declared the food additive as safe to eat.

Question

Seaweed is used in most ice creams as a thickening agent. The food additive, carrageenan, is made from edible seaweeds and is often listed on the labels of ice cream and other products. There is some controversy over its use in foods that are labeled as "all-natural" or "healthy." The issue over carrageenan is that some studies have suggested it might cause inflammation in the intestines, while others have indicated that it might even contribute to the production of cancer cells. However, many scientists have found these studies to be flawed and declared the food additive as safe to eat.
What does the text explicitly state about carrageenan?

GPT-4o mini · Answer

The text explicitly states that carrageenan is a food additive made from edible seaweeds and is often listed on the labels of ice cream and other products. It also mentions that some studies have suggested that carrageenan might cause inflammation in the intestines and could contribute to the production of cancer cells. However, it notes that many scientists have found these studies to be flawed and declared the food additive as safe to eat.