Irish Moss Health Concerns
Go figure, I finally jump onto the Irish Moss train, which has been touted as a super food in the raw food community for years, only to wake up to a weekly email in my in-box from Dr. Andrew Weil warning about the dangers of carrageenan. What does this have to do with Irish Moss? Carrageenan is extracted from Irish Moss.
Alarmed, I started digging and emailing. I even went to the woman who is considered to be the one of the top experts in carrageenan research, Dr. Joanne Tobacman of the University of Illinois. Dr. Tobacman has been studying the effects of carrageenan for over a decade.
It seems that carrageenan can cause inflammation (one of our greatest enemies) and intestinal distress. Even more alarming, when carrageenan is extracted from the irish moss, this form of carrageenan has been associated with human cancers.
But wait, haven’t we all read about the wonderful health benefits of Irish Moss? Isn’t it supposed to be great for us? I wondered if there was a difference between consuming Irish Moss in it’s whole form vs an extraction, the carrageenan.
I asked Dr. Tobacman if we needed to be concerned with consuming Irish Moss in it’s whole form. While the extraction is the most dangerous form (and widely found in many organic and non-organic products for sale), Dr. Tobacman stated, “When we tested Irish moss, we found that it also caused inflammation, similar to the effect of the derived carrageenan. The degree of inflammation was less, probably due to reduced availability of the carrageenan, due to the other ingredients in the seaweed. The answer to your question is yes, I think that Irish moss should be avoided, due to the likelihood that the carrageenan in the Irish moss will lead to inflammation.”
So there you have it. Armed with that information, you will not see Irish Moss used in any more recipes designated for consumption on this website. I am also redoing the Lemon Raspberry Souffle Tart that I published last week, replacing Irish Moss on the ingredient list.
Because of the prevalence of carrageenan in so many of the products that we use, including many organic varieties, I am including some links that I think are important for you to visit to educate yourselves on this dangerous food additive.
Dr. Tobacman’s studies can be viewed here: Studies on Carrageenan (these are published medical studies)
Another excellent, easier to read article by Rodal Press: Carrageenan, The Natural Ingredient that is Wrecking Your Gut
From the Cornucopia Institute: Carrageenan: Linked to Gastrointestinal Inflammation and Colon Cancer This article also discusses the attempts to get carrageenan removed from organic foods and the push-back the ensued.
After researching, reading and communicating with Dr. Tobacman, I would suggest that you remove Irish Moss from your raw food pantry and also make sure you look for carrageenan on your food labels and avoid it. Cornucopia has compiled a list of food producers that use carrageenan and those who don’t. You can find that list here: Shopping Guide to Avoid Carrageenan.
Dale wrote on October 12, 2012
Thanks for whatever alternative use you can come up with for the Irish Moss . . . as soon as I saw the Meyer Lemon tart recipe I went to Amazon and purchased the pan and the Irish Moss, so I’m looking forward to whatever you can suggest on using the Irish Moss!
Susan wrote on October 12, 2012
I will be using it for facials. Look for a recipe next week. Cheers!
Gena wrote on October 12, 2012
Thanks, Susan. I had seen Dr. Tobacman’s study on PubMed and was concerned, but was hoping there might be additional information published soon (i.e., dosage? is there a difference in the human body between Irish moss carrageenan and industrially produced?). Your going directly to her seems to have cleared that up. I’m very, very loathe to get alarmist about any health ingredient — indeed, I’ve been using agave long after the AGAVE IS EVIL campaign — but this actually seems quite legit. I’m grateful for your post. xo
LauraT wrote on October 11, 2012
Really? I thought all agave and cashews needed to be heat processed! Great to know. Thanks for the info.
LauraT wrote on October 11, 2012
Susan, wondering if you came across anything about agar agar in your research? I’ve been using agar for more than 30 years and often substitute it for Irish moss in raw food recipes. Yes, I know it’s not raw, in fact I soak over night then dissolve in water by simmering but then maple syrup, cashews and agave aren’t technically raw either. I’m more concerned with my foods being clean, organic, vegan and wholesome than completely raw. I haven’t yet followed the links you posted but I will. Thank you for posting this information and for your uncompromising integrity.
Susan wrote on October 11, 2012
I do not have any information on Agar Agar. By the way, you can find truly raw cashews (from Navitas Naturals) and raw agave if you look. Cheers!
Denise wrote on October 11, 2012
I have on occasion thought about using Irish Moss but have never bought it. I am glad that I have not and I am glad to hear this report. I will be interested to see what ingredients you use now instead of the Irish Moss. Thank you for sharing this information. What I do not need is more inflammation in my body.
ben wrote on October 11, 2012
Thanks, Susan. Good to know. I’ve never liked the taste of Irish Moss, so no big loss to me. I’ve substituted agar-agar (not fully raw, I know, since it has to be dissolved in hot water) whenever Irish Moss has been required in recipes.
deb wrote on October 11, 2012
Wow….thanks for the info!! I’ve known about carragennan causing inflamation….and I’ve always been diligent about staying away from it….. but I had no idea it was in Irish Moss!!!
Love all of your info sharing!!!
Thanks for all that you do!
Paul B wrote on October 11, 2012
I’m reserving judgement right now. The claims are based on animal data alone, no human trials. This kind of data has produced false positives and false negatives before (think Thalidomide false negative, or saccharin, false positive). with no human data showing carrageenan cause inflammation. and carrageenan is not a whole food. Are there any data showing irish moss ingestion poses risks? I can’t find one. carrageenan is an extract. and there are many examples where the extracted food poses risks where the whole food doesn’t. Isolated soy protein vs. edameme (raises IGF 1, whole food doesn’t), flax seed oil vs. ground flax seed (flax seed oil increases prostate cancer risk, no evidence for flax seed), etc etc. Beta carotene supplements show risk where eating the whole food containing it does not. carrageenan is not a whole food. And frankly the evidence damning it isn’t all that convincing. Is there any? evidence that irish moss ingestion has caused any problem to anyone? even anecodotal? I’m not being rhetorical here. I’m asking in earnest. Pubmed won’t help you. I tried. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=%22irish%20moss%22
I think my frustration is rejecting a whole food out of hand based on limiteddata for one form of an extract from it with little or no human data for the extract. And no data whatsoever for the whole food. Hijiki? yeah, there’s data that stuff has arsenic. Irish moss. Your move. I’m using it.
Paul
Susan wrote on October 11, 2012
Paul, actually, there have been studies done both on Irish Moss in it’s whole form and on human tissue. The data I researched and the information I got from Dr. Tobacman along with the other articles sited above were more than enough to convince me that it is something I don’t want in my diet. I am not alone. I think that when the top researcher, who has been researching this topic for over a decade recommends that you do not consume Irish Moss, it might be wise to listen but you are certainly free to do what ever you want. I will not be using it on this site anymore.
Karolina wrote on October 11, 2012
To quote Jonathan Bechtel: “There’s a difference between the seaweed that’s used to make carrageenan and the preservative that’s used in food, which has been degraded. It’s the degraded carrageenan that causes most of the health problems.”
That being said, you can relax now..
Susan wrote on October 11, 2012
Karolina, that is exactly the question I put infront of Dr. Tobacman and she stated that they also tested Irish Moss in it’s whole form and found that it caused inflammation. Her quote is above.