I remember years ago when I noticed that brominated vegetable oil was one of the ingredients in the Mountain Dew I was drinking—and I sure do drink a lot of MTN Dew. I’m a bit nerdy—I read the nutrition label and ingredients for almost everything I drink and eat, for both health and curiosity. Brominated vegetable (BVO) is an emulsifier—it prevents separation of oil and water. How does that relate to citrus sodas? Well, apparently, citrus flavored sodas probably utilized essential oils (especially that of citrus), which would otherwise rise at the top and be gross. However, BVO contains bromine, an element that is almost identical to chlorine. This identical quality makes it toxic—bodily functions that rely on chlorine, including kidneys and even braincells might be using bromine instead and that is not good (links to a medical related video on why you don’t want bromide in your system).
Until 2023, BVO was considered safe (in regulated amounts) to the FDA. But California didn’t quite agree. California became the first U.S. state to ban food additives that were still allowed by the FDA in 2023 under Governor Gavin Newsom. This forced the FDA’s hand of course, and it banned BVO in 2024. The FDA is notoriously slow when it comes to doing things, especially good things—so having California (and maybe other U.S. states) doing what the FDA won’t (yet) puts not only pressure on the FDA but also just protects people—especially if states act first to protect their people. With the FDA and CDC under the Trump administration, it becomes that much more important that states, especially California, lead the charge in making decisions that protect people’s health. Because who knows—maybe the FDA under Trump might just undo bans, just as the CDC has undone vaccination schedules.