How to Track Food Additives With an App

What Are Food Additives and Why Track Them?

Food additives are substances added during manufacturing to preserve freshness, improve texture, enhance flavour, or add colour. In the UK, every additive must be approved by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and assigned an E-number — a standardised code used across Europe.

Most additives are perfectly safe for the majority of people. Vitamin C (E300), citric acid (E330), and pectin (E440) are all additives you would recognise from your own kitchen. But some additives have attracted genuine scientific scrutiny, and certain individuals may be sensitive to specific ones without realising it.

Tracking additives helps you:

• Understand what you are eating — Moving beyond the nutrition label to see the full picture of a product’s ingredients.
• Identify personal sensitivities — If you experience symptoms like headaches, bloating, skin irritation, or low energy after eating, tracking additives alongside a food diary can help you spot patterns.
• Make informed choices for your family — Parents may want to limit certain artificial colours, particularly the Southampton Six colours linked to hyperactivity in children.
• Manage dietary requirements — Some additives are derived from animal sources (E120 carmine from insects, E441 gelatine). Tracking helps those following vegan, halal, or kosher diets.
• Reduce ultra-processed food intake — A high number of additives in a product is often a marker of ultra-processed food (UPF).

How a Food Additive Tracker App Works

Modern food additive apps use several technologies to give you instant, detailed information about what is in your food.

Barcode scanning

Point your phone camera at a product’s barcode. The app identifies the product and retrieves its full ingredient list from a database. Each additive is then cross-referenced against a comprehensive E-number database, and you see a clear breakdown within seconds.

Additive identification and explanation

For each additive found, a good tracker app tells you: what the additive is (its chemical name and common name), what function it serves in the food (preservative, emulsifier, colour, sweetener), where it is commonly found in other products, what the FSA and EFSA say about its safety, and whether it has any known concerns or restrictions.

Food diary integration

The real power of tracking comes from logging foods over time. When you add a scanned product to your food diary, the additive data goes with it. After a few weeks, you can review which additives appear most frequently in your diet and whether any correlate with symptoms you have been experiencing.

Reaction and symptom logging

Some apps, including NutraSafe, let you log how you feel alongside what you eat. If you consistently feel bloated after eating foods containing a particular emulsifier, or get headaches when you consume certain sweeteners, this pattern becomes visible over time — giving you useful information to discuss with your GP or dietitian.

The Key Additives Worth Tracking

You do not need to track every single additive — most are genuinely harmless. But there are several categories that attract the most interest from health-conscious consumers.

The Southampton Six (artificial colours)

A 2007 University of Southampton study, commissioned by the FSA, found that certain artificial food colours were associated with increased hyperactivity in some children when combined with the preservative sodium benzoate (E211). The six colours are:

• E102 — Tartrazine (yellow)
• E104 — Quinoline Yellow
• E110 — Sunset Yellow
• E122 — Carmoisine (red)
• E124 — Ponceau 4R (red)
• E129 — Allura Red

Products containing these must carry a warning label in the UK. Many manufacturers have voluntarily replaced them with natural alternatives like beetroot extract or paprika.

Artificial sweeteners

Aspartame (E951), acesulfame K (E950), sucralose (E955), and saccharin (E954) are widely used in diet drinks, sugar-free sweets, and low-calorie foods. All are FSA-approved, but some people report sensitivity symptoms. EFSA completed a full re-evaluation of aspartame in 2013 and confirmed it as safe at current levels, and the WHO’s IARC classification in 2023 categorised it as “possibly carcinogenic” (Group 2B) while the JECFA committee maintained existing safety levels.

Preservatives

Sodium nitrite (E250) is used in bacon, ham, and processed meats to prevent bacterial growth and maintain colour. Sodium benzoate (E211) is common in soft drinks and sauces. Sulphites (E220–E228) are used in wine, dried fruit, and some processed foods and must be declared as allergens in the UK.

Emulsifiers

Mono- and diglycerides (E471), polysorbate 80 (E433), and carboxymethylcellulose (E466) are used extensively in processed foods to improve texture and shelf life. Some preliminary research has explored links between certain emulsifiers and gut health, though this evidence is still in its early stages.

Practical Tips for Tracking Additives Effectively

Getting the most out of additive tracking does not require obsessive label-reading. Here are practical strategies that work in everyday life.

Start with your regular shopping

You do not need to scan every item in the supermarket on day one. Begin by scanning the products you buy most frequently — your usual bread, cereal, snacks, sauces, and ready meals. This gives you a baseline understanding of the additives you are consuming most often.

Focus on patterns, not individual ingredients

The goal is not to eliminate every additive from your diet — that would be impractical and unnecessary. Instead, look for patterns. Are you consuming the same artificial sweetener across five different products each day? Are certain preservatives appearing in everything you eat? Awareness is the first step.

Use your diary to connect symptoms

If you suspect food sensitivities, track both what you eat and how you feel. After two to four weeks, review your diary for correlations. This is far more reliable than guessing, and the data you collect can be genuinely useful if you decide to consult a healthcare professional.

Compare products before you buy

One of the most practical uses of a tracker app is comparing similar products in the shop. Two brands of the same food can have very different additive profiles. Scanning both takes seconds and lets you choose the one that better matches your preferences.

Check “health” foods too

Products marketed as healthy, low-fat, high-protein, or sugar-free often contain more additives than their standard counterparts. Sweeteners replace sugar, emulsifiers replace fat, and flavourings compensate for the taste changes. Scanning these products can be particularly revealing.

What to Look For in a Food Additive Tracker App

Not all food apps are created equal. When choosing an additive tracker, look for these features:

• UK product database — Many food apps are US-focused. Make sure the app covers UK products and references FSA guidance rather than FDA.
• Complete E-number database — The app should cover all commonly used E-numbers with detailed explanations, not just a handful of well-known ones.
• Plain-English explanations — Technical jargon is unhelpful. Good apps explain additives in language anyone can understand.
• Food diary with additive logging — Scanning is useful, but tracking over time is where the real insight comes from.
• Symptom and reaction tracking — If you want to identify sensitivities, you need to log how you feel alongside what you eat.
• No fear-mongering — Beware of apps that label everything as “toxic” or “dangerous”. The best apps present factual information and let you make your own decisions.
• Free core features — Basic additive checking should not be behind a paywall.

How NutraSafe Tracks Additives

NutraSafe was built specifically for UK consumers who want to understand what is in their food without the jargon or the fear.

Scan any UK product

Point your camera at a barcode and see every additive in the product within seconds. Each additive is explained in plain English with its E-number, function, and FSA safety status.

Browse the E-number database

Even without a product in hand, you can explore the full E-number database. Search by number, name, or category to learn about any additive.

Log and track over time

Add scanned products to your food diary. Over days and weeks, you build a clear picture of which additives appear most frequently in your diet. If you also log reactions, NutraSafe helps you identify potential correlations.

See the full nutritional picture

Additives are just one piece of the puzzle. When you scan a product, you also see calories, macronutrients, micronutrients, and ultra-processed food classification — giving you a comprehensive view of what you are eating.

Frequently Asked Questions

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