Margarine Loaded with Trans Fats
Picture those bright yellow tubs of margarine that every American family had in their fridge back in the groovy seventies. Trans fat margarine was everywhere in the ’70s, marketed as a miracle health food. Little did we know those partially hydrogenated oils were silently clogging arteries across America. My own mother used to slather this stuff on everything, convinced she was making the healthier choice over butter.
Artificial trans fat, which is created when oil is partially hydrogenated, was ubiquitous until recently in cookies, pies, and other baked goods; margarine; fried potatoes and chicken; microwave popcorn; and other processed and restaurant foods. What seemed like a modern miracle was actually a nutritional nightmare. The CDC says that trans fat increases low-density lipoprotein (LDL, or “bad”) cholesterol and may decrease high-density lipoprotein (HDL, or “good”) cholesterol, making trans fats even worse for heart health than the saturated fats they were designed to replace.
Red Dye Number 2 in Everything
Red Dye #2 (amaranth) gave countless candies, popsicles, and foods their eye-catching crimson hue throughout the early ’70s. The synthetic color appeared in everything from maraschino cherries to breakfast cereals. Kids particularly loved red-colored treats, which manufacturers produced in abundance. Those bright red treats were practically currency on school playgrounds, and nobody questioned what made them so vibrantly colored.
However, its reputation began to deteriorate following concerns about its safety, particularly after a 1969 study from the Moscow Institute of Nutrition found a link to increased tumors in rats. Although the FDA’s own investigations were inconclusive, public anxiety grew, fueled by advocates calling for restrictions on artificial additives. In 1976, the FDA banned Red Dye No. 2 as a food additive, while allowing its use in textiles, reflecting a broader trend of skepticism towards chemical ingredients in food.
Space Food Sticks
Amid the space race fervor, Space Food Sticks emerged as a terrestrial taste of astronaut life. These chewy, nutrient-packed snacks were designed to mimic the food consumed by astronauts, offering kids and adults alike a glimpse into space travel’s culinary side. Despite their initial popularity fueled by space obsession, the decline in space race excitement led to the disappearance of Space Food Sticks, relegating them to the annals of quirky food history.
These weren’t your average granola bars – they were marketed as the future of nutrition wrapped in foil packaging. These weren’t just snacks — they were a taste of the future. Space Food Sticks were inspired by the rations eaten by astronauts, which made them feel light-years cooler than regular old granola bars. Kids begged their parents to buy these processed sticks, believing they were eating exactly what Neil Armstrong munched on in space.
TV Dinners with Mystery Meat
A turkey or fried chicken dinner encased in foil was where it was at in the 1970s. You had to perform surgery to extricate the peas and carrots baked into the fruit cobbler that lay between the potatoes and the veggies. These were a staple dinner for Friday nights ahead of “The Brady Bunch.” The aluminum trays promised convenience, but delivered questionable nutrition and ingredients that barely resembled real food.
These frozen meals were the epitome of processed convenience, containing preservatives and additives that could keep them “fresh” for months. The sodium content was through the roof, and the mystery meat often contained fillers and artificial flavors that would make today’s health-conscious consumers cringe. Yet families embraced these as modern marvels of food technology.
Cyclamate-Sweetened Diet Products
Cyclamate was banned as an intense sweeter in the US in 1970 due to a 1969 rat study implicating the additive as a rat bladder carcinogen. Before this ban, cyclamates were the go-to artificial sweetener in diet sodas, sugar-free gum, and countless “diet” products that lined grocery store shelves. Then studies linked them to bladder cancer in rats. Britain banned cyclamates in 1969, but many products containing them remained on shelves well into the 70s as stocks cleared. Weight-conscious Brits sipped their cyclamate-laden drinks blissfully unaware of any risks.
The irony was palpable – people trying to make healthier choices were actually consuming potentially dangerous chemicals. These sweeteners were hundreds of times sweeter than sugar, allowing manufacturers to create diet products that seemed too good to be true. As it turned out, they literally were too good to be true.
Chlordane-Treated Fresh Produce
Those perfectly unblemished fruits and vegetables in 1970s supermarkets had a secret: chlordane pesticide. Grandma never bothered washing produce, claiming the chemical taste meant it was ‘clean.’ Chlordane was a farmer’s dream—an incredibly effective pesticide that eliminated virtually all insects that dared approach crops. A single application could protect plants for an entire growing season.
This persistent organochlorine pesticide was so effective that it seemed like a miracle solution to crop damage. Families would bite into apples and pears that had been treated with this chemical, completely unaware of the health risks. The produce looked perfect – no worm holes, no blemishes, no insect damage – but came with a hidden cost that wouldn’t be understood for years to come.
Petroleum-Based Artificial Maple Syrup
Few people realize certain artificial maple syrups of the ’70s contained chemical by-products from the leaded gasoline industry. My family drowned our Sunday pancakes in this sticky stuff, savoring its impossibly sweet flavor. Manufacturers discovered that certain petroleum-derived compounds could create convincing maple flavoring at a fraction of the cost of real maple syrup. These synthetic syrups became American breakfast staples, their amber bottles promising the taste of Vermont while delivering something entirely different.
Scientists eventually linked these compounds to the same health concerns as lead exposure, including neurological issues and developmental problems in children. Regulatory changes in the food industry eliminated these questionable ingredients. Modern artificial syrups use different chemicals for flavoring, though purists still insist nothing compares to the real thing. Sunday mornings would never be the same once families realized they’d been pouring industrial byproducts on their breakfast.
Generic Brand Everything
The saddest thing was when someone was on food stamps and their family had that generic powdered milk instead of real milk. Basically you mixed it with water in a pitcher and (tried to) drink it. I remember having a sleep over at a kids house and we had powdered milk product on our cereal in the morning. It was horrible, barely palatable, though I’m sure his family was used to it.
The 1970s saw the rise of stark white packaging with simple black lettering – the era of generic brands. The original, bare-bones generic products often had a disclaimer, saying that the peanut butter may have uneven color, but it was just as good as the national brand, or that the cake mix came in a bag rather than a box to save on costs. These products cut costs by using cheaper ingredients, less quality control, and minimal processing standards that often resulted in subpar nutrition and questionable taste.
Canned Hamburgers
In the 1970s, food companies introduced one of the more unusual convenience foods: canned hamburgers. These fully cooked hamburgers were sealed in cans, much like traditional canned meats, providing a quick meal option that only required reheating. In the 1970s, food companies introduced one of the more unusual convenience foods: canned hamburgers. These fully cooked hamburgers were sealed in cans, much like traditional canned meats, providing a quick meal option that only required reheating. The concept of a canned hamburger was a novelty that played into the era’s fascination with convenience foods and the burgeoning fast-food culture.
Despite the practicality it offered in terms of shelf-stability and ease of preparation, the idea of a hamburger coming out of a can was met with mixed reactions. The texture was mushy, the flavor was questionable, and the whole concept seemed to represent everything wrong with processed food culture. Yet supermarket shelves stocked these aluminum cans alongside other “convenient” meal solutions.
Fryin’ Magic and Bakin’ Magic Coating Mixes
The ’70s saw the rise of Fryin’ Magic and Bakin’ Magic, two seasoned coating mixes designed to make meal preparation easier and more flavorful. Fryin’ Magic promised to turn any piece of meat into a crispy, fried delight, while Bakin’ Magic was tailored for those who preferred their meals baked. These products tapped into the convenience food trend of the era, offering home cooks a simple way to add zest to their dishes with minimal effort.
These mysterious powder mixes contained artificial flavors, preservatives, and chemicals that promised restaurant-quality results at home. However, as culinary trends shifted towards fresher, less processed ingredients and more diverse flavors, the popularity of these mixes waned. What seemed like culinary magic was really just a chemical cocktail designed to mask the taste of cheaper cuts of meat with artificial seasonings and texture enhancers.
Jell-O 1-2-3 Layered Dessert
Jell-O 1-2-3 was a dessert marvel that separated into three layers upon setting: a creamy top, a mousse middle, and a clear Jell-O bottom. This visually striking dessert captured the imaginations of the ’70s households but eventually fell out of favor as dessert preferences evolved towards more natural and less artificially flavored options. The magic happened through a complex mix of stabilizers, emulsifiers, and artificial ingredients that would self-separate during the setting process.
Kids were fascinated by this dessert that seemed to defy gravity and create its own layers. Parents loved the convenience of a single mix that produced what looked like a sophisticated dessert. However, the ingredient list read like a chemistry experiment, filled with artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives that gave this dessert its supernatural abilities.
Chlorine-Washed Chicken
Dorm cafeterias in the ’70s served chicken that sometimes had a faint swimming pool aroma. We joked about it being ‘pre-cleaned’ but never questioned if it was actually safe to eat. Chlorine washing was standard practice for poultry processors looking to kill bacteria quickly and cheaply. Chicken carcasses would be dunked in chlorine baths before packaging, effectively masking potential contamination issues without addressing the underlying causes.
This process allowed for faster processing speeds and less stringent hygiene during earlier production stages. The EU banned chlorinated chicken imports in 1997, citing concerns about using chemicals to compensate for poor farming conditions. While still permitted in the US, consumer awareness has led many producers to adopt alternative antimicrobial treatments. The chlorinated chicken debate continues to complicate international trade agreements, highlighting different approaches to food safety. The faint chemical smell was actually a warning sign that consumers learned to ignore.
Hostess Snack Cakes with Trans Fats
Twinkies, Ding Dongs, and Hostess CupCakes – the holy trinity of 1970s lunchbox treats! These indestructible snack cakes stayed “fresh” for what seemed like eternity thanks to their secret weapon: trans fats. Twinkies, Ding Dongs, and Hostess CupCakes – the holy trinity of 1970s lunchbox treats! These indestructible snack cakes stayed “fresh” for what seemed like eternity thanks to their secret weapon: trans fats. School kids traded these like currency, completely unaware that their favorite treats contained some of the most dangerous fats ever created.
Trans fats were later linked to increased LDL (bad) cholesterol and decreased HDL (good) cholesterol – a double whammy for heart health. The FDA finally banned artificial trans fats in 2018, forcing manufacturers to reformulate. Those original recipes were literally heart-stoppers! The shelf life was so impressive that urban legends spread about Twinkies surviving nuclear apocalypses – but their real danger was much more immediate and insidious.
