My 14-year-old daughter Esmeralda (not her real name) loves to bake. She is fierce in the kitchen and she may well one day own her own bakery. She was disturbed some time ago when she learned that Disco Dust is potentially toxic when ingested. She asked me to write about it on my blog. Here’s one for you Esmeralda!
Disco Dust is just one name used to describe glitter that is put on or added to food. Other names are Disco Glitter, Luster Dust, Sparkle Dust, Highlighter, Shimmer Powder, Pearl Dust, and Petal Dust. Some of these products are labeled “edible” and others are labeled “non-toxic.” Many of the “non-toxic” variety are promoted as safe to use on food, or safe for consumption. Some labeled as “non-toxic” have small print that warns that the product should be removed before it is consumed. It seems reasonable to me that you would use non-toxic glitter to decorate a cake, cake pop, or cupcake and then painstakingly and meticulously remove each and every sparkle. I’m kidding, although meticulous tasks do satisfy my OCD from time to time. The FDA even warns against using non-edible glitter.
Glitter has been around since ancient times and used in art and cosmetics. Prehistoric man used hematite, a sparkling mineral as a cosmetic. Thousands of years ago, people of the Americas used galena for painting, Galena is a form of lead. Egyptians used iridescent beetle shells as well as finely ground malachite crystals to make glitter used as a cosmetic. Mayan temples were painted with paint that was made from mica dust, mica is a mineral. Up until World War II glass was finely round into glitter. Modern-day glitter was invented in 1934 by Henry Ruschmann, an American machinist. Ruschmann found a way to cut plastic and Mylar sheets into glitter.
Non-toxic glitter is made from plastic, coloring and reflective material, aluminum, titanium dioxide, iron oxide, and bismuth oxychloride. It is labeled as non-toxic because it is used in crafts or in cosmetics that are not intended to be ingested. If you are ordering food that has glitter, make sure it isn’t just non-toxic. Non-toxic does not equal edible. If you are told it is non-toxic and you can eat it, be wary. Technically you can eat rocks and it would be considered non-toxic but it doesn’t mean that you should. Why do we feel compelled to eat food that appears to be covered in fairy farts?
Edible glitter is made from sugar, cornstarch, acacia (a plant), maltodextrin (maltose, a food additive), and approved color additives.
I like glitter as much as the next classy broad but given all the information, I’ll try to steer clear of it unless it is truly edible. I prefer sprinkles on my baked goods anyway.
Courtesy of Google Images
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