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BOOKS Reviewed by Ruth Parnell ADDITIVE ALERT: Your Guide to Safer Shopping by Julie Eady Additive Alert, Western Australia, 2004 ISBN 0-646-49916-5 (123pp tpb) Availability: Additive Alert Pty Ltd, http:/;www.additivealert.com.au f you wonder why asthma, ADHD, depression, heart disease and obesity are so prevalent among children today, check out all the processed food on the supermar- ket shelves and then take a close look at the labels. You'll be amazed at the number of artificial additives, flavours and colours that are part and parcel of commercial food pro- cessing. In Australia, of the 300 or so per- mitted additives at least 30 are known or suspected carcinogens, explains Julie Eady in her handy shopper's guide, Additive Alert. In the course of her research, Eady was also alarmed to find that some well-known baby foods contain suspected carcinogens, mutagens, and artificial colours that are known to promote hyperactivity and are linked to asthma. However, not all additives are harmful, and to help us sort out the good from the bad, Eady has assembled a practi- cal table giving additive number, name and, if any, the adverse reactions that can be expected from consuming the additive. Also in the appendices is a table of additives to avoid under headings: suspected carcino- gens; not recommended or prohibited for children or pregnant women; possible hyper- active or hypersensitive reaction; additives banned overseas; additives linked to asthma and other specific health problems. @ REVIEWS Eady's book is pitched mainly at Australian shoppers, but much of the infor- mation is useful for consumers everywhere. Subjects covered include the functions of food additives, food allergies and intoler- ances, the role of the regulatory authorities, labelling issues, and nasty additives to watch out for—such as MSG, aspartame, nitrates, benzoates, BHTs and more. There are guidelines on healthier, low-additive eating (go organic, for instance!) and on taking control of your kitchen. Plus, there are use- ful contacts, website listings and references for readers who want to do more research. This is an essential, easy-to-read guide to assist anyone wanting to take charge of their own and their family's health. plant and "magic mushrooms"—plus hallu- cinogenic drugs such as DMT. However, he departs from the conclusions of scientists ike Prof. David Lewis-Williams by suggest- ing that symbolic cave art depicts more than the hallucinations of disturbed brain chem- istry; indeed, it displays information gleaned rom travelling to and from parallel dimen- sional realities. He speculates that beings from inner worlds have taught humanity essential skills and knowledge and have also prompted evolutionary leaps. Recorded history gives examples of people who have achieved spontaneous trance states without drugs, and Hancock argues that this ability, or birthright, is hardwired into our brains and DNA. Related to this discussion are reports of interactions with the fairy world and with alien beings—most of which have similarities in all ancient and modern cultures across the globe. Thus, believes Hancock, UFOs and ETs are not so much travelling across space-time but through inner space from a parallel dimen- sion. This is a captivating work, highlighted by strong graphics throughout. SUPERNATURAL: Meetings with the Ancient Teachers of Mankind by Graham Hancock Century, UK, 2005 ISBN 1-8441-3681-7 (710pp hc) Availability: Amazon.co.uk Horan must have had a long history of using psychoactive plants to alter their consciousness and explore other planes of existence, but our ability to use symbols to express these experiences is a relatively recent development that exploded in cave art in southern France around 35,000 years ago, says Graham Hancock in his new book, Supernatural. Yet use of symbology may be as old as the first anatomically modern humans—at least 196,000 years—whose art can be found in Africa and Australia. Hancock writes from personal experience about his visionary episodes with psy- chotropic plants—ayahuasca, which he took under ritual conditions with Amazonian shamen, the root bark of the African iboga NEXUS = 65 DECEMBER 2005 — JANUARY 2006 www.nexusmagazine.com