Excessive Phosphorus in Food and Medicine: A Growing Concern

Hidden in many processed foods, phosphorus additives are not as benign as one might think—although our bodies need the mineral, too much can be harmful.

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Phosphorus, a non-metallic chemical element with the atomic number 15 on the periodic table, draws little attention. Most of us do not think twice about what phosphorus does in and around us—that is, in our bodies and our environment.

MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) professor Christopher Cummins explains in an article on the chemistry department’s webpage: “Pure phosphorus P4 does not occur naturally because it is highly reactive. Phosphorus is mined from phosphate rock, […] basically animal bones and teeth.”