Talk:Potassium benzoate

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New research[edit]

There is some new research suggesting that sodium benzoate (and the similar salt potassium benzoate) causes cellular injury.

http://news.independent.co.uk/health/article2586652.ece

Where does the article say that salt potassium benzoate does the same thing? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.96.2.207 (talk) 14:11, 14 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

For me it would be really strange if stuff which is used as food preservant, and therfore kills bacteria and germs in great number is not causing cellular injuries. But for now we should add this info with a reference to the original paper and not a newspaper article from a journalist with limited scientific knowledge.--Stone (talk) 14:54, 14 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Simpsons[edit]

removed:

The Froghurt that Homer Simpson is offered in the 4th season of The Simpsons Halloween Special, is cursed because it contains potassium benzoate.

is this significant enough to retain in the article? RJFJR 05:13, Feb 3, 2005 (UTC)

Considering we've only got two sentences otherwise, I'd say we need all the info we can get. Everyking 05:35, 3 Feb 2005 (UTC)

Seeing as how it's unquestionably the most famous reference to a fairly obscure chemical, it should be on the page. I mean, it doesn't hurt.

here is it: potassiumbenzoate.ytmnd.com

Speaking fo the Simpsons, when whats-his-face says Ptassium Benzoate is bad... how is it bad?

I've been trying to track down some information on Potassium Benzoate, but it's not easy going. For the most part, it seems to be a safe food preservative used in food, especially liquids. The only reason it is probably considered "bad" is that some people consider all chemicals and other "non-natural" elements in their food "bad." I'd really like to include the Homer Simpson quote, and I think it would be appropriate if we could even put together a paragraph or two; but it's probably not appropriate with a one-sentence stub, where it would literally take up 75% of the article. EWS23 | (Leave me a message!) 03:12, 18 October 2005 (UTC)[reply]

How about lets add the chemical make-up of this product in the website, for I need it!

Motion for inclusion?[edit]

How about including the Simpsons quote (from the Season 4 Treehouse of Horror episode) as an item of trivia? I have seen plenty of examples of this practice on many other wikipages.

As before, I'd really like to have more information on this page before including the quote, as the quote would take up a large chunk of the article. However, it seems as if there's not much more to say about this compound, and the Simpsons reference is really its only claim to fame. Before we even consider putting it on, we should agree on what form it would be in. Would we like to use the expanded version as follows?
Shopkeeper: Take this doll, but beware, it carries a terrible curse.
Homer: That's bad.
Shopekeeper: But it comes with a free frozen yogurt, which I call frogurt!
Homer: That's good.
Shopkeeper: The frogurt is also cursed.
Homer: That's bad.
Shopkeeper: But it comes with your choice of topping!
Homer: That's good.
Shopkeeper: The toppings contain potassium benzoate.
Homer stares blankly.
Shopkeeper: That's bad.
Homer: ...Can I go now?
Obviously this is long, but it has all of the context for understanding the quote. Any suggested shortnings? EWS23 | (Leave me a message!) 18:53, 23 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]
What I'd do is make mention of the quote and it's mention of the fact that the toppings contain said thing in them and go from there --Conan-san 21:13, 11 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]
That's good! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 151.97.230.121 (talk) 00:17, 15 April 2010 (UTC)[reply]
However, the quote is still not in the article.
That's bad. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Pmcizhere (talkcontribs) 00:07, 17 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Man chowder[edit]

I removed the line because I found no referenz for it! Stone 12:34, 17 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]



by "anerobic" does it mean anaerobic?

Probably. "Anerobic fermentation" yields 325 Google hits, while "anaerobic fermentation" yields 45,700 hits. I've changed it now. EWS23 | (Leave me a message!) 21:48, 2 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

With out air! Stone 21:59, 2 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

From the same sentence, "If the intra cellular pKa changes to 5 or lower..." Isn't pKa constant? Should this be pH instead? --71.227.190.111 19:51, 25 July 2006 (UTC)[reply]

This article talk page was automatically added with {{WikiProject Food and drink}} banner as it falls under Category:Food or one of its subcategories. If you find this addition an error, Kindly undo the changes and update the inappropriate categories if needed. The bot was instructed to tagg these articles upon consenus from WikiProject Food and drink. You can find the related request for tagging here . Maximum and carefull attention was done to avoid any wrongly tagging any categories , but mistakes may happen... If you have concerns , please inform on the project talk page -- TinucherianBot (talk) 17:46, 3 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Simpsons[edit]

I see from the history of the article that the reference to potassium benzoate in a Simpson's episode has been repeatedly added and repeatedly removed. There doesn't seem to be a consensus to either include or exclude it. Any thoughts? ChemNerd (talk) 11:46, 20 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

I think it should be kept, since it's probably how most people have ever even heard of this chemical. Usually that much dialogue is too much for an article, but it really needs it for the full context. PaulGS (talk) 01:02, 21 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]
There are probably few people who could recognize potassium benzoate, and those that could probably have no knowledge of that Simpsons episode. I'm not opposed to having "In popular culture" sections in chemistry articles, but mere passing references such as this one really aren't appropriate. In this case, it is just mere trivia. The Simpsons have no relevance to potassium benzoate, and potassium benzoate has no relevance to the Simpsons. The section should be removed. And in any case, the dialog entirely superfluous. -- Ed (Edgar181) 11:38, 21 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Anybody who reads ingredient labels on the foods they eat will be familiar with potassium benzoate. It is unlikely that being mentioned once on some TV show, even a popular one, will have had any effect whatsoever on people's awareness of this chemical. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.5.113.110 (talk) 15:21, 26 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

It's about more than just simple awareness. The show specifically (albeit humorously) refers to the additive as "bad". Given the concerns about sodium and potassium benzoate as food additives (see Benzene in soft drinks as an example), this would seem to be relevant. --Dante Alighieri | Talk 01:33, 22 September 2011 (UTC)[reply]

I think it should be added under a "In popular culture" section. It's a fact, live a little. The average person would not know of this word if it wasn't mentioned in that show. It's like a mnemonic. 14.2.127.179 (talk) 02:11, 2 October 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Hi I only know about this obscure chemical because of the Simpsons episode (that's actually how I found this page). I vote we keep it. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 12.154.157.102 (talk) 14:59, 30 June 2022 (UTC)[reply]

Benzoic Acid[edit]

removed this from the other names section. benzoic acid and potassium benzoate are definitely not the same thing. I would be ok with "benzoic acid anion" maybe, but there are already too many discrepancies in the other names section of chemicals on wikipedia already — Preceding unsigned comment added by 96.244.15.159 (talk) 21:21, 16 May 2014 (UTC)[reply]