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IMAGE SOURCE: Wikimedia Commons/ colored candy/ author: Gila Brand
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Take a walk down the cereal, candy, soda pop or snack food aisle of any grocery store and you’ll see a rainbow of colors - blue cereal, green marshmallows, yellow ice cream, pink frosting on pop tarts - all brought to you by the miracle of food dyes.
Food dye has no nutritional value but is used by manufacturers to appeal to young children, and to give a more natural appearance to foods, therefore to encourage sales.
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has petitioned the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to ban artificial food dyes. Studies have shown that dyes cause hyperactivity in some children. The CSPI calls them the “secret shame” of food industry regulators.
"The continued use of these unnecessary artificial dyes is the secret shame of the food industry and the regulators who watch over it," said CSPI executive director Michael F. Jacobson in a statement.
"The purpose of these chemicals is often to mask the absence of real food, to increase the appeal of a low-nutrition product to children, or both. Who can tell the parents of kids with behavioral problems that this is truly worth the risk?"
Food dyes have been suspected of causing behavior problems since the 1970s when Dr. Ben Feingold, a San Francisco allergist, took his patients off food colorings, the basis for the Feingold Diet. Their behavior improved, he reported.
Other studies have followed, most recently, two funded by the British government found that dyes and the preservative, sodium benzoate, adversely affected kids’ behavior.
That has largely led to a push in the United Kingdom (UK) to have artificial colorings removed from foods. Mars Inc. uses natural colorings in their popular Starburst and Skittles candy. McDonald’s has removed artificial food dyes from their strawberry shakes and ice cream sundaes in the UK. In Britain, McDonald’s strawberry sauce color for sundaes comes from strawberries. In the U.S., it comes from Red dye #40.
Meanwhile in the U.S., manufacturers continue to produce those same items with artificial food dyes.
The FDA does not test artificial dyes, but requires manufacturers to list the ingredients on its label and to do animal testing with repeated exposure to determine whether dyes cause harmful effects.
In a statement, the FDA reports that some individuals are sensitive to Yellow #5 and break out in hives, but the agency does not agree with the conclusions about ADHD or asthma.
"(We) didn't find a reason to change our conclusions that the ingredients are safe for the general population," according to FDA spokeswoman, Julie Zawisza.
In the U.S., domestic production of food dyes quadrupled between 1995 and 1998, reports a Columbia University study on hyperactivity and food dyes. Three to 10 percent of American children are now diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
Food coloring isn't limited to the kid aisle. Some vegetables rely on manufacturers to provide the color Mother Nature does not.
For example, Kraft’s Guacamole Dip has an added splash of green, thanks to Yellow #5 and #6 as well as Blue 31. Even macaroni and cheese can contain food dyes, such as Betty Crocker’s Au Gratin “100% Real” Potatoes, says CSPI.
Yellow 5, Red 40 and six other colorings - Blue 1, Blue 2, Green 3, Orange B, Red 3, and Yellow 6- are linked to hyperactivity and behavior problems in children, are the focus of the CSPI petition which is asking for a warning label to be added to foods that contain these dyes while a ban is investigated.
The CSPI also wants the FDA to update information on its web site about the impact of artificial food dyes on behavior.
Joining CSPI's call are 19 prominent psychiatrists, toxicologists, and pediatricians who are calling on members of Congress to hold hearings on artificial food dyes and behavior, and to fund an Institute of Medicine research project on the issue. #