If you’re wary of artificial food dyes, you’re in good company. A lot of parents are questioning whether these rainbow hues are safe for their kids, while scientists are working to get to the bottom of this decades-long debate.
I recently spent months researching and writing a feature for Parents magazine about artificial food dyes called “The Food Dye Blues” that appears in their latest issue. Here’s a peek:
Although red flags have been raised about food dyes since the 1970s — when researchers began investigating a potential connection between dyes and hyperactivity — the evidence seems to be building that there’s reason for worry. In 2010, the FDA acknowledged that substances in foods, including food coloring, may exacerbate ADHD in some susceptible kids. But the agency insists that they don’t affect enough of the population to warrant action and noted that food coloring is safe and tightly regulated. Opponents believe products containing food coloring should carry a warning label — or be banned outright. So is ditching dyes the right thing to do?
After talking to dozens of people on both sides of the debate, I’m confident that the piece is a balanced look at artificial food dyes: what the concerns really are, what questions still remain, and what YOU should do if you’re worried too.
As a reporter, I don’t include my opinion in my articles. My job is to do the reporting, sift through the facts, and present the issue so readers can decide for themselves.
But while immersed in researching food dyes, we took our kids out for ice cream at a favorite local place. Both boys got blue-tinted flavors, and we carried our cones out to the shop’s patio to eat. After finishing his cone, my younger son went wild. He raced around, talking in gibberish, giggling almost uncontrollably. He was making a scene that was outsized even for him, our resident ham. It seemed more than garden variety silliness. It seemed like the kid was on something. My husband and I looked at each other with raised eyebrows. Was he reacting to the blue dye?
I don’t know.
But I do know this: As a parent, I don’t want to worry about whether something in our food supply is impacting my child’s behavior–especially something that doesn’t serve any purpose in food beyond appearance. And especially when there are plant-based, natural colors that can be used instead (and are being used much more frequently overseas). I’m happy that more and more U.S.-based companies are listening to people’s concerns about synthetic dyes and eliminating them in some or all of their products. That’s how this change is going to happen.
Read “The Facts About Food Dyes“.
Special thanks to Center for Science in the Public Interest for sending me the European M&Ms used in these photos
I'm Sally, a dietitian-mom.
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BethG says
Your “blue food” story sounds very similar to mine. In my case, my “aha moment” was a blue ring pop. My daughter sat down on bleachers at a baseball game with 2 other little girls – each had blue ring pops in hand. Within 5 mins. maybe less, my daughter was up and running at top speed in big giant circles around the area behind the bleachers. She was feral, unstoppable and had the deer in headlights look I had seen her have before. The other 2 girls just ate their ring pops totally unaffected. But my child went to another world within minutes. It all clicked then and there. I tested my theory with a blue dum-dum lollipop soon after, and sure enough my daughter began to run, bounce her head off the couch cushions repeatedly, ran room to room and was unstoppable…for a shorter duration. A similar thing happened with artificial reds. So I had my answer….why did my child act so crazy at parties while the other little kids sat calmly at the table to do their crafts? Why did my daughter sometimes appear to be so spaced out that she lost her ability to speak? She was high on artificial colors and I suspect there are sensitivities to GMO’s too. So we by and large keep these non-food additives out of our families diet and life is much better many years later.
It troubles me still that so many parents put their kids on potentially toxic and harmful ADHD/ADD medications when the underlying cause may simply be the colored sprinkles on their cupcakes. Thanks for writing about this and educating others!! Hopefully more pediatricians will learn about this and suggest eliminating dyes first before medicating.
BethG says
PS: How could I forget that I have a much more recent “blue dye” episode to share?! This one came in the form of back-to-back blue G2 Gatorades after 2 separate baseball games.
My son couldn’t even get half the bottle finished before having such a nosedive in energy that he curled up in a fetal position in a chair on the sidelines for about 30 mins. after the 1st episode. The second episode happened in the car post game – again about half the bottle was gone and he tanked physically and felt very sick and tired.
I generally allow my kids to participate in whatever the rest of the kids are having for social reasons. My thinking is that because we eat relatively clean by and large 95% of the time, I will allow my stance on no artificial foods to take a backseat when social-acceptance and group participation is involved. All the junk that gets thrown at kids these days makes my heartbreak, but I allow it in my kids, and when they feel bad afterward it helps them see why we choose differently.
These recent immediate reactions to Gatorade do have me wondering what is it about a supposed energy drink that is causing my kids to have negative energy to the point of having to lie down and “process” the toxins. I’m certain there has been Gatorade before without this immediate effect…maybe there has been a recent change in their formulation???
Sally says
Beth–my son had a similar reaction to Gatorade (don’t remember which color). I think he was mildly dehydrated and he drank it very quickly. Ended up sacked out on the couch feeling terrible. I chalked it up to drinking a sugary beverage too fast, but perhaps you’re right, it may have been a combination of factors/ingredients causing him to feel badly. As for ADHD, what troubles me is that there may be something in the food supply that is aggravating a problem for many kids. Attention problems are being diagnosed at such a high rate, why not eliminate this unnecessary food ingredient from the food supply? Even if it doesn’t help EVERY child with attention issues, it may help some.
Regan @ The Healthy Aperture Blog says
My whole problem with the US acceptance of food dyes is that it’s just not necessary. I get wanting to make some foods look a little more appealing (although I think we’ve conditioned our kids to think all “kid foods” need to be rainbow colored). But if it’s not necessary to use artificial dyes, why do we do it… and in SO many foods. (which IMO includes caramel coloring, another food nuisance)
I’m in a unique position in that I’ve had my youngest tested for food sensitivities and intolerance because of his persistent allergies and asthma that didn’t respond to traditional antihistamines. And you know what we found one of his moderately reactive items was? Yellow #6. I know not every parent can/will go to the trouble to test to that level, but it just reinforces that beyond just ADHD, there are other ways in which our kids can have negative reactions (like inflammation, etc.,) to chemicals being added to food.
Sally says
Great point Regan. While a relationship with attention is the most researched of the effects, there are certainly many other ways dyes could impact kids. And I agree that dyes just aren’t necessary! Not all food has to be (unnaturally) brightly colored to be appealing.
Kiyah says
But look at how much less vibrant those European M&Ms are; our M&Ms need to scream their color don’t they? {kidding. totally kidding.}
Thank you for your thorough research. I appreciate that others are out there bringing attention to this issue. Alternatives (to artificial dyes) ARE out there, removing them IS feasible. It’s time to rally the troops to demand some changes…and this is a great start!
Sally says
Kiyah–Ha! Yeah, it’s actually pretty impressive how bright those natural colors are! Thanks so much for your comment.
Bri says
I want to chime in on what Regan said! As one of the parents interviewed for this article, I think it is really important to talk about how the reactions can go “beyond the ADHD” stuff. My son Patrick has reactions that range from the behavioral things mentioned in the article, to uncontrollable diarrhea, skin rashes, and night terrors that can last for up to 72 hours after a dye exposure. He’s simply not a well child when he eats food dyes — or when he has his face painted, uses heavily colored/scented soaps and lotions, gets a temporary tattoo, etc. It’s a topical issue as well as an ingestion issue for us. Very scary, very potent, and I would add that he’s now, as a dye-free child, not even CLOSE to any spectrum of needing evaluation or diagnosis for ADHD or any other emotional/behavioral issue. He’s on “green light” at Pre-K every day, no problem. So it really goes far beyond the traditional thinking that dyes are a problem for ADHD kids and the rest of our kids are fine. They’re not fine at all.
Hanna says
Sally, just read your article & this is fascinating! Maybe I’ve been in a cave on this one, but I had no idea that there is both double-blind research & anecdotal evidence to support a potential link between artificial dyes and hyperactivity. I think the number of kids on ADHD meds, without sufficient understanding of how those meds affect developing minds, is a huge concern right now, and it’s pretty wild to think that taking away artificial dyes (which are pretty much unnecessary anyway!) could influence those disturbing statistics.