Warning labels on food with Yellow 5, Red 40, and other Dyes

http://www.cspinet.org/new/201007201.html -Please read article!

Products with Yellow 5, Red 40, Other Dyes “May Have an Adverse Effect on Activity and Attention in Children”

Starting today in the European Union, most foods that contain artificial food dyes must bear warning labels stating that the food “may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children.”

Companies should replace Red 40, Yellow 5 and other synthetic dyes with natural colorings like these. British consumers enjoy food products free of most food dyes, but the same can't be said for Americans.

Synthetic food dyes have been suspected of triggering behavior problems in children since the 1970s, when Dr. Ben Feingold, a San Francisco allergist, reported that his patients improved when their diets were changed. Numerous controlled studies conducted over the next three decades proved that some children’s behavior is worsened by artificial dyes. A 2004 meta-analysis concluded that artificial dyes affect children’s behavior, and two recent studies funded by the British government found that mixtures of dyes (as well as the preservative sodium benzoate) adversely affect kids’ behavior.

“At this point, American food manufacturers and regulators alike should be embarrassed that we’re feeding kids foods with chemicals that have such a powerfully disruptive impact on children’s behavior,” said CSPI executive director Michael F. Jacobson. “European officials are taking the issue much more seriously, and are moving toward a safer food supply as a result.”

Because the FDA hasn’t encouraged food manufacturers to switch to safer natural colorings, many American food companies use the chemicals in the United States products but not in the U.K. equivalents. For example, the topping for a McDonald’s Strawberry Sundae sold in the United States contains Red 40. .....


You don't have to wait to make a change....take it upon yourself to limit these dyes in your children's' diets. If you are not already, start looking at ingredient labels! If you need help...ask me!

Until next time...
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