Food Dyes

Ah, the crap they put in our food....I will try to limit my ranting to food dyes alone in this post, and save my opinions on other food additives and processed foods for another day. Europe, as it was with BPA and other chemicals, is leaps ahead of our country. They have recently put regulations on companies to make sure they disclose the use of food dyes and require a statement identifying the risks of consuming dyes. Food dyes are in everything. It's incredible. Another reason to make sure you are reading the labels--always! Food dyes are linked to everything from hyperactivity in children to cancer. After several studies have shown the risks of food dyes, the FDA continues to state that they are safe (another reason why the FDA is a joke, but more on them later). If that's not enough, a scientist in the 1970s realized the connection between behavior, concentration and high consumption of food dyes. These outcomes improved when food containing preservatives and food dyes were removed from their diets. As always, just be a smart consumer and know what goes into your body.

I found this blog interesting, so much so that I'm copying it here for you: http://www.momsrising.org/blog/food-dyes-and-childrens-behavior/. What I found so interesting was this:
Most multinational food companies are already phasing these dyes out of foods in the United Kingdom and elsewhere in Europe, but American versions of the same products continue to get their colors from synthetic dyes. The syrup in a strawberry sundae from a McDonald’s in the U.K. gets its red color from strawberries, but in the U.S., the red color comes from Red 40. Similarly, a Betty Crocker yellow cake mix is colored in Britain with safe natural colorings, but with Yellow 5 and Yellow 6 in the United States.

Read more: http://www.momsrising.org/blog/food-dyes-and-childrens-behavior/#ixzz1F8524ip0


http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7965420 this one is a study that shows the correlation. 

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-500803_162-4151130-500803.html
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/02/24/are-you-or-your-family-eating-toxic-food-dyes.aspx