During the past 50 years, the amount of chemical dye used in foods has increased by a whopping 500%. Could it be one of the causes of the alarming rise in child behavioral problems, aggression and ADHD? Studies show it’s a definite possibility. This article will help you to understand a little more about food dye, how it can negatively affect your child’s behavior and what you can do to fight back.
Symptoms of Food-Dye-Related Behavioral Problems
The type of behavioral problems caused by food dye will depend on the child. Common symptoms of food-dye-related behavioral problems are:
- Hyperactivity
- Inability to Concentrate
- Learning Disabilities
- Insomnia (Which Contributes to Poor Behavior)
- Aggressive Behavior
- Irritability
- Tantrums/Meltdowns
- Frequent Crying Spells
These symptoms may also indicate a mental or physical illness and your child may be diagnosed as having one. However, before putting him or her on medication, which might cause unwanted side effects, take a closer look into food dyes first.
Food Dyes that Cause Child Behavioral Problems
So which food dyes should you be watching out for? While no petroleum-based food dye could possibly be considered healthy, these two food dyes have been particularly associated with child behavioral problems:
Red #40
Red dye #40 has been most commonly associated with aggressive and impulsive behavior in children. Tantrums, hitting, kicking and swearing are common reactions in children sensitive to this dye. According to research, parents whose children consumed any food with this dye experienced a sudden and violent change in personality. When the dye was removed, the behavioral problems disappeared.
Yellow #5
Yellow #5 is most commonly associated with insomnia, which can lead to behavioral problems. Hyperactivity and learning disabilities have also been associated with this food dye.
Aside from Red #40 and Yellow #5, there are dozens more food dyes that can contribute to child behavioral problems.
Sources of Food Dyes
So where are all of these behavior-altering food dyes coming from? Here is a short list of the common culprits:
- Breakfast Cereals
- Candy
- Ice Cream
- Fruit Juice
- Gelatin Desserts
- Soft Drinks
- Medications
- Toothpaste
How Do I Know if My Child’s Behavioral Problems are Food-Related?
The best way to tell if your child’s behavioral problems are related to food dyes is to eliminate all traces of foods, medication and toothpaste containing artificial dyes for a period of one month. Then, add a large quantity of food containing just one of the forbidden dyes (Red #40 or Blue #1) and wait for a reaction or change in behavior.
For example, if your son or daughter’s tantrums, outbursts or confusion returns after eating a bunch of red candy, you’ve found the cause. If not, continue to add one more forbidden food dye every other day until a reaction occurs.
Where Can I Find Safer Alternatives?
If you’re a parent or caregiver concerned with a child’s behavioral problems, it’s very important to become a label-reader. Schedule a couple of hours for your next visit to the grocery store. Turn those boxes of cereal and cans of soda over and read the ingredients. You’ll be amazed at the amount of artificial colors and preservatives in them.
Next, search for foods labeled “organic” or “natural”. There are plenty of foods that are flavored and colored with natural food dyes.
Changing a child’s diet may be a battle at first, but the switch from processed food to whole food will improve your child’s health for the better. And a healthy child is usually a happy child. If, after you’ve removed all food dyes from your child’s diet, behavioral problems still persist, another mental or physical condition could be to blame. Schedule a visit with your child’s pediatrician for further examination.
Food dyes and preservatives have been reported to be a large contributor of behavioral problems in children. The best way to find out if your child’s behavioral problems are due to food dyes is to eliminate all traces of food dyes for a month and then reintroduce them one at a time. The change in your child may pleasantly surprise you and you’ll both be happier and healthier for it!
—–
This guest post was contributed by Jaime A. Heidel, founder of I Told You I Was Sick, a website dedicated to helping those suffering with mystery symptoms find natural ways to heal.
About Chrystal Johnson
Chrystal, publisher of Happy Mothering, is a mother of two sweet girls who believes in living a simple, natural lifestyle. A former marketing manager, Chrystal spends her time researching green and eco-friendly alternatives to improve her family's life. She enjoys sharing those discoveries with anyone who's willing to listen.
10 Days Left 
9 Days Left 
14 Days Left 
5 Days Left 
{ 36 comments… read them below or add one }
I’ve heard this before and certainly may be true but how do we know the child’s reactions are not just from the sugar? Did the studies control for that?
You know, I haven’t read the studies as in depth as I should because we try to avoid synthetic food dyes anyhow, but that’s a good question. I’ll have to do a little more digging. But my whole philosophy is that if it’s not natural, it was not designed to be put in our bodies. So, if there’s any indication it may be harmful, we avoid it.
Twitter: kjworthington
February 5, 2013 at 8:26 am
I know this is like a year old but I wanted to chime in with my own experience: My son is extremely sensitive to food dyes. The way that he acts when he has them – particularly red and yellow as described in Chrystal’s post – is distinctly different from when he simply has a lot of sugar. He acts as if he literally cannot think straight. When he has a lot of sugar, he acts pretty hyper and has a “crash” complete with tantrums and meltdowns – but it’s still not nearly as bad as when he has foods with food coloring. I wrote about this on my blog, too – I’ll link to the post.
Thanks for the great post Chrystal! This issue is close to my heart. I have no idea why these are still allowed in our food.
Kylie recently posted..What Are Phthalates?
Thanks for sharing your experiences Kylie!
I just found out my son is super reactive to the red dye in his antibiotics.i He gets reoccurring ear infections so I was beginning to believe it was a behavioral issue. I am so frustrated and angry it took me this long to figure out his jekyl personality is totally linked to that pink antbiotic. I am planning on pulling all red dye so I can have my sweet boy back!
I didn’t even this about that stuff – I was constantly on it as a kid for the same reason. Fortunately my girls have never had to go on antibiotics before.
Twitter: brittleby
February 21, 2012 at 10:03 am
This is really interesting! I try my best to avoid food and other products that contain food coloring! It’s amazing that we have been brainwashed into thinking that certain foods and drinks need to be a certain color because that is what we grew up knowing they were. I can’t believe how many things even have caramel coloring so its darker! Thanks for all the info Chrystal!
Brittney Minor recently posted..Green is Beautiful Giveaway Hop
I agree Brittney! We really are conditioned by society for things to look, smell and taste a certain way. But once you eliminate the synthetic dyes, scents and flavorings, you really notice the difference! I can’t even walk down the cleaner isle at the store without gagging now.
Sooo you espect me to believe this without ANY sourse of proof because you say so?
How stupid do you think I am? Whether its fooddyes, vaccine info or anything else related to my kid, why on earth should I listen to someone who doesn’t cite their sources and basically says a bunch of things that have NEVER been proven by the scientific community.
You are doing the same thing germ denialist try to do to trick people. How do I know you aren’t lying lik them?
Cite your sources next time please and quit using flimbsy language that doest prove anything other than the fact you are manipulative.
You know, I’m not normally confrontational as I try to take the stance that everyone has a right to choose what they feel is best for their family, but I have to ask, are you having a bad day?
You’re attacking a guest post that doesn’t have enough sources for you, but you didn’t even take the time to spell or grammar check your comment. Nor do you provide any sources that refute the article.
Just as an FYI, whenever you read one article, you should continue doing research before drawing a conclusion. One article shouldn’t be enough to make a decision on either way.
If you’re like the average American and just want to take what the corporations put in front of you at face value, have at it. But I’ll post a couple of links for you to read just in case you actually are interested in educating yourself. There are a lot more out there – just use Google and you’ll easily find them.
http://www.medpagetoday.com/Psychiatry/ADHD-ADD/6610
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/30/health/policy/30fda.html?_r=1
http://www.cspinet.org/new/pdf/petition-food-dyes.pdf
I could go on and on, but I don’t want to overwhelm you. My gut is that you’re a parent that doesn’t want to be inconvenienced by ensuring you’re making the best choices, but hey, I could be wrong. I’ve never claimed to know everything.
And to my normal readers, sorry for the harsh tone in this comment. I am just sick of ignorant people attacking me because my research has led me to make choices they disagree with. Off my soapbox now.
My gut feeling is you think I don’t know the difference between correlation and causatiton. I am a parent who reads actual studies not articles where the numbrs are “interpreted” for me. I am a parent who DOES NOT believe what corporations or random internet people say without any proof. I care enough for my boys to hold EVERYONE accountable for what they claim.
Thank you for proving my point, I don’t want to overwhelm you, but there is no hard proof to what you’re saying. Spend a few hours on pubmed and read actual studies instead of what the media completely fails to explain and yull understand why it annoys the heck out of parents to see some “great post” make a bunch of claims without any proof.
I read clinical studies as well. I’m actually a medical writer although I don’t talk about that a lot. If you read so many studies, I would expect your spelling and grammar to be better than it is. It really irritates me when someone tries to show me how educated they are, then they can’t even spell or use proper grammar.
However, just because there isn’t a definitive study proving something is UNSAFE doesn’t mean it is safe. Until there are definitive studies proving un-natural things like synthetic dyes are, in fact, safe I won’t be using them.
I DO NOT believe what corporations tell me either. And, being a medical writer who sees the politics behind some of these so-called studies, I have learned to follow the money behind the studies that are actually available.
Big corporations influence which studies actually hit the presses, and most often it’s going to take a lot for a study to come out proving definitively that something that makes so many corporations big bucks is harmful and needs to be yanked off the market.
So to sum it up, until there are multiple studies that are released proving definitively that synthetic dyes are safe, we won’t be using them.
The person I see getting hostile is you Crystal. And I think your whole “theres no proof it isn’t safe” is one of the most ignorant things I have ever read. That isn’t how science works. You don’t go about it by trying to prove negatives ya know.
If you are a science writer, then you are certainly part of the problem not the solution. Is this what happens when humanities majors write science articles?? Sure it’s easier to read and flows well, but the reader isn’t any more informed in the slightest. I feel like someone is advertising to me, not educating me.
I’m the author of this piece and I agree with your comment that there are no sources listed. There could only be so many links on my guest blog. However, I agree with Crystal’s comment. The facts are out there for you to find from a simple Google search. I, like Crystal, don’t see the need for such blatant hostility. You don’t have to agree with the post but why attack the website owner personally as though she’s done you a wrong?
Anyway, hope you’re having a better day now.
Jaime
Jaime A. Heidel recently posted..Natural Ways to Improve Your Memory
Well, here is an article from the FDA that says food-dye related behaviors are a myth. I have my own thoughts on that but was wondering what you guys make of it:
http://www.nowforthesciencebit.com/sciencemyths/science-myths-adhd-food-colouring.
My thoughts are that just because there isn’t solid proof that artificial food dyes DO cause behavior issues, there also isn’t conclusive evidence that they DO NOT cause it. I tend to stay on the side of caution when it comes to artificial and synthetic ingredients coming into contact with my family.
Well then there’s no proof that organic living doesn’t cause heart disease. I think ill just air on the side of caution.
Twitter: healthonabudget
February 23, 2012 at 12:25 pm
Actually multiple research studies show that artificial food dyes cause some behaviour issues. You will find the actual studies by searching each food dye name and adverse effects related to it. Here is one about tatrazine.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7965420
The reality is that if you eat anything that is foreign to the body, the body will respond to it by trying to eliminate them as fast as it can. The kidney and the liver are involved in cleansing the system.
However, if you take these synthetic chemicals long term , the body cannot clean these substances quickly because the organs may not work efficiently. It is worse if you do not eat vegetables and fruits that are rich in antioxidants.
In the end, chronic inflammation starts to rise as evidenced by increase in inflammatory markers C-reactive protein. As a result, you will start experiencing various kinds of health problems.
Satish recently posted..Improved Male Virility and Other Health Benefits of Ginseng Tea
Sarah, Thanks for an actual study.. 24 kids out of over 800 isn’t convincing and only further proves my point.
There are a number of factors that could make a kinase act up in proteins. This proves very little but I am glad to at least see some scientific thinking instead of just blindly repeating what a natural website says.
Interesting!!! I try my best to keep only healthy/organic foods in my house and this includes drinks! if anything, its candy that would be the culprit as my SO is a candy freak (gummies, mike n ikes and all that awful stuff) and if it were not for him, that stuff would NOT be in my household and therefor end up in my child’s system. >.< thanks for the info!
It’s hard to eliminate everything all at once. We’re definitely not perfect, but we try our best to make the best choices we can. And I think if you make something totally taboo, it can cause more harm than good. My girls know that junk is bad, but it’s okay every once in a while. They got these lollipops in their stockings for Christmas – no artificial dyes – http://amzn.to/wKCtgA .
Twitter: Purpose Home
February 22, 2012 at 2:54 pm
Have you read The Unhealthy Truth by Robyn O’Brien? I know for a fact she has linked up studies related to food dyes, specifically red and yellow. It’s actually a really good read (although it was hard for me to deal with emotionally from the food allergy perspective b/c that’s what my kids are dealing with.) It’s worth checking out though!
Becky Zale recently posted..All About Reading Review
I’ll have to check it out Becky. I haven’t read that one.
Twitter: alainafrederick
February 22, 2012 at 4:03 pm
I believe that every parent should follow what is right for them. I find it interesting that a parent with such harsh comments (like the above commenter) would even be on a site that is geared towards natural parenting if they are not open to the possibilities of what man-made products can do to the environment and our bodies.
I’m also a parent that has wondered about the affects all the GMO foods have on our bodies especially developing children. There has to be a connection between the rise in ADHA, Autism and other common diagnosed ‘conditions’ to the environment around us.
I have never understood the reason to ‘dye’ any food as the natural ingredients should be color enough. If you don’t like eating “beige” foods then turn to fresh fruits and veggies instead of boxed, canned and other prepackaged items.
I am by far no perfect parent and have plenty of those boxed foods in our house, but we are trying to phase them out as I learn how to cook everything from scratch or we find healthy, organic, and affordable alternatives to the common products found in today’s grocery stores.
Just a few generations ago people didn’t eat specialty labeled organic food as all food was organic!
Alaina Frederick recently posted..Healthy Teeth for Our Family #healthyhabits
Twitter: grnlifestyle
February 22, 2012 at 4:19 pm
I actually posted yesterday about eating chemicals and preservatives in and on our foods… http://www.greenlifestyleconsulting.com/2012/02/thoughts-on-consuming-organic-and.html
I have started thinking that eating anything that is a chemical really just isn’t a good idea, whether or not you see a direct behavioral change from it. I must admit, that I do not have the money or the time to eliminate all chemicals from our diet, but I’m slowly moving that way and trying to change our diet.
Alicia at GreenLifestyleConsulting.com recently posted..Thinking About Consuming Pesticides and Chemicals
hey just because there isn’t any proof that water doesn’t cause cancer, doesn’t mean its not true….
I mean, since we are proving negatives and all
I never asked anyone to prove a negative. I ask that they prove it is safe. How is proving that something is safe a negative?
Thank you Jaime and Chrystal for the great post. This is definitely a topic of interest for me and I think more attention needs to be brought to the safety of synthetic dyes in foods. I try to avoid products with synthetic ingredients. My philosophy is, “When in doubt, keep it out”. I don’t want to expose my child to something when the safety of it is questionable. Rather than continuing to use something until it is proved to be harmful, I would rather discontinue using it until it is proven to be safe. I think if anyone reading your blog disagrees with you so strongly on your beliefs about what is best for your family, they should probably read a blog written by someone with similar views.
Kelsie Harris recently posted..Fashion Forward Maternity Review & Giveaway
I love that statement Kelsie – I’ll have to borrow it! Thanks for your support.
Twitter: callitnatural
February 23, 2012 at 8:35 pm
@yummymummy- Why are you trying so hard to start an argument?? How did you even get to this blog in the first place? Do you just go trolling around on the natural sites and try to get people riled up? Who cares if some people choose to avoid food dyes? If you want to eat foods with dyes and feed them to your children as well, if you have them, then go for it.
Nicole @ Some Call It Natural recently posted..Hear is a Great Spelling Tool For You!
Thanks for writing about artificial food coloring. I can see the results right in my own home with myself and my child. Check out several studies at the CSPI site and the Feingold Association site dating back decades if needed.
I also read labels for additives that I know have caused observed reactions in my friends’ children and my child. We observe great improvements all around. I blog about our struggle at http://www.DieFoodDye.com and we have a supportive community on my Facebook page as well. I am writing a children’s book to help normalize this allergy for those of us with severe reactions to dyes. It’s my hope to help kids, parents, teachers, doctors, and lawmakers understand this issue.
Twitter: given2fly46
February 24, 2012 at 10:32 am
As a mother of a child who had cancer, and having been a part of some of the studies trying to help find causes etc, I can say that I tend to err on the side of common sense…if it is fake, don’t put it into your body. The best way to see if dyes cause behavior issues in a child is to eliminate them yourself, then reintroduce them over time to see what happens. Every child is different…my child had a gene defect which, with some unknown environmental trigger, mutated into leukemia. I will never know the real cause, but I tend to be very careful with what I use/eat/expose my kids to, in an attempt to reduce the chances of adverse reactions. That is my personal choice, not the result of a study.
katy recently posted..A New Blog
Go to PubMed and type in the authors of the study, the journal, and the date:
Swanson and Kinsbourne (Science), 1980
Egger (The Lancet), 1985
Kaplan (Pediatrics), 1989
Carter (Archives of Diseases in Childhood), 1993
Boris (Annals of Allergy), 1994
Rowe and Rowe (Journal of Pediatrics), 1994
McCann (The Lancet), 2007
Also try:
Lancaster, 1999
Tanaka 1993, 1996, 2001, 2005; Vorhees 1983
Rosenkranz 1990; Sweeney 1994; Tsuda 2001; Sasaki 2002
Aboel-Zahab 1997
This link has studies going back to the 1970s:
http://www.feingold.org/Research/adhd.html
and:
Also, the American Academy of Pediatrics has issued a statement in 2008 in response to the 2007 University of Southampton study from The Lancet
(February 2008 issue of its publication, AAP Grand Rounds):
“Although quite complicated, this was a carefully conducted study in which the investigators went to great lengths to eliminate bias and to rigorously measure outcomes. The results are hard to follow and somewhat inconsistent. For many of the assessments there were small but statistically significant differences of measured behaviors in children who consumed the food additives compared with those who did not. In each case increased hyperactive behaviors were associated with consuming the additives. For those comparisons in which no statistically significant differences were found, there was a trend for more hyperactive behaviors associated with the food additive drink in virtually every assessment. Thus, the overall findings of the study are clear and require that even we skeptics, who have long doubted parental claims of the effects of various foods on the behavior of their children, admit we might have been wrong.”
Dont use the food products which are made by synthetic dyes go for natural dyes these are made by natural essence of flowers and plants and these are not bad for health.
I ran across this on pinterest and my children are both fine examples of the behavioral effects from consuming Artificial colors. I haven’t allowed my children to have it for a year and I am very careful about reading labels well I had a slip and had Life cereal that I bought on WIC (figured their choices were all safe) and my son who is pre-k has had the worst week ever. He has been calm listening to the teacher getting his rewards everyday and so on. One bowl of that cereal has effected him so hard he yelled at the teacher and has received a bad report everyday. I feel so guilty because I should have paid more attention to the labels just because it was a WIC item didn’t mean it was safe. Red dye’s are made from coal and yellow made from petroleum I feel horrible my kids got that in their tiny bodies
I don’t think the author ever suggested that every kid has an allergic reaction to synthetic dyes, and this study showed that some kids did have a reaction. So, if your child is suffering from behavioral issues, I don’t see the harm in suggesting to that parent that they try eliminating artificial dyes for 30 days as he did.
{ 2 trackbacks }