Are food dyes ACTUALLY bad?

I thought this would be the perfect topic to kick off the blog, especially since it ties in so closely with having a bakery! After completing my own research below I have made the commitment to not use food dyes in my products along with my products being gluten free.  I hope this blog can be a place where I share why I have taken certain steps and chosen certain products to help make our products healthier or cleaner. If you want to understand more about my story and health journey and why these things are important to me, you can read my first blog post here.

The main reason I’m writing this blog is because I believe it’s crucial for all of us to take charge of our own health and wellness. Personally, it frustrates me that after 12 years of schooling and 4 years of college, I still didn’t fully understand how my body works or what it needs to thrive. That’s why I want to dive into topics that help us all learn, grow, and hopefully make choices that lead to healthier, happier lives!

There has been talk for years that food dyes cause cancer, but why are they in everything then?  In fact a year ago I realized there was red food dye in my iron supplement?!  Why does an iron supplement need food dye?  Food dyes are not just in ultra processed foods but in toothpaste, vitamins, mouthwash, medications, and cosmetics and personal care products to just name some categories.  These food dyes are being made with petroleum-oil-based chemicals.  Here is a short publication that states the concerns of food dyes from Pub Med: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23026007/.  It is succinctly saying that “Red 3 causes cancer in animals” and that not enough research has been done but that “carcinogenicity, genotoxicity, and hypersensitivity, coupled with the fact that dyes do not improve the safety or nutritional quality of foods, indicates that all of the currently used dyes should be removed from the food supply and replaced.”

What is carcinogenicity? “Carcinogenicity is the ability or tendency of a chemical to induce tumors (benign or malignant), increase their incidence or malignancy, or shorten the time of tumor occurrence when it is inhaled, ingested, dermally applied, or injected.” from Science Direct (https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/carcinogenicity#:~:text=Carcinogenicity%20is%20the%20ability%20or,%2C%20dermally%20applied%2C%20or%20injected.)  That is a pretty powerful statement being made by the Pub Med article that you would miss out on without knowing this definition. It is stating clearly that food dyes can cause tumor growth in our bodies.

What frustrates me even more is that the United States is one of the few industrialized nations without strict regulations on these harmful chemicals. Countries like Australia, Japan, and those in the European Union have already taken action by either restricting or banning their use. If cancer wasn’t a big enough risk on its own, food dyes have also been linked to developmental and behavioral issues in some children.  This article from Ohio State Health and Discovery has some powerful statements: “The average person in the United States drinks and eats five times as much food dye today compared to what was consumed in 1955.” (https://health.osu.edu/health/mental-health/food-dye) Which could be the reason we are seeing so many more effects.  Another Pub Med article speaks of a study done in California that was published in 2022 “We identified 27 clinical trials of children exposed to synthetic food dyes in this review, of which 25 were challenge studies. All studies used a cross-over design and most were double blinded and the cross-over design was randomized. Sixteen (64%) out of 25 challenge studies identified some evidence of a positive association, and in 13 (52%) the association was statistically significant. These studies support a relationship between food dye exposure and adverse behavioral outcomes in children.” (https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9052604/)  This is a lot of medical jargon but this basically means that this study being double blinded means that the participant and the scientist both did not know who had placebo or food dyes which helps the validity of the science of these studies.  It is significant to me that over half of the 25 studies showed a correlation and that 13 of those 16 were showing significant results.  I know sometimes that these studies can be biased but again we should feel confident in our ability to take charge of our health. I have personally spoken with many people who see a change in their own children’s behavior when removing dyes. Maybe apply this to your own home. Does removing dyes change the behavior of your own child when you reduce or remove them?

One last article I will share with you is from the FDA, talking about our Color Additive history (https://www.fda.gov/industry/color-additives/color-additives-history). “By 1931, there were 15 straight colors approved for use in food, including six of the seven in use today: FD&C Blue No. 1 (Brilliant Blue FCF), FD&C Blue No. 2 (Indigotine), FD&C Green No. 3 (Fast Green FCF), FD&C Red No. 3 (Erythrosine), FD&C Yellow No. 5 (Tartrazine), and FD&C Yellow No. 6 (Sunset Yellow).”  When I look at this statement all I see are the unnatural chemicals that we are consuming that maybe we were not made to have.  There could be an argument that a little of something never hurts anyone but I believe part of the problem is that as I stated before we are consuming at least 5 times what we were consuming in 1955.  Again my hope is that by learning some of these key facts that you might take a look at what you are consuming, reading labels might just become a focus for you in your home as we learn more things together.

For me, I could and can not ignore all of these data points and so when making a decision to reopen the bakery I knew that it would be difficult and cost me time and money  but I would need to give up working with food dyes.  I am now working with food based powders and while it is frustrating, I am hoping to remain focused on the truth. We need to make hard choices and commitments if we want to live healthier lives.  I hope that this topic interests you and might make you think a little before you make your next product purchase.  Thank you so much for reading. I truly appreciate it in our busy lives that you took the time!  

And one last question: Do you agree with banning Red 3?

Sincerely, Steph

**DISCLAIMER: The contents of this website, such as text, graphics, images and other material are intended for informational and educational purposes only and not for the purpose of rendering medical advice. **