Tuesday, June 03, 2008

Are Food Dyes Fueling Kids' Hyperactivity?

ABC News has a report this evening on a request to ban 8 different food colorings from foods sold in the USA. Naturally, the food companies are not pleased. You can see the original press release here:

CSPI Urges FDA to Ban Artificial Food Dyes Linked to Behavior Problems

From the ABC News Report:

The Center for Science in the Public Interest today called on the Food and Drug Administration to ban artificial coloring in all U.S. foods based on a controversial claim that artificial coloring is behind the rise in kids' behavioral problems, like Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

"I think it's crystal clear the dyes affect kids' behavior," said Michael Jacobson, executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest in Washington, D.C. "The tougher questions are how many kids, and to what extent is their behavior affected? But time is long overdue to get rid of these dyes from the food supply. Let scientists study them in a laboratory."

[...]

Judy Mann of Silver Spring, Md., whose 10-year-old son Jake Kushner suffers from ADHD, said she had tried everything to confront her son's disorder, such as eliminating gluten, eating organic and visiting a psychiatrist and a psychologist.

After looking at the ingredients in buttered movie theater popcorn following one of Jake's outbursts, she became convinced that food dyes played a part in his explosive behavior.

"We started not eating popcorn at the movie theater and he stopped having problems after the movies," Mann said.

"And then a few weeks after, he had five Skittles … and he hit the roof," she added. "And that's when we were sure it was the dyes and not the sugar. And since we've cut them out, it's been an amazing difference."

1 comment:

wfpearson said...

Wow, what an eye opener. Coincidentally, my son had Skittles this Easter and his behavior was so bad that evening that I pledged to eliminate sugar from my own diet out of empathy, and concern for my own health. We figured it must be the sugar because my wife and I never feed him candy. This is the first I've heard of the effects of food dyes, but given my own anecdotal experience, I certainly believe it's possible that dyes could be a trigger for outbursts.