Foods to "Dye" for...

Ever since I’ve cleaned up my eating I’ve continued to become more aware of the things that are in the foods that I eat. Lately I’ve been hearing a lot about food dyes and how they can be harmful to our health especially in children. So I decided to write a little bit about it since it was something I had never even really thought about. I mean really, if it’s bad for us how can they be allowed to feed it to us…”Soylent Green” ring a bell anyone?

Synthetic food dyes are used to enhance the colour of products and are commonly found in many packaged and processed foods in Canada, particularly in candy and sugary cereals geared toward children.

Critics and health care professionals alike are now saying that the synthetic colourings pose a health risk and should be phased out by the federal government. This debate has intensified ever since the medical journal The Lancet published a study in the fall of 2008 that uncovered a link between additives and hyperactivity in children. Researchers found that children with no history of serious behavioural problems showed signs of hyperactivity after drinking fruit juice that contained various levels of additives over a period of several weeks.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest, a U.S.-based advocacy group that has a branch in Canada, is petitioning the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to phase out eight artificial food dyes that it says pose a serious health risk to children.

Why do they use these chemicals if they are so bad?
The purpose of these chemicals is often to mask the absence of real food, and to increase the appeal of a product that has little nutritional value.

Where are these dyes being used?
Nearly all of the dyes singled out as dangerous are permitted for use in Canada. The food dyes are added to a wide range of products, including concentrated fruit juice, ketchup, cheddar cheese and liqueurs and sometimes even salmon!

Identifying the dyes in your food.
Canadian consumers are at a disadvantage when it comes to knowing whether food contains potentially harmful dyes. That's because companies are not required to list which dyes they use in their products - they can simply say the product contains "colours."

“Any food company can add them [artificial dyes] if they want and essentially conceal the identity of that dye and Canadians suffer the consequences of it, particularly children," Bill Jeffery, national co-ordinator of the Canadian arm of the public interest group.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says that while food companies are free to disclose which “colours” they use, they are not obligated to release those details to consumers.

Have you ever looked at those cheese doodles before you ate them or what about that radio-active green juice you’re about to drink? I’m pretty sure the food we eat was never meant to look like that…we may not be able to see the colours used in our ingredients yet but you can pretty much tell just by looking at most of the foods containing them.

You’ll be happy to know that studies such as the Lancet Study have prompted Health Canada to review its regulations on food additives and they have begun working on labelling requirements that will require that any “colour” used in food must be declared in the ingredient list…when this will actually happen is the next question.

In case you are wondering...
Here are eight of the most widely used synthetic dyes…yellow 5, or tartrazine; red 40, also known as allura red; blue 1, or brilliant blue; blue 2, or indigotine; green 3, or fast green; red 3, or erythrosine; yellow 6, or sunset yellow; and orange B…fast fact for ya — all of those dyes except for Orange B are currently permitted for use in Canada.

Most of these can be found in items such as bottled soft drinks, bakery products, cereals, candy, confections and dry drink powders. Some of your favourite snacks are probably among the foods containing them such as: Smarties, Froot Loops, Cheetos, Doritos and Reese's Pieces, which either list "colour" or "colours" in their ingredient lists, but don't disclose whether they use synthetic dyes or which ones they use. The list on a package of Skittles indicates the product's colours include tartrazine, which by the way is derived from coal tar.

Red 40 also known as allura red and Yellow 5 can even be found in products such as Pillsbury Cresent Rolls, Pillsbury Supreme Frosting, piecrust, quick bread & coffee cake mix, why? To create a more “golden” look.

Take the time to do a google search for foods containing those colourings and you’ll be surprised what you find!

What’s the solution?
Try not to eat processed food, eat foods that are natural and don't come out of a box. Also look for foods that use natural colourings such as Beet powder or Paprika just to name a couple.