Red 40, Blue 1, Yellow 6, Yellow 5. Artificial food dyes are responsible for the bright colors in sports drinks, chips, and candy. Manufacturers lean towards this artificial dyeing for several reasons. One is to enhance the natural colors and to restore colors lost due to air, light, and other factors. Another reason they use them is for flavor identification, such as purple coloring for grape flavored items and blue for blue raspberry flavored items. However, the main reason for its use is for appearance so it looks more appealing to their customers.
The safety of the use of food dyes is a long-debated topic amongst researchers. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) have approved many dyes after tests on animals, and they have agreed that food dyes don’t pose significant health risks. However, some dyes banned in Europe are not banned in the U.S. which leads to suspicion on whether they are toxic or not.
Many health concerns related to food dyes include hyperactivity in children, cancer, and allergies. Studies where researchers give a group of people without ADHD foods that contain the dyes have shown hyperactivity results. But the removal of food dyes from diets of people with ADHD decreased symptoms of hyperactivity. Cancer studies on Blue 1, Red 40, as well as Yellow 5 and 6 have shown no signs of cancer but concluded that other dyes may cause the disease.
One student in Mount Michael’s junior is standing up for food dyes and he goes by the name Triple C (Color Captain Cole). Cole Rogge grew up in a food dye household: Doritos, hotdogs, mustard, you name it. Rogge also has a secret talent of being able to decipher food dyes in any artificially flavored item. In an interview, Rogge was able to go 10/10 on correctly answering food questions including, “What dye is in Lemon-Lime Gatorade?” and “What dye does Coca-Cola have?”
“I think it is just something everyone should know,” Rogge said. “I don’t really know, it’s just kind of second nature to me. But I have been reviewing flashcards with my mom every Tuesday and Thursday nights.”
Rogge believes that food dyes should stay because the FDA has approved them, and the FDA conducts many studies and tests to make sure that these dyes are not toxic and are safe for all Americans. Rogge is a pro-food dye activist and believes that all the toxicity claims are false. Rogge has attended many Pro-Food Dye rallies and plans to attend more in the future. Rogge also stated that he stands for food dyes because “they make my food look yummy.”
