What so many of us already know

March 29, 2011

_Do Food Dyes Make Kids Hyperactive? FDA to Weigh In_

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Mar 28th 2011 @ 3:00PM

Is the _Food and Drug Administration_ (http://www.fda.gov/) preparing to

change its position on artificial food dyes?

For years the FDA has maintained that the additives that give everything

from Gatorade to Cheetos their distinctive hues are perfectly safe.

Currently, there are nine synthetically produced food dyes that are on the

agency's

list of approved " certified colors. "

But one public advocacy organization is asking whether the FDA has been

looking at the issue of artificial food coloring through rose-tinted glasses.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest argues that there's mounting

evidence to show that artificial food dyes cause behavior changes in some

children, and FDA staffers have gone so far to prepare a report for one of

the agency's advisory committees detailing a possible link between food

coloring and children who have attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder,

as _MSNBC reports_

" For certain susceptible children with ADHD and other problem behaviors,

the data suggest their condition may be exacerbated [by certain additives in

food including artificial colors], " the report says.

This week, the FDA advisory committee will meet to _review_

outside

experts, including the director of CSPI.

Any change in FDA policy would be significant. Although the agency's

website admits that there have been concerns about the impact of food dyes on

children's behavior since the 1970s, it maintains that science has yet to

establish such a link.

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