RObert F. Kennedy Jr., the United States Secretary for Health and Social Services (HHS) who has promised to combat chronic diseases by making changes to the country’s food supply, recently to food companies that one of the Trump administration’s objectives is to remove artificial dietary products.
The news comes only a few months after the Food and Drug Administration of the United States (FDA) prohibited the use of a dye, red dye n ° 3, in food and drugs ingested – a movement that preceded the new role of Kennedy. Consumer defenders and certain health experts have also expressed concerns about other types of dyes, and at least a dozen states envisaged invoices that prohibit certain dyes.
Artificial food colors, which add colors to food and drinks, have generated many debates among researchers and experts to find out if they are healthy for people. Here’s what you need to know about the problem.
Why was Red 3 prohibited by the FDA?
In 1990, the FDA prohibited Red 3 from being used in cosmetics and topical drugs, in the light of research which revealed that the dye caused cancer in male rats. Federal rules require the agency to prohibit food additives that have proven to cause animal or humans cancer, so that consumer and health defenders also encouraged the FDA to also prohibit red 3 in food. But it was not until January that the agency made this stage.
In its announcement on the decision, the FDA clarified that the way in which red 3 causes cancer in male rats “does not occur in humans”, adding that “studies in other animals and in humans have not shown these effects”.
What common foods contain artificial food dyes?
Other artificial colors – such as RED 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Blue 1, Blue 2 and Green 3 – are authorized by the FDA to be used in food and can be found in common food products. Kennedy spoke on Monday to companies of companies such as Pepsico and Kraft Heinz, who sell products containing artificial dyes. Heinz Sweet Relish, for example, contains yellow 5 and blue 1, and Kraft Creamy French Dresh contains tortilla crstilles 5 and 6 years old.
Are artificial food colors considered healthy for human consumption?
There are research that suggests that some artificial food dyes could be linked to behavioral problems in some children, but the FDA has not established a “causal link” between the two (although the agency recommends that experts conduct additional research on the problem).
Jerold Mande, former Senior Advisor to the FDA and former deputy under-security for food security at the Ministry of Agriculture, says that he cannot respond definitively if these dyes are safe for human consumption because we need more research on the impact that these dyes have on human health. “There are different degrees of evidence showing damage,” explains Mande.
During confirmation hearings to direct the HHS, Kennedy said he would support the expansion of research on food additives at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and FDA. On February 7, the NIH announced that it would reduce funding, which prompted 22 states to bring legal action, saying that cuts “would devastate critical public health research in universities and research institutions in the United States”. A federal judge recently blocked the cuts.
Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, cardiologist and director of the Food is Medicine Institute at TUFTS University, criticizes security standards and processes for food additives in the United States “it should not be that we are sure they are causing harm before removing them; We must be sure they are safe before putting them in food, ”explains Mozaffarian.
He adds that artificial dyes have no nutritional value. “If a food needs a dietary dye, if it is not appetizing and unnatural, we might not have to eat everything,” explains Mozaffarian. “This is probably the biggest question: why do we need food dyes?” This highlights the fact that they are probably lower quality foods, ingredients of lower quality, and we should not need to make food for eating them. »»
Mozaffarian says research indicates that the greatest threat to the health of Americans in the food system is the lack of healthy foods, rather than the excess intake of harmful food. He says that the second largest problem is the overall intake of ultra -transformed foods, but food additives and colors are not the main problem – other problems, such as loss of food structure, leading to rapid and unnatural digestion, which occurs when a food is too transformed, has a more significant impact on people’s health. For example, he points to Froot Loops, which contains Red 40, Yellow 5 and 6 and Blue 1.. “If we have released the coloring, they are always Froot loops”, explains Mozaffarian. “It’s a problem, but it’s not the biggest problem.”
