Artificial Food Coloring and its Effects on Human Health Theo Camille Burden Abstract: The use of artificial food coloring in our food has become more prevalent in our society. Some color additives are used to enhance natural colors, add color, or help identify flavor. Many artificial food colorings have been recognized by some to impose certain health risks. This paper evaluates the various types of artificial food coloring along with its potential effects on human health. The use of artificial coloring dates all the way back to ancient times, around 300 BC, when wine was beginning to be artificially colored. Natural color additives from vegetable and mineral sources were used to color food, drugs, and cosmetics (paprika, turmeric, saffron, and iron for example). Over time discoveries of synthetic organic dye started to emerge with the first discovery being mauve by British chemist, William Henry Perkin, in 1856. As more and more discoveries of dyes emerged the United States began the federal oversight initiative in 1881 with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA). Their Bureau of Chemistry began research on the use of added colors in food with cheese and butter being the first foods the federal government authorized the use of artificial coloring for. Artificial food coloring was more widespread in the U.S. by the 1900’s, even though not all were harmless. Most color additives were used to hide the imperfections in food through added lead, arsenic, and mercury. As a result, Congress passed the Food and Drug Act in 1906 that prohibited the use of poisonous coloring or using color additives to hide the imperfections in food. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) was
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responsible for enforcing the Food and Drug Act of 1906 in 1927. Four years later, in 1931, there were 15 colors approved for the use of food that have not been mixed or chemically reacted with any other substance, some of which are still use in our food today, such as, Blue No. 1, Blue No. 2, Green No. 3, Red No. 3, Yellow No. 5, and Yellow No. 6.1 As of recently there are nine FDA approved color additives, including those previously mentioned, along with Orange B, Red No. 2, and Red No. 40.2 Color additive derived from petroleum are found in several food products, such as breakfast cereal, snacks, beverages, vitamins, and products advertised for children. The FDA approved artificial food coloring derived from petroleum in order to enhance the appearance of foods. For example, some fresh oranges are dipped in coloring to brighten them up. It’s also said to be that the cereal “Cap’n Crunch’s Oops! All Berries” has the most color additives with 41 mg of dye.3 Over time some of the dyes have posed as health risks and some were even banned in certain continents. In 2010 the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) in Washington, DC did a report where they found that “the nine artificial dyes approved in the United States likely are carcinogenic, cause hypersensitivity reactions and behavioral problems, or are inadequately tested”.4 There have been studies to show how the effects of dye consumption can have an impact on a child’s behavior. Although, the studies are inaccurate since the dye dosage the children are given are far less than the amount of dye being consumed daily. The typical daily dosage of Red No. 40 is 10 mg, according to an exposure assessment by the FDA in 2014, whereas people consume as much as 52 mg of a single dye in one day. With trying to observe the effects artificial food coloring has on a child’s behavior there
