The Truth Behind The Toxic Red Color In Our Food

Kids love sprinkles. In their cake, on top of their cupcakes and donuts, and surrounding their ice cream cones. Even more than kids love all the pretty colors, companies love making food with them. Why wouldn’t they? They discovered a rainbow of synthetic dyes and it led straight to a pot of gold. Color sells. The problem is that the rainbow of synthetic colors gives us a false sense of security. While it makes companies richer, it makes us sicker.

Governor Newsom of California made history last month when he signed into law the California Food Safety Act. The act bans four harmful food additives, including Red No. 3, also known as F&DC Red No. 3. This makes California the first state to take action that the federal government itself has failed to take: taking a stand against the toxins in our food. The FDA is the entity charged with responsibility to regulate what goes into our food, yet it is failing miserably. Everyday we eat food that is not safe. We walk into a grocery store believing that we can safely eat whatever is on the shelves. In all honesty, that conception is an illusion.

One of the biggest toxins that exists in our food is food dye. Consumer action groups have been pressing the FDA for decades to ban many toxic food additives, in particular, the synthetic dyes that color much of our food. Will California’s new law be the impetus their cause needs to push the sleepy government organization into action?

In 1990 the FDA decided to ban Red No. 3 as an additive in cosmetics and drugs due to its link to cancer in animal studies, but curiously left it open for use in food. Red No. 3 specifically increases the risk of thyroid tumors, while Red 40 accelerates the appearance of immune system tumors. In fact, the three dyes most consumed–Red 40, Yellow 5 and Yellow 6, contain the cancer-causing contaminants Benzidine, 4-aminobiphenyl and 4-aminoazobenzene. Multiple studies have found Yellow 5 to cause hives and asthma symptoms. These have all been related to causing systemic allergic reactions. Further, Blue 2 is linked to brain tumors in mammals. The Center for Science in the Public Interest has published multiple reports regarding the link between synthetic dyes and disease, including cancer. There are dozens upon dozens of independent studies linking human health problems to food color. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23026007/

Despite all of this concerning and mounting evidence, the FDA has failed to ban dye usage in food. Peter Lurie, President of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, has stated, “For 33 years now, we have been waiting for the FDA to take common sense action that would remove [red No. 3] from the market and thereby better protect American consumers.” 

The first artificial food dyes were created from coal tar beginning in 1856. Currently, they are made from petroleum. While hundreds of dyes have been created, a majority of them have been found to be toxic. Thus, only a handful are still used in food.

Red No. 3 is a highly controversial food dyes for good reason. All synthetic dyes go through extensive safety testing. Red No. 3 has been found to be particularly harmful due to its disruption of the thyroid. It is also related to tumor formation. Erythrosine is the chemical compound for Red No. 3. It contains high levels of bound iodine. Specifically, the dye results in a perturbation of thyroid hormone economy in rodents. It results in a long-term stimulation of follicular cells by TSH, that over their lifetime predisposes them to an increased incidence of thyroid tumors.

In 2009, based on mounting evidence regarding the dangers of synthetic dyes, the British government pressured the food companies into using safer alternatives. Now in the UK safe dyes are made from foods like carrots, beets, turmeric and paprika. This has led food manufacturers to create two versions of these products. One version with safer ingredients is sold in the UK. The other, with more harmful ingredients, is sold in the U.S. Isn’t this crazy, and maddening? They have the capability to make a safe version of their products but they knowingly feed citizens of the United States harmful food filled with toxic chemicals.

Why has the FDA failed to act to protect consumers from food color that is known to cause cancer, infertility and childhood behavioral disorders? Obviously the confectionary and candy industry values the dye as a necessary component to make more visually appealing treats. In fact, it’s likely the involvement of these large food corporations that has been the reason why the FDA has failed to implement a national ban on harmful dyes.

California’s law does not go into effect until 2027. This allows four years to litigate whether the law is unconstitutional or not. What was that saying about justice being swift?

Red No. 3 can be found in all kinds of food (over 3,000 of them in fact), including cakes, cookies, candy, caned fruit and drinks. As I write this shortly before Halloween, candy corn comes to mind as a candy that contains Red No. 3. In fact, over 100 varieties of Brach’s candies contain this food dye. It’s in bubble gum and even Hostess snack cakes. It gives Hot Tamales their distinctive color. Pez, Ring Pops and Fruit by the Foot all contain Red No. 3. All of these foods are directed towards children. It’s even in PediaSure Grow & Gain Strawberry Shake that advocates it is “clinically proven to help kids grow”. It can also be found in processed foods where the ingredients are naturally red but due to processing, synthetic dyes are added to give the food brighter color. See our post about pie filling for more: Strawberry-Rhubarb Foods.

Who will protect our kids? Companies will make changes when forced to as demonstrated by what happened when dyes were restricted in the UK. In fact, you can find many Organic foods that are naturally colored. It appears that the big food companies only care about their bottom line. They will continue to use cheap synthetic dyes until the FDA tells them not to.

I started the Food Stoic to help people learn more about what they eat and to provide resources to eat better. It’s important we learn how to protect ourselves and to demand healthier food. I’ve fed most of the food with these dyes to my own children. I’ve used them myself to make cakes, cookies and frostings. I had no idea about these dangers until I started to research them. I doubt many people know unless they have had an allergic reaction.

While most big companies know about the dangers of food dyes, regular consumers and small business owners do not. I understand the mindset of the small food business owner with respect to the food we create. Most of us start making our products in our own kitchens. We are so passionate about what we are creating that we decide to offer it to the world with a goal to make others happy. We think that the food we are making from scratch is better than what they sell in the stores. It’s safer and healthier, along with better tasting. It’s appalling to think that something as innocuous as festive rainbow sprinkles turns our food made with love into something unsafe.

It all makes me wonder how people will learn this important information. It’s hard to pay attention to everything when we live very busy lives. Hopefully the FDA will wake up and true regulation will begin. Perhaps then we will be able to safely cover our cakes with the rainbow, just one made out of natural colors instead of harmful toxins.