The recent ban of the synthetic food dye Red 3 by the Food and Drug Administration is linked to cancer risk; high concentrations were shown to cause the disease in lab rats. But the move, and broader speculation about the safety of food dyes from Trump Administration Health and Human Services Secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., has the products in the spotlight.
“I think any time something comes up like this, then people look up, ‘hey, what else can these red dyes be linked to?’ Just a quick Google search and you'll find red dye and behavioral problems,” said Dr. Naya Antink, pediatrician and Pediatric Medical Director at Saint Alphonsus Medical Group.
Small studies going back decades have shown a potential link between artificial food dyes and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms in kids. Those multiple studies were analyzed together by an FDA advisory committee more than a decade ago.
“From that meta analysis, there was some evidence that some children with ADHD may have symptoms that are worsened by the synthetic food colors,” Antink said.
“Really, The ADHD/ADD journey is really individualized,” said Heather, a Meridian mom. She’s seen the effects in her own family.
Full disclosure: I’ve known Heather and her husband Jarrod since our kids were little, and will use just their first names in this story for the sake of privacy.
About three years ago, they started seeking help for their oldest child, Michaela, who was exhibiting behaviors associated with hyperactivity disorders. Heather says a psychologist alerted them to the potential link between dyes and ADHD symptoms.
“So I went out and just really did a lot of research: what are those alternative methods that are out there? A lot of it was Facebook groups and things like that, where people had said just lowering sugar, removing food dyes had made such a significant change,” she explained.
Heather says they started with removing food dyes from the diet, but also worked to find the right balance with medication to reach behavioral goals. They noticed a difference pretty quickly - including when food with dyes was reintroduced.
“We had been dye-free, I think, for two months,” Heather said. [Michaela] was just having a really, really tough time when she got home from school, and really wasn't making sense to me because nothing really had changed. And then it finally clicked in me, and I asked her,’ what did you have for lunch today?’ And she kind of broke down and was like, ‘I had a bag of Nacho Cheese Doritos.’ And we were like, that's it. [snaps fingers] Once that was out of her system, things were kind of back on track.”
Dr. Antink said not every child responds so directly when dyes are removed.
“In the meta analysis, [researchers] showed that about 8% of kids with ADHD may have symptoms related to synthetic food colors. But the effect of removing the food colors may be about 30% to 50% as good as medication and potentially with fewer side effect,” she said.
Why artificial food dyes might affect humans in this way isn’t clear. Antink says it might be related to inflammation, or the chemical dyes could be affecting specific neural pathways. There are many hypotheses but no conclusions.
Heather and Jarrod said cutting artificial dyes from the family diet was initially hard. It’s more expensive, and takes more time to plan and shop. And they had to convince a then-second-grader she could no longer eat some favorite treats.
“It was kind of hard and I didn't really like it,” Michaela said. “But now I'm fine with it because I know what food dye does to me.”
The ten-year old described the effects of red dye specifically as contributing to an energy and impulsivity she struggles to calm down from.
“It's amazing when you start reading labels what you find has food dye,” Heather said. “Why does, you know, white frosting need to have a yellow dye in it? There is a certain kind of hot cocoa [that has] blue and red in it. Why, it's chocolate, you know?” she said, laughing.
“Pepperoncinis,” Jarrod added, “they have yellow dye in them. The bottled pepperoncinis.”
Food manufacturers use dyes to add, stabilize or brighten specific colors. Medications can also contain artificial food dyes, which has occasionally caught them off guard, Jarrod said.
Dr. Antink encourages parents who might be considering eliminating dyes to share any dietary changes or other strategies with their child’s doctor, and to have an outside observer like a teacher help track behavioral changes. There are established rating scales and questionnaires, she said. But parents often have too vested an interest to be unbiased, and finding an outside observer will likely lead to more accurate results.
“Particularly if the teacher doesn't necessarily know if the child is eating foods with synthetic food colors or not. And then you offer the teacher to do the questionnaire maybe a month or so after stopping the synthetic food colors, and you could kind of see from their responses if there's been a change compared to prior.”
For Heather and Jared’s family, avoiding food dyes has become easier with time. They know where to look for information on packaged foods, and the stores where they can reliably find a variety of dye-free foods. There are more dye-free options at traditional grocery stores these days, too. Jarrod shared that a local Albertson’s bakery agreed to make a birthday cake with dye-free frosting the family provided. Perhaps most importantly, Michaela’s bought in.
“This is her journey,” Heather said. “At the end of the day, as she's growing older, we want to give her all of the tools in her toolbox so that she can eventually make decisions for herself. When she grows up more, does she want to pull back on the medication? Does she want to try reintroducing some foods? ADHD is just a part of people's journey. It doesn't make them who they are. It's not who she is. It's just a part of her.”
With the ban of Red 3, there are eight synthetic dyes approved by the FDA for consumption in America. Some states have taken action against these dyes; California recently passed legislation banning six of those dyes from meals, snacks and beverages in schools starting in 2028. The state was also one of several to restrict Red 3 food dye before the FDA did - though those actions were all set to take effect years from now.
The FDA maintains a position that approved food additives are safe for consumption when used as recommended, and specifically for children, “The totality of scientific evidence indicates that most children have no adverse effects when consuming foods containing color additives, but some evidence suggests that certain children may be sensitive to them. The FDA will continue to evaluate emerging science to ensure the safety of color additives approved for use.”