Food Color: What Can It Do To Your Body

Do you love to see the bright colors in your candy or fruits? Do you know that food coloring can cause cancer and other health problems not only in adults, but in children as well?

Everyone loves the bright colors in fruits, candies, juices and packaged foods. They make us believe that the foods will be flavorful. But, have you taken time to find out if the colors are natural, or artificial coloring? Color is added to food to make it look more attractive. Colors trick us into believing the food will be more delicious.

Food coloring is found in everything from candy to salad dressing to flavored. The FDA stands behind the safety of colored products and says that American consumers like the brightly colored foods even though they can be hazardous to your health.

Food Coloring Hazards

Children consume a lot of colored juices, candies and other foods that can cause major health problems. Some of the problems include hyperactivity, attention deficit disorder and childhood obesity.

In adults, some of the problems associated with food color are allergies, cancer, nervousness, agitation, concentration issues, fatigue and nausea. There are also reports that show an association to Hodgkins disease.

There are many different types of food coloring that are used in different food items. Here are some of those food colors and the side effects that they may have.

• Red 3 (Erythrosine) is a  color additive that is related to thyroid tumors.
• are chemicals related to cancer and also may cause genetic problems.
• Red 40 (Allura Red) is found in colorful candies and sweets. This color additive is known to cause allergies. It’s attractive and tasty, but harmful to your health.
• Blue 1 (Brilliant Blue) is an additive that’s found in some dairy products. It has been linked to causing some forms of cancer.
• Blue 2 (Indigo Carmine) is another coloring additive that has been linked to causing brain tumors and other reactions such as nausea, rashes and allergies.
• Citrus Red 2 is often added to fruit products, such as oranges. It keeps them looking fresh and juicier, but has been found to lead to cancer. Studies on rodents have shown it caused tumors in the bladder and other organs. This colorant is found in skins of some Florida oranges.
• Green 3 (Fast Green) is an additive that is known to be linked to carcinogenic, which is very harmful to the body.
• is used in some jellies, canned peas, even cake mixes. It’s known for causing allergic reactions.
• Coloring found in cereals, sweets and jams can be very harmful to your body as they contain FD&C yellow 5 (Tartrazine), which is responsible for asthma attacks and other breathing problems.