California has enacted what’s billed as a first-in-the-nation measure restricting the use of several artificial food colors suspected of causing hyperactivity in children, but some scientific experts say the new law is based more on perceptions than science.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the legislation on food colors, Assembly Bill 2316 by Assemblyman Jesse Gabriel (D-Encino), at the end of September as part of a package to improve student nutrition. But groups such as the Institute of Food Technologies (IFT) say current federal regulations on the food colors covered by the California bill – Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Blue 1, Blue 2 and Green 3 – are up to date and based on sound science.
A recent article on the IFT website quotes several experts on food regulations as cautioning that state attempts to impose stricter regulations on synthetic colors in foods may be based on problematic scientific studies, including a 2009 evaluation suggesting a causal link between artificial colors and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The amount of artificial coloring that can be added to foods is already strictly limited by federal Food and Drug Administration rules, according to the article.
But a review of scientific literature published in April 2021 by a unit of the California Environmental Protection Agency argues that concerns about food-additive links to ADHD in children are real.
“The percentage of U.S. children and adolescents diagnosed with ADHD has increased from an estimated 6.1% to 10.2% in the past 20 years …” the CalEPA report says. “While inherited factors may put individual children at risk for ADHD, at least some of the risk in susceptible children is likely the result of these inherited factors interacting with exposures to substances in the environment, including foods. …”
The report found that a detailed review of scientific data on synthetic food dyes shows they are associated with neurobehavioral issues in children, though children do vary in their sensitivity to such substances.
“Overall, our review of human studies suggests that synthetic food dyes are associated with adverse neurobehavioral effects, such as inattentiveness, hyperactivity and restlessness in sensitive children,” the study says. “The evidence supports a relationship between food dye exposure and adverse behavioral outcomes in children, both with and without pre-existing behavioral disorders.”
The article on the IFT website indicated that laws such as AB 2316 in California could result in higher costs for consumers, “second-class” products or company decisions to discontinue certain products. Consumers are attracted to food labeling that says “no artificial ingredients/colors,” the article said.
The California measure will prohibit school lunches in California from containing the listed artificial food colors by the end of 2027. A news release from Newsom’s office alleges that the artificial dyes have been linked to not only hyperactivity and neurobehavioral problems but also cancer and harm to the immune system.
“California is once again leading the nation when it comes to protecting our kids from dangerous chemicals that can harm their bodies and interfere with their ability to learn,” Assemblyman Gabriel said in a prepared statement. “This bipartisan law will empower schools to better protect the health and wellbeing of students and sends a strong message to manufacturers to stop using these harmful additives.”
Several groups involved in the debate about potential harm from artificial food colors did not respond to requests for comment. Companies such as Mars Corp., the manufacturer of Skittles, have been sued in recent years over their use of artificial coloring in candy products, and Kellogg has faced mounting protests over its use of the colors in cereals, such as Froot Loops.