I still remember being a kid in the 70’s when red M and M’s were taken off the market. At the time, I had no idea why. Now as a dietitian, that decision makes more sense and history may be repeating itself. A recent bill banning dyes in food at public schools in California was introduced and may soon become law.

The California School Food Safety Act (Assembly Bill 2316) would forbid food containing six potentially hazardous food dyes from being served in the state’s public schools.  The California Assembly approved this in late August after passing the state Senate earlier in the month.

Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel, who introduced the legislation back in February, states, "California has a responsibility to protect our students from chemicals that harm children, and that can interfere with their ability to learn. This bill will empower schools to better protect the health and well-being of our kids and encourage manufacturers to stop using these harmful additives."

Previous efforts last year by Gabriel were successful in banning possibly harmful additives in food and drink in products sold in the state through the California Food Safety Act. Chemicals banned by the legislation include potassium bromate, propylparaben, brominated vegetable oil, and Red 3 from food that’s made, delivered, and sold in California.

The bill was signed into law in October 2023 by Governor Newsom, making California the leading state to ban the additives. The following food dyes will be banned in California schools according to the new act: Red Dye No. 40, Yellow Dye No. 5, Yellow Dye No. 6, Blue Dye No. 1, Blue Dye No. 2, and Green Dye No. 3. The bipartisan bill gets support from Consumer Reports and the Environmental Working Group.

The rationale for the ban has to do with the impact the six dyes and colors have on neurobehavioral problems in some children. Research suggests that the intake of these additives may be linked with hyperactivity as laid out in the California Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment report.

Several chemicals are still used in the US commercial food system and are reviewed by the FDA. However, some haven’t been assessed by the FDA for health risks for years, such as Red 40, in 1971.

The push to reevaluate the use and safety of artificial dyes is in alignment with concerns from the American Academy of Pediatrics. Other research supports banning artificial colors due to the risk of allergies, gastrointestinal problems, and cancer.

According to Dr. Stephanie Widmer, an ABC News medical contributor, board-certified emergency medicine physician and toxicologist, "Over the last several decades, studies have raised concerns regarding the effect of [artificial food colorings] on child behavior and their role in exacerbating attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms.”

“Further work is needed to better understand the implications of AFC exposure and resolve the uncertainties across the scientific evidence. The available literature should be interpreted with caution because of the absence of information about the ingredients for a number of reasons, including patent protection. Some of them are associated with neurological problems, some are reproductive problems, some have been linked to cancer," Widmer said at the time. "It really depends on the substance."

You don’t have to live in California to limit these artificial dyes in your food.  Below are tips to avoid the various foods included in this bill:

• Read food labels for the following dyes: Red Dye No. 40, Yellow Dye No. 5, Yellow Dye No. 6, Blue Dye No. 1, Blue Dye No. 2, and Green Dye No. 3

• Choose breakfast cereals without artificial colors like oatmeal, plain Cheerios, or bran flakes.

• Skip artificially colored soft drinks, sports drinks, and other sugary beverages such as Mountain Dew, Red Bull, and Gatorade.

• Avoid artificially colored candy containing dyes such as Skittles, Starburst, and other brightly colored candy.

• Limit “kiddie” yogurt that contains artificial colors and flavors.

• Swap artificially colored orange, blue, and red snacks with naturally bright green, red, and orange vegetables like broccoli, bell peppers, and carrots.

• Serve fresh fruit for snacks and dessert instead of fruit “snacks” or popsicles.

• Provide nuts and dried fruit for snacks in place of artificially colored chips and other snacks.

• Try flavored seltzer water instead of soft drinks, sports drinks, and other artificially colored drinks.

• Add citrus fruit or berries to water in place of soda.

Lisa Andrews, MEd, RD, LD

References:

1. California legislation: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB2316

2. https://oehha.ca.gov/risk-assessment/press-release/report-links-synthetic-food-dyes-hyperactivity-and-other

3. https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/142/2/e20181410/37583/Food-Additives-and-Child-Health?autologincheck=redirected

4. de Oliveira ZB, Silva da Costa DV, da Silva Dos Santos AC, da Silva Júnior AQ, de Lima Silva A, de Santana RCF, Costa ICG, de Sousa Ramos SF, Padilla G, da Silva SKR. Synthetic Colors in Food: A Warning for Children's Health. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2024 May 27;21(6):682. doi: 10.3390/ijerph21060682. PMID: 38928929; PMCID: PMC11203549.