Skittles A Rainbow of Colors or A Rainbow of Harm?

An article published on June 30, 2010 on newsinferno.com stated that in 2008, CSPI (The Center for Science in the Public Interest) pleaded with the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) to ban the artificial food dyes. Along with pleading the group also provided studies of the harms of these dyes based on experiments on various dyes with rats as the subjects. Although there’s no conclusive evidence there are plenty of questions about the dangers still unanswered. Shouldn’t we be safe rather than sorry?
In a recent article Artificial Food Dyes Linked to Dangerous Health Risks, it states that the “CSPI does acknowledge that the FDA has put regulations in place that mandate stricter standard of safety for color additives, saying that there must be ‘convincing evidence that establishes with reasonable certainty that no harm will result from the intended use of the color additive.’” They also state in this article “that studies conducted on food dyes have been of poor quality, and that more controlled studies need to be performed to ensure safety.” CSPI Executive Director and study co-author Michael F. Jacobson, PhD, agrees that this is true in Group Calls for Ban on Artificial Food Dyes. Jacobson also believes that that is hardly the problem. “The FDA has not looked at the safety of food dyes in 15 or 20 years…To accept widely used dyes that have these bound carcinogens is shameful.” states Jacobson later in the article. Like Jacobson, many of us believe that more should be done. A FDA spokesperson stated that “[They] appreciate the report from the CSPI and look forward to reviewing it. [They] take [their] commitment to protecting children seriously.” The FDA said this over three months ago, what has been done since? Doesn’t seem like anything to me.
To improve the health of everyone who eats these brightly colored foods there are fortunately many substitutes that manufacturers could and should use instead. Many natural colorings are available such as beet juice, beta-carotene, blueberry juice concentrate, carrot juice and many others and all “provide a vivid spectrum of colors” states CSPI Says Food Dyes Pose Rainbow of Risk. Since we obviously can’t rely on the manufacturers to take this step in making our country healthier we, citizens, parents, grandparents, can take our own steps to making ourselves and children healthier. Instead of soft drinks and fruit drinks a 100 percent fruit juice can be substituted. Cakes and cookies made from scratch can be used instead of box mixes because they contain red and yellow coloring. Cheerios and other naturally colored cereal s are better than Fruit Loops and Lucky Charms. Taking the responsibility to make changes in our foods and what we take into our body can lead to a healthier and longer life.