DryKids Ontario
9 Food Additives That May Affect Children’s Behaviour
Most
studies of food dyes analyzed
blends of additives, not single ingredients, making it difficult to find a
culprit.
However, here's a list of additives that
could aggravate attention
problems, although none (with the exception of Yellow No. 5) has been
studied alone in humans.
It’s on the label:
Help your child to get dry faster and with more certainty by avoiding food dyes which might upset a child’s system. It seems to take very little disturbance to influence a child’s sleep, and improper sleep can affect daytime performance in ADHD-like behaviours. Elminiation diets are part of the DryKids 4-Steps to Dry program.
It’s on the label; look for food dyes
Yellow No. 5
Also known
as: Tartrazine
What it
is: Yellow No. 5 is the only food dye that has been tested alone
and not simply as part of a mix. Those studies did link it to
hyperactivity. It is the second most commonly used dye in the
U.S.
Where you can find it: Nabisco Cheese Nips Four
Cheese; Frito-Lay Sun Chips Harvest Cheddar and other Frito-Lay products;
some Hunt’s Snack Pack Pudding products; Lucky Charms; Eggo waffles and
other waffle products; some Pop-Tarts products; various Kraft macaroni and
cheese products; Betty Crocker Hamburger Helper and other
products.
Blue No.
1
Also
known as: Brilliant blue
What it is: A food
coloring
Where you can find it: Frito-Lay Sun Chips
French Onion and other Frito-Lay products; some Yoplait products; some
JELL-O dessert products; Fruity Cheerios; Trix; Froot-Loops; Apple Jacks;
Quaker Cap'N Crunch's Crunch Berries; some Pop-Tarts products; some Oscar
Mayer Lunchables; Duncan Hines Whipped Frosting Chocolate; Edy's ice cream
products; Skittles candies; Jolly Ranchers Screaming Sours Soft & Chew
Candy; Eclipse gum; Fanta Grape.
Blue No.
2
Also
known as: Indigotine
What it is: A food coloring
Where you can find it: Froot-Loops; Post Fruity
Pebbles; Pop-Tarts products; Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe Strawberry Supreme
Premium Cake Mix; Betty Crocker Frosting Rich & Creamy Cherry;
M&M's Milk Chocolate Candies; M&M's Milk Chocolate Peanut Candies;
Wonka Nerds Grape/Strawberry.
Green No. 3
What it
is: A food coloring, though rarely used
these days
Where you can find it: Candy, beverages,
ice cream, puddings
Orange B
What it
is: A food coloring, but no longer
used
Where you used to find it: Sausage
casings
Red No.
3
Also known as: Carmoisine
What it is: A
food coloring found only in a few types of food
products
Where you can find it: Candy, cake icing, chewing gum
Sodium benzoate
What it
is: A food preservative
Where you can
find it: Fruit juice, carbonated beverages, and
pickles
You’ll find
sodium benzoate in abundance in acidic foods. It is used to stymie the
growth of microorganisms, according to the Center for Science in the
Public Interest (CSPI).
Red No.
40
Also known as: Allura red
What it is: A
food coloring and the most widely used food dye in the U.S., trumping both
Yellow No. 5 and Yellow No. 6.
Where you can find it:
Some Frito-Lay products; some Yoplait products; JELL-O Gelatin desserts;
Quaker Instant Oatmeal; Trix; Froot-Loops; Apple Jacks; some Pop-Tart
products; Kid Cuisine Kung Fu Panda products; Oscar Mayer Lunchables
products; Hostess Twinkies; some Pillsbury rolls and frostings; some Betty
Crocker and Duncan Hines frostings; and more
Yellow No.
6
Also known as: Sunset yellow
What it is:
The third most widely used food dye in the U.S.
Where you can
find it: Frito-Lay Cheetos Flamin’ Hot Crunchy and other Frito-Lay
products; Betty Crocker Fruit Roll-ups; some JELL-O gelatin deserts and
instant puddings; Fruity Cheerios; Trix; some Eggo waffle products; some
Kid Cuisine Kung Fu Panda products; some Kraft macaroni and cheese
dinners; some Betty Crocker frostings; some M&M’s and Skittles
candies; Sunkist Orange Soda; Fanta Orange.
