Color us bad- some things to know about artifical food dyes

Here I am, a few weeks into potty training my 2.5 year old, and it hits me.  What in the world am I doing using M&M’s as rewards?!

Well, I know what I’m doing.  I chose something that is extremely motivating for my kid, that’s why I chose it.  But I have to ashamedly admit that I didn’t put much thought into it.

Potty training just happened one day.  She just sat down and went after I randomly asked her if she wanted to, all to my surprise.  That’s great and all, but it caught me so off guard (and I was so proud) that I just threw out a reward that I knew would equally surprise and delight her in return- M&M’s.

Next thing I knew I bought a bag of M&M’s and put them in a container in our medicine cabinet.  I know, I know.  Call me a hypocrite.  This was not a mindful food purchase.  Not that I think I can even call M&M’s a food.  Had I thought a bit more about it, I would have never even started.

Hold up.

Maybe some of you are thinking this isn’t a big deal.  It’s just some M&M’s, right?  But, for me, it kinda is.  I don’t buy stuff like M&M’s on a regular basis, if at all really.  It’s junk, in my opinion, and until now, offered nothing redeeming.  I guess I had convinced myself that since it actually worked as a strong motivator for my daughter that somehow overshadowed the fact that M&M’s are sugar covered in artificial food dye.  I quickly came to realize that I wasn’t just going to be feeding her a few here and there as she quickly caught on to this new reward system.  2 days in and I found myself feeding her 10-15 M&M’s a day!  Good for advancing in the potty training arena.  Awful for what I was suddenly realizing was going into her body on a regular basis: sugar, fat and Blue 1 Lake, Red 40 Lake, Yellow 6, Yellow 5, Red 40, Blue 1, Blue 2 Lake, Yellow 6 Lake, Yellow 5 Lake, Blue 2.

I blame the lapse in judgement on child #2 in my womb, sucking my brain cells as he continues to grow his own.

That said, I threw away the rest of the M&M’s and tried a sticker chart.  Ha.  That worked about a day.  Now we have compromised with dark chocolate chips.  She seems to be ok with this.

So what’s the big deal with a little color in our food?

1. Some artificial dyes have been long known to cause allergic reactions in some people- Blue 1, Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6 specifically.
2. There have been numerous studies done, and confirmed, that dyes can cause hyperactivity in children.
3. Red 40, Yellow 5 and Yellow 6 are the most widely used artificial dyes (about 90% of dyes).  Studies have shown they are tainted with low level cancer-causing compounds.
4. Some studies show that while certain dyes themselves may not cause cancer directly, there may be a synergestic effect which could lead to a higher cancer-causing effect.

If you eat a lot of processed foods, chances are you’re eating a decent amount of artificial food dye.  Start reading your list of ingredients.  You’d be surprised what our food industry decides needs some extra color.

There are some natural dyes as well.  Dyes derived from beets, beta-carotene and turmeric are a more natural substitute that won’t make the kids bounce off the walls or potentially expose us to yet one more thing that may give us cancer.  We don’t need any extra help on that.

Best way to avoid artificial dyes?

Eat a diet rich in whole foods.  Avoid processed foods.  Read your list of ingredients before purchasing.  Stay away from ingredients that have a color followed by a number as well as anything listing “artificial color.”