June, 29 2010, 12:07pm EDT
CSPI Says Food Dyes Pose Rainbow of Risks: Cancer, Hyperactivity, Allergic Reactions
Food dyes--used in everything from M&Ms to Manischewitz Matzo
Balls to Kraft salad dressings--pose risks of cancer, hyperactivity in
children, and allergies, and should be banned, according to a new report by the Center for Science in the Public
Interest. A top government scientist agrees, and says that food dyes
present unnecessary risks to the public.
WASHINGTON
Food dyes--used in everything from M&Ms to Manischewitz Matzo
Balls to Kraft salad dressings--pose risks of cancer, hyperactivity in
children, and allergies, and should be banned, according to a new report by the Center for Science in the Public
Interest. A top government scientist agrees, and says that food dyes
present unnecessary risks to the public.
The three most widely used dyes, Red 40, Yellow 5, and
Yellow 6, are contaminated with known
carcinogens, says CSPI. Another dye, Red 3, has been acknowledged
for years by the Food and Drug Administration to be a carcinogen, yet is
still in the food supply.
Despite those concerns, each year manufacturers pour
about 15 million pounds of eight synthetic dyes into
our foods. Per capita consumption of dyes has increased five-fold
since 1955, thanks in part to the proliferation of brightly colored
breakfast cereals, fruit drinks, and candies pitched to children.
"These synthetic chemicals do absolutely nothing to improve
the nutritional quality or safety of foods, but trigger behavior
problems in children and, possibly, cancer in anybody," said CSPI
executive director Michael F. Jacobson, co-author of the 58-page report,
"Food Dyes: A Rainbow of Risks." "The Food and Drug Administration
should ban
dyes, which would force industry to color foods with real food
ingredients, not toxic petrochemicals."
Blue 1, Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6 have long been
known to cause allergic reactions in some people. CSPI says that while
those reactions are not common, they can be serious and provide reason
enough to ban those dyes. Furthermore, numerous studies have
demonstrated that dyes cause hyperactivity
in children.
But the biggest concern is cancer. Back in 1985, the
acting commissioner of the FDA said that Red 3, one of the lesser-used
dyes, "has clearly been shown to induce cancer" and was "of greatest
public health concern." However, Secretary of Agriculture John R. Block
pressed the Department of Health and Human Services not to ban the dye,
and he apparently prevailed--notwithstanding the Delaney Amendment that
forbids the use of in foods of cancer-causing color additives. Each
year about 200,000 pounds of Red 3 are poured into such foods as Betty
Crocker's Fruit Roll-Ups and ConAgra's Kid Cuisine frozen meals. Since
1985 more than five million pounds of the dye have been used.
Tests on lab animals of Blue 1, Blue 2, Green 3, Red 40,
Yellow 5, and Yellow 6 showed signs of causing cancer or suffered from
serious flaws, said the consumer group. Yellow 5 also caused mutations,
an indication of possible carcinogenicity, in six of 11 tests.
In addition, according to the report, FDA tests show that
the three most-widely used dyes, Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6, are
tainted with low levels of cancer-causing compounds, including benzidine
and 4-aminobiphenyl in Yellow 5. However, the levels actually could be
far higher, because in the 1990s the FDA and Health Canada found a
hundred times as much benzidine in a bound form that is released in the
colon, but not detected in the routine tests of purity conducted by the
FDA.
"Dyes add no benefits whatsoever to foods, other than
making them more 'eye-catching' to increase sales," said James Huff, the
associate director for chemical carcinogenesis at the National
Institute of Environmental Health Sciences' National Toxicology Program.
"CSPI's scientifically detailed report on possible health effects of
food dyes raises many questions about their safety. Some dyes have
caused cancers in animals, contain cancer-causing contaminants, or have
been inadequately tested for cancer or other problems. Their continued
use presents unnecessary risks to humans, especially young children.
It's disappointing that the FDA has not addressed the toxic threat posed
by food dyes."
CSPI's
report notes that FDA's regulations mandate a stricter standard of
safety for color additives than other food 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."
The standard of "convincing evidence" does not apply to preservatives,
emulsifiers, and other additives.
CSPI charges that the FDA is not enforcing the law in
several regards:
- Red 3 and Citrus Red 2 should be banned under the
Delaney amendment, because they caused cancer in rats (some uses were
banned in 1990), as should Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6, which are
tainted with cancer-causing contaminants. - Evidence suggests, though does not prove, that Blue 1, Blue
2, Green 3, Red 40, and Yellow 6 cause cancer in animals. There
certainly is not "convincing evidence" of safety. - Dyed foods should be considered adulterated under the law,
because the dyes make a food "appear better or of greater value than it
is"--typically by masking the absence of fruit, vegetable, or other more
costly ingredient.
In a letter sent today, CSPI urged the FDA to ban all dyes
because the scientific studies do not provide convincing evidence of
safety, but do provide significant evidence of harm.
A ninth dye, Orange B, is approved for coloring sausage
casings, but in 1978 the FDA proposed banning it because it was found to
be toxic to rats. The industry has not used Orange B in more than a
decade. Also, the International Agency for Research on Cancer has
labeled Citrus Red 2 a carcinogen, and the FAO/WHO Expert Committee on
Food Additives said "this color should not be used as a food additive."
However, it poses little risk because it is approved only for coloring
the skins of oranges.
Because of concerns about dyes' impairment of children's
behavior, the British government asked companies to phase out most
dyes by last December 31, and the European Union is requiring, beginning on July 20, a
warning notice on most dyed foods. CSPI predicted that the label
notice--"may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in
children"--likely will be the death knell for dyes in all of Europe.
The greater government oversight and public concern
across the Atlantic results in McDonald's Strawberry Sundae in Britain
being colored with strawberries, but in the United States with Red dye
40. Likewise, the British version of Fanta orange soda gets its bright
color from pumpkin and carrot extract, but in the United States the
color comes from Red 40 and Yellow 6. Starburst Chews and Skittles,
both Mars products, contain synthetic dyes in the United States, but not
in Britain.
Fortunately, says CSPI, many natural colorings are
available to replace dyes. Beet juice, beta-carotene, blueberry juice
concentrate, carrot juice, grape skin extract, paprika, purple sweet
potato or corn, red cabbage, and turmeric are some of the substances
that provide a vivid spectrum of colors. However, CSPI warns that
"natural" does not always mean safe. Carmine
and cochineal--colorings obtained from a bright red insect--can cause
rare, but severe, anaphylactic reactions. Annatto, too, can cause
allergic reactions.
"Food Dyes: Rainbow of Risks" was written by Sarah
Kobylewski, a Ph.D. candidate in the Molecular Toxicology Program at the
University of California, Los Angeles, and Michael F. Jacobson,
executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest.
Jacobson is author of Eater's Digest: The Consumer's Factbook of
Food Additives (Doubleday, 1972).
Since 1971, the Center for Science in the Public Interest has been a strong advocate for nutrition and health, food safety, alcohol policy, and sound science.
LATEST NEWS
Amid Spying Fight, House Passes Fourth Amendment Is Not For Sale Act
"As FANFSA and the 702 reauthorization move to the Senate, lawmakers in that chamber need to take a stand for the rights of people in the United States," said one advocate.
Apr 17, 2024
While applauding the U.S. House of Representatives' bipartisan passage of a bill to ensure that "law enforcement and intelligence agencies can't do an end-run around the Constitution by buying information from data brokers" on Wednesday, privacy advocates highlighted that Congress is trying to extend and expand a long-abused government spying program.
The House voted 219-199 for Fourth Amendment Is Not For Sale Act (FANFSA), which won support from 96 Democrats and 123 Republicans, including the lead sponsor, Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio). Named for the constitutional amendment that protects against unreasonable searches and seizures, H.R. 4639 would close what campaigners call the data broker loophole.
"The privacy violations that flow from law enforcement entities circumventing the Fourth Amendment undermine civil liberties, free expression, and our ability to control what happens to our data," said Free Press Action policy counsel Jenna Ruddock. "These impacts affect everyone who uses digital platforms that extract our personal information any time we open a browser or visit social media and other websites—even when we go to events like demonstrations and other places with our phones revealing our locations."
"We're grateful that the House passed these vital and popular protections," she added. "The bill would prevent flagrant abuses of our privacy by government authorities in league with unscrupulous third-party data brokers. Making this legislation into law with Senate passage too would be a decisive and long-overdue action against government misuse of this clandestine business sector that traffics in our personal data for profit."
Wednesday's vote followed the House sending the Reforming Intelligence and Securing America Act to the Senate. H.R. 7888 would reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which allows for warrantless spying on noncitizens abroad but also sweeps up Americans' data.
The House notably included an amendment forcing a wide range of individuals and businesses to cooperate with government spying operations but rejected an amendment that would have added a warrant requirement to the bill, which the Senate could vote on as soon as Thursday.
Noting those decisions on the FISA reauthorization legislation, Ruddock stressed that "today's vote is a victory but follows a recent loss and ongoing threat as that Section 702 bill moves to the Senate this week too."
"As FANFSA and the 702 reauthorization move to the Senate, lawmakers in that chamber need to take a stand for the rights of people in the United States," she argued. "That means passing FANFSA and reforming Section 702 authority—and prioritizing everyone's First and Fourth Amendment rights."
Jeramie Scott, senior counsel and director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center's Project on Surveillance Oversight, also praised the House's FANFSA passage on Wednesday.
"The passage of the Fourth Amendment Is Not For Sale underscores the extent to which reining in abusive warrantless surveillance is a bipartisan issue," Scott said. "We urge the Senate to take up this measure and close the data broker loophole."
Kia Hamadanchy, senior policy counsel at ACLU, similarly said Wednesday that "the bipartisan passage of this bill is a flashing warning sign to the government that if it wants our data, it must get a warrant."
Hamadanchy added that "we hope this vote puts a fire under the Senate to protect their constituents and rein in the government's warrantless surveillance of Americans, once and for all."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Leaked Cables Show Biden Pressuring Nations to Oppose Palestine's UN Membership
"This is the evidence that President Biden's talk about a two-state solution is nothing but idle talk," said one former Lebanese diplomat.
Apr 17, 2024
As the United Nations Security Council prepares to vote Thursday on Palestine's bid to become a full U.N. member, the Biden administration—which claims to support Palestinian statehood—is lobbying UNSC nations in an effort to wrangle enough "no" votes so that the United States can avoid resorting to a veto.
Leaked cables obtained by The Intercept show U.S. pressure on Security Council members including Malta—which currently presides over the body—and Ecuador.
While claiming that President Joe Biden backs "Palestinian aspirations for statehood," one of the cables asserts that "it remains the U.S. view that the most expeditious path toward a political horizon for the Palestinian people is in the context of a normalization agreement between Israel and its neighbors."
"We therefore urge you not to support any potential Security Council resolution recommending the admission of 'Palestine' as a U.N. member state, should such a resolution be presented to the Security Council for a decision in the coming days and weeks," the document advises.
The U.S. argument essentially is that the U.N. should not create an independent Palestinian state by fiat—even though that's precisely how the world body voted in 1947 to establish the modern state of Israel.
The renewed push for Palestine's U.N. membership comes as Israel wages a genocidal war on the Gaza Strip. The Palestinian Authority, which hasn't controlled Gaza for nearly two decades, rejected the Biden administration's requests to hold off on seeking full membership.
"We wanted the U.S. to provide a substantive alternative to U.N. recognition. They didn't," one unnamed Palestinian official toldAxios on Wednesday. "We believe full membership in the U.N. for Palestine is way overdue. We have waited more than 12 years since our initial request."
As The Intercept's Ken Klippenstein and Daniel Boguslaw noted:
Since 2011, the U.N. Security Council has rejected the Palestinian Authority's request for full member status. On April 2, the Palestinian Observer Mission to the U.N. requested that the council once again take up consideration of its membership application. According to the first State Department cable, U.N. meetings since the beginning of April suggest that Algeria, China, Guyana, Mozambique, Russia, Slovenia, Sierra Leone, and Malta support granting Palestine full membership to the U.N. It also says that France, Japan, and Korea are undecided, while the United Kingdom will likely abstain from a vote.
Along with the United States, China, France, Russia, and the United Kingdom are permanent members of the UNSC, so they also have veto power.
Ahead of Thursday's planned vote, Spain has been doing its own lobbying in Europe to build greater support for Palestinian statehood. At a joint Tuesday press conference with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob said the question is "when, not if, but when is the best moment to recognize Palestine."
Belgium—which is seeking economic sanctions against Israel in response to its genocidal war on Gaza—is expected to join Spain's push for Palestinian statehood after the country's European Union presidency expires in June.
Currently, 139 of the U.N.'s 193 member states recognize Palestine as an independent state.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—who has also claimed to support a so-called "two-state solution"—has alternately boasted about thwarting Palestinian statehood.
Critics pointed to the leaked cables as more proof of U.S. duplicity and double standards on the Israel-Palestine issue.
"This is the evidence that President Biden's talk about a two-state solution is nothing but idle talk," Massoud Maalouf, a former Lebanese ambassador to Canada, Chile, and Poland, said on social media.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Database Exposes 'Illicit Network Undermining Democracy Around the World'
Yanis Varoufakis hailed the effort as "a treasure chest of well-researched reports on how the reactionaries of the world unite."
Apr 17, 2024
"Coups. Assassinations. Riots. Detentions. Disinformation. We know the tactics that have been deployed to undermine our democracies. But who is behind them?"
Progressive International (PI) asks and answers this and other questions with an extensive new database published Wednesday that connects the dots in what the leftist group calls the "Reactionary International"—a loose global network of right-wing leaders and organizations working to subvert democratic institutions.
PI calls it an "illicit network undermining democracy around the world."
"Today is a mask-off moment for the Reactionary International and the parties, politicians, judges, journalists, foundations, think tanks, tech platforms, NGOs, activists, financiers, and entrepreneurs that comprise it," PI said.
"After a year of preparation, we finally open the doors to our new research consortium, exposing the global network of reactionary forces that corrode our democracies, destroy our planet, and drive us closer to world war," the group added.
"The twin insurrections at the U.S. Capitol in 2021 and BrasÃlia's Three Powers Plaza in 2023 left no doubt about the international coordination of reactionary forces," PI argued. "Yet far too little is known about the entities of this network, their sources of financing, and their institutional allies operating inside our political systems."
Ultimately, PI aims to "support democratic systems to become more resilient to their insidious tactics."
From leaders like Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and former U.S. President Donald Trump—the presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee—to evangelical Christian groups influencing laws in African countries criminalizing LGBTQ+ people and tech companies empowering ubiquitous state surveillance, Reactionary International is a who's-who of the world's right-wing forces.
A cursory search of the database's contents shows users can:
- Learn about Israel's NSO, Rayzone, and Team Jorge, and how a team of Tel Aviv tech entrepreneurs fuel unrest in Latin America;
- Meet the Grey Wolves, Turkey's roving death squad with links to President Recep Tayyip ErdoÄŸan and the ethno-nationalists in his governing coalition; and
- Explore the global network of the Falun Gong, its Trump-connected media outlet The Epoch Times, and its traveling dance troupe known as Shen Yun.
Yanis Varoufakis, a PI member and secretary-general of the left-wing Democracy in Europe Movement 2025, called the database "a treasure chest of well-researched reports on how the reactionaries of the world unite."
PI invites the public to contribute to the database.
"Together, we will not only name, shame, and expose the forces of the far right—but also dismantle their network of complicity," the group said.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular