Are you irritable or angry? It could be Linked to Artificial Food Dyes

Have you ever experienced irritability when everything is going right? Have you ever felt really mad and aggressive over minor irritants while having a difficult time calming down or even felt overly-emotional?

If you have ever felt that way and wondered why you experienced that, then you might have been experiencing - "dye-induced behavior". No kidding. Read the labels of the foods and drinks that you consume. Does it contain any artificial dyes like red dye 40 or the yellow dyes? Some people say that the blue dyes have caused hyperactivity in their children. If you have ADD/ADHD or any other pervasive development disorder, you might be more susceptible to the affects of these dyes. Perhaps you are among the many who have never been diagnosed as having ADD/ADHD and are now an adult experiencing problems with relationships, memory, planning and organizing or keeping up with day to day tasks. While ADD/ADHD is viewed as a negative trait, it can also be a very creative and spontaneous trait. So that said, if you find yourself experiencing the symptoms I described or recognize that in a child please spread what you know about artificial dyes or direct them to this website. It may help someone that you care about find a more peaceful way of living - just by removing the artificial dyes from their diet, medicines and prescription drugs. I wish someone had told me sooner. My son was experiencing major behavior problems and neurological problems which were all illiminated by removing the artificial dyes. My son is an example of a powerful success story. He is well liked in school, gets good grades, and has received many positive awards from his teacher. He even won a spot on the wall for his artistic talent. His former occupational therapist would have been amazed to see his progress. It was the therapist who initially suggested removing red dye 40, but like many people she didn't really realize the full implications of what these artificial dyes can actually do and even handed him some treats that had artificial dyes in them after his sessions.

After our family totally changed our diets to foods without these dyes, we have experienced and witnessed the transformation of our children and ourselves. I hope this reaches as many people as possible because what these dyes are doing to our society and to our children is unforgivable. It is also sad that the FDA has done nothing to remove these harmful petroleum-based dyes from our foods and medicines.

My husband is a Neurologist who understands that these artificial dyes are potentially harmful to everyone who consumes them. He believes that the number of medicines being prescribed for ADD/ADHD can be lessened by removing harmful artificial dyes. He has guided me with this website so that we can help others by spreading the news.

How our Lives have changed after Eliminating Artificial Synthetic Colors.

It has been over two years now that we have completely removed artificial colors from our diet. The results have been remarkable. Our six year old son who was diagnosed as having some form of dysgraphia by his former occupational therapist is now able to write extraordinarily well. He has great handwriting skills. During the time he was eating artificial colors (namely red dye 40), our son had problems with his behavior, his handwriting was weak, and he didn't seem to have the coordination to hold a pencil or utensils properly. Artificial colors which are petroleum-based seemed to have a neuro-toxic affect on our child. At two years old he was able to draw pictures and grip a pencil and then he began to have difficulty after his diet changed to the more popular diet of artificial dyes. Today, he is a different child. He is happier, empathetic to others' needs, he writes well and is able to concentrate and complete his school work. His grades are very good and his attitude regarding schoolwork has improved.
I wanted to share that because I can only imagine all of the children out there that could benefit from something as simple as removing artificial synthetic colors. I tried to include as much information on this site so that anyone can get the information that they need and also to help people to make that transition to a diet free from artificial colors.

Can your school do this???

Yesterday our son decided to try the school lunches in his new school. The menu appears to have healthy options. However, I don't like to take chances because eating or drinking foods with the artificial colors would mean drastically altering my son's behavior from good to dye-induced ugliness. Therefore, our son has a doctor's note explaining that he is not to have any artificial food colors in his food or drink beverage. I was then given the lunch menu for each day of the week and instructed to circle which foods he would like to eat. Next, I would be given the ingredients for each item for my son's doctor to look over. The food dietitian would then make an alternative if needed for each item that our son is not allowed to eat. As more and more people are becoming aware of harmful dyes and food additives, some schools are choosing healthier options. If the word gets out that I was allowed to do this then others might follow suit. It might just be easier to make foods this way to begin with. Don't we all want our children to eat real foods instead of foods that look real?
There is a school in San Juan Island School District that has chosen to stay away from artificial dyes and preservatives. The link is below:

http://www.pnwlocalnews.com/sanjuans/jsj/news/59256037.html

My Favorite Food Stores

I recently moved to a new area and I've found some great new stores to buy my groceries and fun foods without artificial dyes! I love the Whole Foods Market and the new Publix Greenwise. They have more options for dye-free foods. The bakery in the Whole Foods Market has a wonderful display. All of the bakery items look so delicious and they are made of real food - not the fake artificial kind. In the Whole Foods Market, they sell sprinkles for decorating deserts and made from natural ingredients. I think that I am going to like it here. My children love the colored candies made from natural ingredients- we bought Berry SparX. I think that they taste a little like Smarties - very sweet!

Foods would be boring without Artificial Dyes! That's False

Some people think that without artificial food dyes, foods would be colorless, boring, or less appealing to look at, but that is just not true. Synthetic artificial dyes like red dye 40 do not need to be used. It is just cheaper to use them and so profit is the motivating factor. It is more expensive to use natural food colorings, such as the coloring from India Tree, but for my family it is a healthier alternative. Eventually, natural food colors will become more of the norm in the marketplace as more health conscious consumers demand to have the synthetic food dyes, such as red dye 40 derived from coal tar, eliminated from their diets. The food industry is beginning to shift to healthier options as people are choosing organic foods that are free from artificial food dyes. Publix Greenwise markets now sell candies such as Surf Sweets, Organic Lolipops, and other such candies without artificial food dyes. Starbucks has gotten rid of all artificial food dyes from their products. The change is happening and the first ones to adopt this change will be the first to profit. This marketing strategy makes perfect sense. This is exactly what consumers want and expect. Consumers want healthier food options. Consumers realize that today the overuse of synthetic artificial food dyes is absurd and our children are being marketed to with commercial ads of brightly colored synthetically engineered crap - not real food. How much nutrition does one actually get from a Poptart as opposed to an organic version? Is there any fruit in a Poptart? Mostly, if not all, it is filled with colors that simulate what it might look like if there were actual fruit inside. A child who is sensitive to these synthetic dyes would then have the dye-induced behavior that is typical when ingesting synthetic artificial food dyes. This dye-induced behavior, which occurs soon after ingestion, can be described as causing hyperactivity. I could also describe this behavior as a certain look - an almost depressed and angry face, followed by outbursts of uncontrollable rage when the littlest thing goes wrong. I, for one, am looking forward to the new food, drink, and medicinal products with colors from natural sources. Just imagine - real food with real nutritional value! What a concept!

Keeping the Kids free of Artificial Dyes is getting Easier

Keeping my children from eating artificial dyes is getting easier. For one, my children prefer to not eat anything with artificial dyes in it because they know how it can ruin their day. They prefer not to alter their behavior by eating brightly colored foods laden with artificial dyes. They don't like getting into trouble when it is possible just to avoid the stuff all together. They know how irritable they get. Another reason, is my extended family consisting of Grandparents, Aunts, and nephews all help to keep their cabinets stocked with healthier options after reading my blog, but like anything it takes time to adopt a total dye-free lifestyle. My children, including my three year old son, keep Grandma on her toes by explaining to her that, "No, I can't have that drink or candy because it has red dye in it." They don't feel deprived. Grandma didn't need to feel bad because it was their choice and they knew that they wanted something better for them than those brightly colored drinks or candy. The last reason, is there are more options available today in the marketplace for foods and snacks that do not have red dye 40 and other synthetic artificial dyes.
If you are avoiding these dyes as well, remember to look for yellow dye, red dye 40, blue dye, or dyes listed with numbers after them when reading the ingredient list on your foods. I avoid carmine as well because we prefer not to eat bugs. Look for foods with natural food colors such as beet juice, caramel, annatto, or tumeric for example.
The benefits of feeding my family without artificial dyes have been enormous. There are no more uncontrollable tantrums, no more hitting each other over really dumb reasons, and my children are really enjoying their time together. It is a great summer this year!

Natural Food Dyes are on the Rise

The food industry in America is changing. There is a rush to produce foods without the artificial synthetic food dyes. PTM Food Consulting is one company that can help independent franchises and others with their switch to natural food colors. Please see the following link: http://www.foodconsultant.biz/food-colors.htm
For anyone else wondering how to make natural food coloring from scratch, the article from this link might give you some great ideas.