Food dye makers argued on Thursday there is no proof their colorings make kids more hyperactive, aiming to fend off a consumer group's call for a government ban or warning on artificially brightened snacks and sodas.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has long deemed the dyes safe but is reviewing recent studies of the colors' effects on children's behavior at the consumer group's request.
The Center for Science in the Public Interest argues there is enough evidence to show the colors that have been added to foods for decades worsen hyperactive behavior in some kids.
The committee of outside experts is set to make recommendations later Thursday that the FDA will consider in the coming months. Critics agree a ban is unlikely and are pushing for a warning to parents on product packaging.
The research that raised concern is "very difficult to interpret. This is a very complex series of studies. They haven't been done using any standard method," Sean Taylor, scientific director of the International Association of Color Manufacturers, told an FDA advisory panel.
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The artificial blue, green, orange, red and yellow food colorings show up in everything from PepsiCo's Gatorade, Cheetos and Doritos to Kellogg's Eggo waffles and Kraft's Jell-O desserts.
A ban or warning could impact major food manufacturers as well as Sensient Technologies Corp, a company that makes seven of the eight dyes the consumer group wants banned.
Companies say the dyes are needed in part to brighten natural colors that fade during processing. If a product that is naturally red appears dull at the grocery store, "the consumer then is concerned. They say it's not safe to eat," Taylor said.
FDA staff reviewers said in a preliminary report that scientific research so far suggested some children with attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may be affected by food coloring. The disorder affects up to 5 percent of U.S. children, according to government statistics.
The review itself has added weight to a decades-old consumer debate on whether parents should let their kids eat artificially colored foods.
Concerns erupted in the 1970s when a pediatrician, Dr. Ben Feingold, claimed the artificial colors were linked to hyperactive behavior and proposed a diet eliminating them.
Critics say use of artificial food coloring has jumped dramatically in the past few decades. The colors are obvious in brightly colored cereals or cupcakes but also appear in some packaged potatoes, waffles and fast-food pickles.
Some companies are offering new products without added colors or with natural colors in response to consumer demands.
Kraft, for example, said it was selling products such as Back to Nature Macaroni & Cheese with natural coloring.
For parents who want to avoid artificial colors, "they are clearly labeled on the packages," Kraft spokeswoman Valerie Moens said.
