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Effect of artificial food colours on childhood behaviour
1Heart and Lung Institute, Brompton Hospital, London.
Insights
Artificial food colors adversely affected children's behavior, though parents often missed the changes. A pharmacological basis for food additive intolerance is suggested.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Allergy and Immunology
- Nutritional Psychiatry
- Behavioral Pediatrics
Background:
- Dietary interventions are explored for managing behavioral issues in children.
- Parental observation suggests artificial food additives impact child behavior.
Purpose of the Study:
- To objectively evaluate the behavioral effects of artificial food colors in children.
- To investigate the discrepancy between parental perception and objective behavioral measures.
Main Methods:
- An objective evaluation of 39 children's behavior was conducted.
- A double-blind placebo-controlled challenge study with artificial food colors was completed by 19 children.
- Parental observations and daily Conners' ratings of behavior were utilized.
Main Results:
- Artificial food colors demonstrated an adverse effect on children's behavior as measured by daily Conners' ratings.
- A significant number of parents were unable to detect the behavioral changes induced by food colors.
- Dietary lapses correlated with behavioral deterioration, while an artificial food additive-free diet showed improvement.
Conclusions:
- Artificial food colors can negatively impact children's behavior.
- A pharmacological mechanism may underlie food additive intolerance.
- Objective measures are crucial for detecting subtle behavioral changes related to diet.
Abstract:
We performed an objective evaluation of 39 children whose behaviour was observed by their parents to improve on an artificial food additive free diet and to deteriorate with dietary lapses. Only 19 children completed a double blind placebo controlled challenge study with artificial food colours. In these children food colours were shown to have an adverse effect on a daily Conners' rating of behaviour, but most parents could not detect these changes. A pharmacological mechanism of food additive intolerance is proposed to explain these effects.