Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2015 Dec;73(3):914-22.
doi: 10.1016/j.yrtph.2015.09.026. Epub 2015 Sep 25.

Health safety issues of synthetic food colorants

Petra Amchova  1 , Hana Kotolova  2 , Jana Ruda-Kucerova  3
Affiliations
Review

Health safety issues of synthetic food colorants

Petra Amchova et al. Regul Toxicol Pharmacol. 2015 Dec.

Abstract

Increasing attention has been recently paid to the toxicity of additives used in food. The European Parliament and the Council published the REGULATION (EC) No. 1333/2008 on food additives establishing that the toxicity of food additives evaluated before 20th January 2009 must be re-evaluated by European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). The aim of this review is to survey current knowledge specifically on the toxicity issues of synthetic food colorants using official reports published by the EFSA and other available studies published since the respective report. Synthetic colorants described are Tartrazine, Quinoline Yellow, Sunset Yellow, Azorubine, Ponceau 4R, Erythrosine, Allura Red, Patent Blue, Indigo Carmine, Brilliant Blue FCF, Green S, Brilliant Black and Brown HT. Moreover, a summary of evidence on possible detrimental effects of colorant mixes on children's behaviour is provided and future research directions are outlined.

Keywords: Children's behaviour; Colorant; Food dye; Safety; Toxicity.

PubMed Disclaimer

Comment in

Substances