The Food and Drug Administration announced Jan. 15 that it is revoking approval of the food coloring known as red dye No. 3, which is found in certain ingested medications, gummy bears, ice cream cones, frosting, toaster pastries and more. The agency had been considering a petition to ban the petroleum-based dye since 2022, with increasing questions raised in recent years about the dye’s potential health effects.

Manufacturers that use red dye No. 3 – also known as FD&C Red No. 3 – in foods have until January 15, 2027 to reformulate their product, and manufacturers that use the dye in ingested medications have until January 18, 2028 time. rephrase. Foods imported into the U.S. from countries where red dye No. 3 is still permitted must also meet the new U.S. requirements.

Last October, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a first-of-its-kind law passed by the state legislature that banned the use of red dye No. 3 – along with three other potentially harmful chemicals (potassium bromate, brominated vegetable oil, etc., propylparaben), which is commonly found in processed foods – foods and beverages sold in California. It was the first time a state banned FDA-approved food additives.

Rep. Jesse Gabriel, who authored the bill, clarified in a statement that “this bill does not ban any food or product – it requires food companies to make minor changes to their recipes and switch to safer alternative ingredients that they already use in Europe and many other places around the world.”

Although it won’t take effect until 2027, the California Food Safety Act is being welcomed by some parents who say red food dye No. 3 has already been banned from their own homes. One of them is father of three Matt Parks, who tells Yahoo Life that he and his wife are doing their best to prevent their children from getting red dye No. 3. “We limit the amount of red dye our children have very strictly,” he says, noting that they are particularly careful with their younger daughter.

“We found that her ability to regulate emotions was impaired when she consumed red food coloring,” he says. “She gets excited and upset very easily – much more than usual. Eventually she notices the change herself.” Parks says he has ADHD and notices that he feels more irritable and restless when he takes products with red dye No. 3 . “It is not the cause of these symptoms, but it appears to be a trigger,” he says.

Father-of-two AJ Yarwood also says his family tries to avoid red dye No. 3. “When our children consume products that contain red dye No. 3, they tend to become more hyperactive and have difficulty concentrating,” he tells Yahoo Life. “This can be particularly challenging for our daughter, who already struggles with attention issues.”

Yarwood says his family has compiled a list of common products containing the dye that should be avoided, and notes that the list is growing. “It is frustrating to know that this dye has been banned from cosmetics due to its harmful effects, but it is still used in everyday foods that everyone can eat,” he says.

Carrie Conrad, a mother of three, said her children might use red food coloring at birthday parties once or twice a year, noting, “Every time we do that, we regret it.” Conrad said her children have Dye was last eaten in pink cotton candy at a Renaissance festival and it didn’t turn out well. “My children are losing control of themselves,” she says. “There is screaming, running, rebelling. The children cannot connect and register security rules. It’s pure chaos.”

It is important to note that the claims about red dye #3 are not just anecdotal. The chemical has been linked to behavioral problems in children.

Jamie Alan, associate professor of pharmacology and toxicology at Michigan State University, tells Yahoo Life that studies on red dye #3 are limited and only show an association – not that red dye #3 actually causes any specific health problems or behaviors caused. But Alan says it’s important to keep this in mind: “Red dye has no nutritional or beneficial health effects. There is only potential harm, although the jury is unclear as to how great the harm may or may not be.”

Alan added: “From a health perspective I see benefits” in banning the coloring in food.

Dr. Daniel Ganjian, a pediatrician at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, California, tells Yahoo Life that he “loves” the idea of ​​banning red food coloring. “Parents are realizing that these food labels are getting longer, and they have a right to know what impact these foods might have on their children,” he says.

Ganjian also acknowledges that data on red dye No. 3 is limited, but points out that data on this ingredient is unlikely to become more conclusive. “It is not ethical to have children and expose them to the red dye for scientific reasons when animal studies show it could harm them,” he says.

In its announcement, the FDA cited two studies that linked cancer in male rats to “high levels” of red dye No. 3, but noted that exposure in humans is “typically much lower.” The FDA added: “Studies in other animals and humans have not shown these effects; Claims that the use of FD&C Red No. 3 in food and in ingested medications poses a risk to humans are not supported by the available scientific information.”

Ganjian says he saw how children behaved after eating candies with red dye No. 3. “It’s not just the sugar,” he says. “It’s just better not to have that ingredient.”

If you can, Alan recommends doing your best to avoid red dye #3 by either choosing dye-free foods or those that use more natural dyes, such as: B. Beet extract. “I worry about parents who don’t have easy access to dye-free foods,” she says. “If your only food options are foods that contain dyes, then by all means feed your children.”