Just because you're diet is gluten free doesn't mean it has to be a dull and gray entre! There are many brands of food coloring and liquid flavoring that are gluten free. The most easily found (in our local grocery stores) are those manufactured by McCormick or Wilton, All Tone and Durkee.
We've tried it all and prefer, above all else, the food dyes from Maggie's Naturals. Not only are their colors gluten free, but also all natural and organic in base ingredients. Best of all, they have a bouquet of colors and taste great!
So you've managed to put together a gluten free rainbow, but is this rainbow healthy for you? Sadly, although many food coloring are gluten free, it does not necessarily mean they are healthy for you. I've always preached the benefits of natural food coloring.
Mother Nature is the best chef around and anything she's put together for you is guaranteed to be better for you than something created for you, or doctored for you, in a lab.
It's not easy to avoid all these artificial food coloring but after reading all the articles on the potential link of diseases with artificial or doctored food, the time and energy is well worth it for you and your family!
Childhood is so great because kids don't, and shouldn't have to, worry about internal organ damage and all that other stuff which is mostly about taking proper care of their little soul containers so they'll last them a long happy time. That's a hard concept to get across. A Flameball Orange ice cream tongue is not only cooler, but easier to see, touch, and has major bragging rights attached.
Parents have to step up and be the sensible ones in the group. These artificial commercial food colorings are made from dangerous chemicals and are not helping your kids one single bit. So the next time your kids give you major "puppy-eyes" in hopes of winning an ice cream or such that is shining like radioactive waste, remember that if some companies could get away with it, that's exactly what they'd serve your children.
Some really terrifying information about kid foods and their dyes:
Blue Dye #1, aka Brilliant Blue is commonly found in snacks, sauces, candies and soft drinks. It can cause Cancer, ADHD, Rhinitis and Asthma
Green Dye #3 aka Fast Green is found in sauces, icings, baked goods, gelatins and also in some vegetables. It has been linked to Bladder Cancer and Allergies.
Orange B is found in sausages and hot dogs. Can be the cause of Allergies, ADHD and also Kidney Damage.
Red Dye #3 or Erythrosine is found in popsicles, candies and baked goods. It has been connected with Chromosomal damage and Thyroid Tumors.
Red Dye #40 known as Allura Red AC is used in common snack foods (such as the popular Goldfish!), is found in sauces, candies and soft drinks. This color has been connected with ADHD, Cancer, Asthma, Rhinitis.
Yellow Dye #5 or Tartrazine is found in candies, jams, cake mixes, cereals, snacks, and instant noodles. It has been connected with ADHD, blurred Vision, Anxiety, Migraines and Asthmatic Attacks. (You should think twice, when you buy your kids favorite breakfast cereal which contains this dye!)
Yellow #6 aka Sunset Yellow is found in sausages, gelatins and baked goods. This dye can be the cause of Adrenal Gland and Kidney Tumors.
Competition in the food market is only increasing and so the demands on a company to make a decent profit is a scary incentive to overlook the not so hot safety value of a product in the hopes that by costing less and by being appealing, the product will sell well. This is bad news for us, the ones who might actually be eating the stuff.
The Food and Drug Administration is supposed to protect us by keeping dangerous foodstuffs off the shelves, right? Well, there's a problem here, or rather, there. They need to, literally define "dangerous". As a mom, I consider anything dangerous that can negatively affect the internal workings of my kids simply by eating it, right? Their problem is they have to set the parameters and the definition of "safe" and that gets complicated, for them. Apparently.
Because someone is going to have a problem with some food at sometime, as everybody is slightly chemically different, the FDA has to resort to the dirtiest tricks, aka Statistics. So our health becomes a question of Math. How many people will be negatively affected by eating this? How, percentage wise, negatively will they be affected? It's crazy! I almost pity them. Almost.
The most recognized case of the FDA dropping the ball was in 1950 when many children became ill after eating Halloween Candy Containing Orange Dye #1. After extensive investigations by the FDA, it was determined that the dye was responsible for poisoning all these poor little kids. (There was even Math to prove it.) And Red Dye #2 was banned as well as it was found to be dangerously carcinogenic.
When it comes to the question of safety, I look towards Europe, not because that's closer to my home town, but because their definitions of safe seem more in line with my own as a mom. Many food dyes in the United States are forbidden in Europe. What does that say about the FDA? You decide.
Whether they're gluten free or not, artificial dyes are not healthy for you and should be avoided. A very simple way to make sure they don't creep onto your pantry shelves is to shop at health conscious stores such as good ol' Trader Joe's and Whole Foods Market, where they don't even sell items containing artificial coloring. If these are not your kind store, just be sure to read the labels on your foods before eating them.
The main point is, that YES! There are healthy gluten free food dyes available, and within easy reach, for you and your family!
We've tried it all and prefer, above all else, the food dyes from Maggie's Naturals. Not only are their colors gluten free, but also all natural and organic in base ingredients. Best of all, they have a bouquet of colors and taste great!
So you've managed to put together a gluten free rainbow, but is this rainbow healthy for you? Sadly, although many food coloring are gluten free, it does not necessarily mean they are healthy for you. I've always preached the benefits of natural food coloring.
Mother Nature is the best chef around and anything she's put together for you is guaranteed to be better for you than something created for you, or doctored for you, in a lab.
It's not easy to avoid all these artificial food coloring but after reading all the articles on the potential link of diseases with artificial or doctored food, the time and energy is well worth it for you and your family!
Childhood is so great because kids don't, and shouldn't have to, worry about internal organ damage and all that other stuff which is mostly about taking proper care of their little soul containers so they'll last them a long happy time. That's a hard concept to get across. A Flameball Orange ice cream tongue is not only cooler, but easier to see, touch, and has major bragging rights attached.
Parents have to step up and be the sensible ones in the group. These artificial commercial food colorings are made from dangerous chemicals and are not helping your kids one single bit. So the next time your kids give you major "puppy-eyes" in hopes of winning an ice cream or such that is shining like radioactive waste, remember that if some companies could get away with it, that's exactly what they'd serve your children.
Some really terrifying information about kid foods and their dyes:
Blue Dye #1, aka Brilliant Blue is commonly found in snacks, sauces, candies and soft drinks. It can cause Cancer, ADHD, Rhinitis and Asthma
Green Dye #3 aka Fast Green is found in sauces, icings, baked goods, gelatins and also in some vegetables. It has been linked to Bladder Cancer and Allergies.
Orange B is found in sausages and hot dogs. Can be the cause of Allergies, ADHD and also Kidney Damage.
Red Dye #3 or Erythrosine is found in popsicles, candies and baked goods. It has been connected with Chromosomal damage and Thyroid Tumors.
Red Dye #40 known as Allura Red AC is used in common snack foods (such as the popular Goldfish!), is found in sauces, candies and soft drinks. This color has been connected with ADHD, Cancer, Asthma, Rhinitis.
Yellow Dye #5 or Tartrazine is found in candies, jams, cake mixes, cereals, snacks, and instant noodles. It has been connected with ADHD, blurred Vision, Anxiety, Migraines and Asthmatic Attacks. (You should think twice, when you buy your kids favorite breakfast cereal which contains this dye!)
Yellow #6 aka Sunset Yellow is found in sausages, gelatins and baked goods. This dye can be the cause of Adrenal Gland and Kidney Tumors.
Competition in the food market is only increasing and so the demands on a company to make a decent profit is a scary incentive to overlook the not so hot safety value of a product in the hopes that by costing less and by being appealing, the product will sell well. This is bad news for us, the ones who might actually be eating the stuff.
The Food and Drug Administration is supposed to protect us by keeping dangerous foodstuffs off the shelves, right? Well, there's a problem here, or rather, there. They need to, literally define "dangerous". As a mom, I consider anything dangerous that can negatively affect the internal workings of my kids simply by eating it, right? Their problem is they have to set the parameters and the definition of "safe" and that gets complicated, for them. Apparently.
Because someone is going to have a problem with some food at sometime, as everybody is slightly chemically different, the FDA has to resort to the dirtiest tricks, aka Statistics. So our health becomes a question of Math. How many people will be negatively affected by eating this? How, percentage wise, negatively will they be affected? It's crazy! I almost pity them. Almost.
The most recognized case of the FDA dropping the ball was in 1950 when many children became ill after eating Halloween Candy Containing Orange Dye #1. After extensive investigations by the FDA, it was determined that the dye was responsible for poisoning all these poor little kids. (There was even Math to prove it.) And Red Dye #2 was banned as well as it was found to be dangerously carcinogenic.
When it comes to the question of safety, I look towards Europe, not because that's closer to my home town, but because their definitions of safe seem more in line with my own as a mom. Many food dyes in the United States are forbidden in Europe. What does that say about the FDA? You decide.
Whether they're gluten free or not, artificial dyes are not healthy for you and should be avoided. A very simple way to make sure they don't creep onto your pantry shelves is to shop at health conscious stores such as good ol' Trader Joe's and Whole Foods Market, where they don't even sell items containing artificial coloring. If these are not your kind store, just be sure to read the labels on your foods before eating them.
The main point is, that YES! There are healthy gluten free food dyes available, and within easy reach, for you and your family!
About the Author:
Martina Berger, PhD is a biologist and a specialist in Food Allergies. Once her son wasdiagnosed with gluten intolerance she created a website for parents with kids allergic to food. If you are interested to read more about Food Allergies and Food Coloring than go to her website - www.gfreeharmony.com
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