Being a mother is not for the faint of heart

 I spent 35 years thinking I was an informed, evidence-based science-following human being with good faith in the systems created to protect our society.

Then I had children and experiences kept happening that forced me to question everything I thought was true. The latest experience was when my sweet 6 year old daughter ate food with food dye she had a full-blown psychological breakdown. That can't be right, can it?

Surely, the federally regulated system in place wouldn't allow an ingredient in food that causes children to experience an extreme neurological response that includes aggression, severe irritability and aggression. Or would they? The answer is yes, they know this happens to SOME children. They asked the scientists who did the studies "how many children are we taking about?" and the scientists replied "8% or 1 in 10" and the FDA said "can you go and make a test so we know which kids react?" and the scientists said "Ok". 

That was in 2021.

So, whether you believe it or not, the fact is that red dye and the other dozen artificial colours changed my life. My daughter is one of 8% of children who are adversely seriously affected by artificial colour in food and medicine. 

How unusual I thought, to have a known percentage of children affected, with no test to determine which children are allergic and yet it's in all medicine and dental products. Is access to safe medicine not a human right for all children? 

The side effects listed in the literature are:

-cognitive effects
- restlessness, irritability, sleeplessness and aggression
-altered brain chemistry
-changes in neurotransmitter receptors for glutamate and acetylcholine in the hippocamus
-changes in receptor protein levels related to behavioural performance -patterns of diminished activity and lowered serotonin in the brainstem, hypothalamus, and hippocampus
- diminished memory and learning

Maybe the reason why they don't take the allergy seriously is because the affected don't break out in hives or suffer from anaphylactic shock, the children suffer from an  extreme emotional breakdown that is referred to by the FDA as "adverse neurobehavioural outcomes". My daughter's behaviour became erratic, emotional, hyperactive, and aggressive. Her behaviour is such a huge part of her daily life, her behaviour is essentially her personality. To have an ingredient in her diet affect it so dramatically was literally quite unbelievable. Many still don't believe it, despite the evidence brought to the FDA as recently as 2021 outlining these "adverse neurobehavioural outcomes". 

Further, to have this same ingredient be the standard in children's medicine and dental products is absolutely wrong. 

Comprehensive collection of studies- This is the summary of studies completed on food dye as of 2021. The health effects, to children especially, is incredibly clear in this data. Not only does it cause hyperactivity, it's been linked to cancer and gut disorders like IBS, gastritis and colitis in mice. 

I wish it was as easy as "buy dye-free". In an emergency, hospitals don't have access to specially made dye-free medicine. When she had strep throat, I had it specially made and it took two days and cost 4x as much. The companies manufacturing these products can use natural colours, but choose not to because of cost. 

Fast forward a few years and my daughter is unable to have a single sprinkle without suffering from an extreme meltdown that includes violence and an inability to regulate her emotions for 48 hours. The dye she had consumed before we knew of her allergy has done irreversible damage.

At first we just cut out red dye, but it didn't take long to realize her reactions were after all artificial dye: allura red, sunset yellow, brilliant blue, indigo, titanium dioxide (white), and erythrosine.

Since cutting it out she has been a regular, happy, emotionally regulated child. She has accidentally consumed dye on 3 occasions in the last 12 months, and each time all hell broke loose. It was all the proof we needed.

Whether you have kids or not, it's unacceptable that it's in everything from toothpaste, to pain medication, to amoxicillin to ADHD medication. 

The food dye industry is worth over a billion dollars in Canada, and there are alternative natural colours available that do not cause harm to children the way these petroleum by-products do. 

Sign my petition, question your own thinking, and stop making fun of me behind my back: 
https://www.change.org/p/remove-artificial-colour-from-children-s-medicine-dental-products