Food Dyes…They Need to DIE!

With a fast and furious, on-the-go mentality, people are reaching for “easy to make” packaged and processed foods. While the initial intention of the food industry was to make life easier (so they say), we are now learning that the long-term effects of those easy food choices have hard repercussions on our health. In fact, the repercussions are so serious that they can result in disease and/or premature death.

Why?

The “naïve” packaged and processed food industry isn’t so naïve. This industry focuses on the dollar rather than the health of the consumer, making it a multi-billion dollar industry. The good news, though, is that YOU HAVE A CHOICE as the consumer. You have a choice to fuel your body with harmful toxins or to fuel your body with foods that nourish, satisfy, and sustain your body.

What toxins?

The list of toxins found in packaged and processed foods is longer than this blog entry, but one we will focus on today are the dyes that are in common foods. Color dyes infest common eats such as colored breakfast cereals, candies, chips, peanut butter crackers, macaroni and cheese, beverages, jello, and many others often labeled as “foods.”

Why?

The food industry capitalizes on our attraction to color, drawing our eyes to entice us and attract our wallets. Then they want us to become addicted to their manufactured goods by adding preservatives and other man-made chemicals. It becomes a vicious addictive cycle of consumption for many people, breaking the bank and their health, which ultimately results in a poor quality of life.

Research has shown that artificial food dyes are linked to hyperactivity in children, cancers, asthma, allergies, skin rashes, migraines, and the like. They are banned in several countries, but not in the United States. You may think that you or your children rarely eat “snack-like” items with food dye. But it doesn’t take much to alter the behavior of you or your child. In 1950 the average person “safely” consumed 12 mg. per capita/per day and today our minimum consumption for the average American is closer to 100 mg/per capita/day. Some children are consuming double and triple that number on a daily basis. For a bit of perspective…An eight-ounce glass of cherry Kool-Aid alone contains 52.3 mg. It’s outrageous and the dye levels are killing us!

Dyes…must die!

The best way to avoid the toxic dyes in foods is to steer clear of processed foods altogether. No more second-guessing if you’re fueling your body best. Eat organic and eat foods that are true in natural colors, like fresh vegetables and fruits. You’ll then set yourself up to fuel your body best.

{What are some of your thoughts pertaining to the food dyes? Are you shocked at all by the deception of the packaged food industry? Leave your comments below. Would love to hear from you.}