Food colouring is any dye, pigment or a substance that imparts colour when is added to a food or drink. It can also be in the form of gels, powders, liquids and pastes. Food colouring is also used in domestic cooking. Food colouring is mainly used to correct the natural variations in colour, enhance the colour that occur naturally, to make food more attractive and appetising as well.
Food colouring is any dye, pigment or a substance that imparts colour when is added to a food or drink. It can also be in the form of gels, powders, liquids and pastes. Food colouring is also used in domestic cooking. Food colouring is mainly used to correct the natural variations in colour, enhance the colour that occur naturally, to make food more attractive and appetising as well.
It provides colour to colourless food mainly in candies to attract kids. Heavy metals that can cause serious health issues were also used in history by the people who demanded good food at lower costs. Red lead was routinely used to colour cheese and Copper arsenate was used to recolour the used tea leaves for sale. Lead poisoning can cause cardiac damage to humans whereas long term exposure to copper arsenate can cause damage to nervous system.
Research shows that food dyes can cause allergies, hyperactivity, learning impairment, irritability and aggressiveness in children. Copper arsenate is a heavy metal that is used as a colour for paper (wallpapers and paper hangings in paints, wax candles, children toys and as a food dye for sweets. Skin contact with copper arsenate can cause irritation, burning, itching, rash, colour changes etc. Repeated exposure can cause poor appetite, nausea, vomiting, stomach pain and diarrhoea.
In 2016, a study was conducted for the identification of food dyes in various candies by Food and Biotechnology centre, Pakistan council of Scientific and Industrial Research Laboratories Complex and University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan. The study / research showed that the dye that is consumed the most is Apple green 28.5% while 85.7% of the samples contain different synthetic food dyes. In one of the candy sample, a mixture of three synthetic dyes was used and this candy shouldn’t be marketed as it is not safe.
It may lead to certainty health risks. Dyes used in such candies in Pakistan contained Amaranth, water soluble red colour that is confirmed to cause carcinogenicity. Quinoline blue and brilliant black cause genotoxicity in human lymphocytes. Tartrazine which is commonly used dye is known to cause hyperactivity, skin rashes and intolerance to aspirin. It can also affect behavioural development, maze learning, reproductive toxicity, DNA damage in gastrointestinal cells etc.
Natural dyes have no toxic effects on humans but synthetic dyes are more toxic. Children are hypothetically more vulnerable to be affected by these synthetic dyes as these dyes are most commonly ingested by them in candies, pastries, soups, jellies etc. In Pakistan there must be an organisation for regular assessment of these dyes.
Ramsha Asif
Department of Environmental Sciences, Bahria University, Islamabad
