Study links food additives to children’s hyperactivity

Food additives and colorings can cause hyperactivity in children with no history of the problem, according to a new study in Britain’s prestigious journal The Lancet.

Jim Stevenson and colleagues conducted a six-week double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial involving 153 three-year-olds and 144 children between the ages of eight and nine. The researchers gave the children three different drink mixes over the course of the study; one contained no additives, while the other two contained different mixtures of additives and colorings. One additive-laced drink, “Mix A,” contained the additives sunset yellow, carmoisine, tartrazine, ponceau 4R, and sodium benzoate. The other, “Mix B,” contained sunset yellow, carmoisine, quinoline yellow, allura red, and sodium benzoate. The younger children’s drinks contained amounts of additives similar to those in two single-serving bags of candy, while the older children’s drinks contained additive amounts equal to two to four bags of candy. During the study, the children ate diets free of additives except for the experimental drinks.

The researchers measured the children’s symptoms of hyperactivity by combining parent ratings, teacher ratings, and classroom observations, as well as a standardized test of attention for the older children. They found that Mix A markedly worsened the younger children’s hyperactivity scores, and that both Mix A and Mix B affected older children adversely.

The researchers conclude, “These findings show that adverse effects are not just seen in children with extreme hyperactivity (i.e., ADHD), but can also be seen in the general population and across the range of severities of hyperactivity.”

Related Article: [2008, Vol. 14]