What to know about red dye 3 being banned from foods

SNOW DEPARTMENT HERE. TODD. ALL RIGHT. SOUNDS GOOD. WELL, THE FDA RECENTLY ANNOUNCED IT’S BANNING A TYPE OF RED DYE IN SOME FOODS. SO WHAT DOES ALL THIS MEAN FOR WHAT’S IN SOME OF YOUR FAVORITE TREATS? HERE’S KOAT SEVEN MEDICAL EXPERT DOCTOR BARRY RAMO. IN 1990, THE FDA BANNED THE USE OF RED DYE NUMBER THREE AND COSMETICS LIKE LIPSTICK OR ROUGE. BUT IT TOOK THEM ANOTHER 30 YEARS TO MAKE A DECISION ABOUT THIS, WHICH THEY DID LAST WEEK IN ORDER TO DECREASE THE AMOUNT OF RED DYE NUMBER THREE AND REMOVE IT COMPLETELY FROM ANY FOOD PRODUCTS. NOW, THE DATA FOR THIS IS BASED UPON THE FACT THAT RED DYE, WHEN GIVEN TO RATS, CAUSED AN INCREASE IN CANCER. THERE’S REALLY NO LINK BETWEEN RED DYE AND CANCER IN HUMANS. NEVERTHELESS, THE FOOD INDUSTRY IS VERY UPSET ABOUT THIS BECAUSE THEY SAID THAT ANY TIME YOU GIVE A RAT THESE HUGE DOSES OF ANY KIND OF CHEMICAL, YOU MIGHT PRODUCE CANCER. THE IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM THIS IS THAT RED DYE NUMBER THREE IS IN A LOT OF ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS. IF YOU WANT TO MAKE A MAJOR DIFFERENCE IN YOUR HEALTH, IT’S NOT SO MUCH GETTING RID OF RED DYE, BUT IT’S CUTTING DOWN ON ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS FOR HEALTHBEAT. I’

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration banned red dye No. 3 from foods. That was first announced on Jan. 15, 2025.This decision by federal regulators comes nearly 35 years after the dye was banned in cosmetics as a possible cancer risk.Health expert with our sister station KOAT, Dr. Barry Ramo, explains the history and what this decision means now."In 1990, the FDA banned the use of red dye No. 3 on cosmetics like lipstick or rouge," Ramo said. "But it took them another 30 years to make a decision about this which they did last week in order to decrease the amount of red dye No. 3 and remove it completely from any food product."The dye was found to cause cancer in rats more than three decades ago. This has led some to question the FDA's guidance on red dye No. 40 and other color additives commonly used in ultra-processed foods.However, Ramo said there is debate around this topic since red dye No. 3 is not proven to cause cancer in humans. "There's really no link between red dye and cancer in humans," Ramo said. "Nevertheless, the food industry is very upset about this because they said that any time you give a rat these huge doses of any kind of chemical you might produce cancer."Ramo said that regardless of your stance, the product is in a lot of ultra-processed foods. KOAT Health Beat has highlighted the impact of these foods and why you should avoid them.The dye ban will begin in January 2027.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration banned red dye No. 3 from foods. That was first announced on Jan. 15, 2025.

This decision by federal regulators comes nearly 35 years after the dye was banned in cosmetics as a possible cancer risk.

Health expert with our sister station KOAT, Dr. Barry Ramo, explains the history and what this decision means now.

"In 1990, the FDA banned the use of red dye No. 3 on cosmetics like lipstick or rouge," Ramo said. "But it took them another 30 years to make a decision about this which they did last week in order to decrease the amount of red dye No. 3 and remove it completely from any food product."

The dye was found to more than three decades ago. This has led some to question the and other color additives commonly used in ultra-processed foods.

However, Ramo said there is debate around this topic since red dye No. 3 is not proven to cause cancer in humans.

"There's really no link between red dye and cancer in humans," Ramo said. "Nevertheless, the food industry is very upset about this because they said that any time you give a rat these huge doses of any kind of chemical you might produce cancer."

Ramo said that regardless of your stance, the product is in a lot of ultra-processed foods. KOAT Health Beat has highlighted the and why you should .

The dye ban will begin in January 2027.

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