Do You Avoid Artificial Dyes in Foods?
As a parent, I feel like I walk a fine line between giving my kids all the healthy foods and incorporating special treats. It’s not realistic for me to avoid sweets all the time, so I’m not going to keep my kids from having them sometimes, too. I think making sweets completely off limits is unrealistic, and I think it only makes them more appealing. It’s hard to find the balance — you give them one piece of candy and they want ALL THE CANDY — but I feel like it’s important to teach kids that there are special treats you can have in moderation.
That being said, I often try to choose healthier versions of those kinds of treats. I feel better about cookies I make myself, for instance, than those I buy off the shelf (although I ain’t gonna hate on the occasional package of Oreos!). So when I was contacted by a mom petitioning to get rid of artificial colors in M&M’s, it piqued my attention. Mostly because she sent me a package of M&Ms in the mail, and that’ll always get my attention. The version of the candy that she sent me was the British version, which are mostly colored with natural colorings instead of the artificial dyes that are in the American version.
Renee Shutters, the mom behind the petition, says that she eliminated food dyes from her son’s diet and his behavioral problems improved immediately. She’s now making it her mission to try to phase out artificial dyes in these candies because of the effects dyes can have on kids. On the flip side of the argument, experts say that while research may be showing that food colorings may affect kids’ behavior, those effects are relatively modest.
Slightly more speckled, the British version of M&M’s uses natural colorings instead of artificial dyes.
I honestly didn’t notice much of a difference in taste between the versions, but I wasn’t doing a side-by-side comparison either. The color isn’t quite as uniform as the American version — the candies have a more speckled appearance in spots — but it didn’t really affect my enjoyment of the candy either.
M&M’s are such an occasional food for us that I probably won’t worry too much about going out of my way to get the British version. But it’s one of those things: even though they should be an occasional food, isn’t it best that they be as “healthy” and natural as possible? All just more reason to practice our Fit Bottomed mantra: All things in moderation. And if you do want some less process candies to get your sweet tooth fix, we’ve got just the unreal candy for you!
Do you worry about the dyes in foods and how they affect your kids? —Erin