Prenatal BPA Exposure Effect on Emotional Health in Girls
BOSTON—Exposure to the industrial chemical bisphenol A (BPA) before birth may lead to behavior and emotional problems in preschoolers, particularly girls, according to a new study published in the journalPediatrics. The findings add more fire to the already hot debate about healthy hazards associated with BPA exposure.
Researchers at Harvard School of Public Health examined data from 244 mothers and their young children in the Cincinnati area who were taking part in the Health Outcomes and Measures of the Environment Study. They characterized gestational and childhood BPA exposures by using the mean BPA concentrations in maternal (16 and 26 weeks of gestation and birth) and child (1, 2, and 3 years of age) urine samples, respectively. Behavior and executive function were measured by using the Behavior Assessment System for Children 2 (BASC-2) and the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-Preschool (BRIEF-P).
They found 85% of the mothers and 96% of the children had detectable levels of BPA in their urine. There was little difference between the mothers’ in-pregnancy and at-birth levels of BPA. The BPA levels in the children’s urine samples decreased from age 1 to age 3, but they were higher and varied more than their mothers’ levels.
After adjusting for other possible influencers, BPA levels in pregnancy were linked to more hyperactive, aggressive, anxious, and depressed behavior and poorer emotional control and inhibition in the girls, but not the boys.
The researchers concluded gestational BPA exposure affected behavioral and emotional regulation domains at 3 years of age, especially among girls. Clinicians may advise concerned patients to reduce their exposure to certain consumer products, but the benefits of such reductions are unclear.
FDA to Weigh if Food Dyes Make Kids Hyperactive
Link to original article: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42273578/ns/health-kids_and_parenting/
By Lisa Richwine, Reuters, updated 3/25/2011
WASHINGTON — U.S. regulators are weighing a question parents have asked since the 1970s: do artificial food dyes make children hyperactive?
A consumer group has petitioned the government to ban blue, green, orange, red and yellow food colorings. The synthetic dyes are common in food and drinks ranging from PepsiCo’s Gatorade, Cheetos and Doritos to Kellogg’s Eggo waffles and Kraft’s Jell-O desserts.
Manufacturers say reviews by regulators around the world confirm the dyes are safe. The Center for Science in the Public Interest argues, however, there is plenty of data showing the dyes trigger hyperactivity in kids who are predisposed to it.
“There is convincing evidence that food dyes impair the behavior of some children,” said Michael Jacobson, head of the consumer group famous for exposing the fat and calories in movie-theater popcorn and fast food.
Jacobson and others will testify next week before a Food and Drug Administration advisory committee that will consider the question on Wednesday and Thursday. The FDA will hear the advisers’ views before deciding whether to take any action, which could take months or years.
FDA reviewers, in documents prepared for the advisory panel, said scientific research so far suggested some children with attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may be affected by food coloring. The disorder affects up to 5 percent of U.S. children, according to government statistics.
“For certain susceptible children with ADHD and other problem behaviors, the data suggest their condition may be exacerbated” by substances in food including artificial colors, the FDA staff wrote in a preliminary analysis.
For the general population, the FDA “concludes that a causal relationship” between the dyes and hyperactivity “has not been established,” the agency staff said.
At the panel meeting next week, the FDA will ask outside experts if they agree with the agency’s conclusions or if they think more studies are needed.
Concerns about food dyes erupted in the 1970s when a pediatrician, Dr. Ben Feingold, claimed the colors were linked to hyperactive behavior and proposed a diet eliminating them.
Questions flared again after a 2007 British study of kids who drank fruit drinks with food colorings and preservatives.
The scientists concluded the colorings worsened hyperactive behavior and also affected kids not previously diagnosed with ADHD.
Other researchers said the study had limitations. A 2009 review by European authorities concluded all data available at the time did not support a link between food colorings and hyperactivity.
The 2008 petition from CSPI asked the FDA to ban all but one of the dyes, calling them “dangerous and unnecessary.” The exception, Citrus Red No. 2, is used only on orange skins. Companies could substitute natural colors, fruit or fruit juices, CSPI said.
Poll: Should food dyes be banned?
The group also asked the FDA to require a warning on products containing dyes until a ban takes effect.
The Grocery Manufacturers Association, which represents food producers and packagers, said “extensive review” by the FDA and European authorities showed the dyes were safe. “All of the major safety bodies globally have reviewed the available science and have determined that there is no demonstrable link between artificial colors and hyperactivity among children,” the group said in a statement.
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This comes 4 years after a landmark study published in the British Medical Journal “The Lancet” proving that artificial colors and additives result in increased hyperactivity (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17825405). This double blind placebo-controlled crossover study is referenced in Advantig’s “Ingredients You Won’t Find in E3MV.”
Kids Potential does not contain artificial colors, artificial flavors, artificial preservatives or non-nutritionally necessary ingredients to ensure optimal purity for children. Additionally, the natural superfruit & berry blend in Kids Potential is subjective to over 30 tests for agricultural pesticides, herbicides and a full panel of heavy metals to create the most tested, clean and pure supplement for children.
To learn more about the natural purity, potency and results of Kids Potential, please click here: E3MV – Patented Nutrition for Academic Success or on www.mykidspotential.com.
Why Advantig Products Don’t Contain Artificial Colors & Preservatives
Filed under: A Message from the Doctor, Caring for Your Children
Artificial Colors in Kids' Food
Additives like artificial colors & pre
servatives negatively impact brain function
The Lancet 2007, Nov. 3:370(9598) 1560-7. “Food Additives & Hyperactive Behavior in 3 Year old and 8/9 Year Old Children in the Community: A Randomized, Double-Blinded Placebo Controlled Trial.” McCann D., Barrett A., Cooper A., Crumpler D., Dalen L., Grimshaw K., Kitchin E., Lok K., Porteous L., Prince E., Sonuga-Barke E., Warner JO., Stevenson J. School of Psychology, Dept. of Heatlth, University of Southampton, UK. 300 Children Studied.
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From Dr. Schlesser:
Kids are conditioned to select brightly colored products. This extends beyond toys — to foods, which results in consumption of non-nutritive food additives like artificial colors, artificial flavors and preservatives. Published research now confirms that many of these non-nutritive molecules can alter brain function in kids.
This 2007 Lancet Study is a very well-designed, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial that finally settles the controversy over the impact of non-nutritive food additives on behavior and learning in kids. This trial took place in Great Britain and studied 300 children. The conclusion was that food additives adversely impacted behavior, directly contributing to hyperactive behavior. The findings were so profound that Britain’s Food Standards Agency issued an advisory to parents immediately.
It has been nearly two years since this study’s findings were published and yet there has been no response by the US Government.
For many years, pediatricians have downplayed the impact of artificial colors & preservatives on behavior – even though many parents have been convinced of the link.
American Academy of Pediatrics – Grand Rounds
ADHD & Food Additives Revisited – Alison Schonwold, MD, FAAP, Developmental Medicine Center, Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, American Academy of Pediatrics, Grand Rounds 2008; 19:17.
ADHD & Non-Nutritive Additives
“The overall findings of the study are clear and require that even we skeptics,
who have long doubted parental claims of the effects of various foods on the
behavior of their children, admit that we might have been wrong.”
From Dr. Schlesser:
Just last year, the American Academy of Pediatrics weighed in on the issue of Artificial Colors and Non-Nutritive Food Additives and after a thorough evaluation of the available scientific literature, including the landmark 2007 study in The Lancet. Their conclusion: “the overall findings of the study are clear and require that even we skeptics who have long doubted parental claims of the effects of various foods on the behavior of their children, admit that we might have been wrong.”
This is an official position statement of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Do artificial colors have a scientifically justifiable place in our children’s food supply?
We would love to hear your comments.