RFK Jr. calls artificial food dyes 'poisonous.' Here's how they're regulated in Canada

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration wants to phase out some food dyes.

While some of that effort predated the second Trump administration — like banning red dye No. 3 from foods in January — U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced on Tuesday a list of eight artificial dyes to be eliminated from food and medications by the end of 2026.

Kennedy, who has long criticized artificial food dyes, called them "poisonous compounds."

Some of his views, including on vaccines and autism, promote ideas that have been widely debunked and criticized as harmful.

This is a bit more nuanced though. Here is a fact check.

At the Tuesday announcement, Kennedy and FDA commissioner Marty Makary said there's a possible link between consumption of the dyes and health conditions like ADHD, obesity and diabetes.

But they did not specify which studies they were referring to — and it's an area many scientists say requires more robust research.

"The information out there is just so minuscule in the scheme of science that it's really hard to make those generalizations," said Emily Acri, a clinical dietitian at Yale New Haven Hospital.

Some studies have linked food dyes with hyperactivity, like a 2007 placebo-control study of fewer than 300 children published in The Lancet, a peer reviewed journal. But there's no conclusive evidence proving the dyes cause ADHD — even though scientists have been looking into the potential association for over three decades.

Other scientists have also said the sugar in products with food dyes — like icing and sports drinks — could be part of the problem.

In 2023, the FDA said that "the totality of scientific evidence shows that most children have no adverse effects when consuming foods containing color additives."

At the press conference, Makary claimed the U.S. would be catching up to Canada.

"The FDA is asking food companies to substitute petrochemical dyes with natural ingredients for American children as they already do in Europe and Canada," said Makary.

But seven of the eight dyes the FDA wants to get rid of are, in fact, allowed in Canada.