The most suitable thing for hot summer days, apart from air conditioning, is ice cream! The freezers of the canteens in the streets and alleys are already filled with all kinds of popsicles and ice cream. The unique shapes and brilliant colors alone are enough to make the passing children unable to move their feet!
Buying ice cream for your children is not a big deal, but many parents are worried about how much pigment is added to such colorful ice cream, and will it affect their children's health?
About the food coloring family
When we eat, we pay attention to color, flavor and flavor. "Color" is the visual requirement. Food with good appearance often makes people more appetizing. This is exactly the purpose of food coloring, to improve the appearance of food and make it more popular.
Food pigments belong to a large category of food additives, also called "colorants". They present various colors such as red, yellow, blue, green, purple, etc. in their natural state, thereby imparting color to food.
Food pigments are divided into natural pigments and synthetic pigments according to their sources. Natural pigments are extracted and purified from plants, animals, and microbial materials. Common ones include gardenia yellow, monascus red , capsicum red , beet red , natural amaranth , and natural carotene wait.
synthetic pigments are artificially synthesized through chemical methods, and their properties are usually more stable, including lemon yellow , sunset yellow, amaranth, carmine , indigo , brilliant blue, etc.
Are food colorings safe?
Whether it is naturally extracted or artificially synthesized, food colorings must undergo scientific evaluation by an authoritative organization before being approved for use. In particular, synthetic colorings need to undergo various toxicology experiments and strict safety assessment procedures. to prove its safety.
At the same time, my country's " National Food Safety Standard - Standard for the Use of Food Additives " (GB 2760) clearly stipulates the allowable addition range and usage requirements of various pigments. A large number of studies at home and abroad have shown that the rational use of pigments within the scope of standards is safe for human health.
It is undeniable that there have been some reports about the adverse effects of food dyes (mainly synthetic dyes) on children's health, including causing allergies, causing behavioral problems, affecting intellectual development, etc. However, these hazards are mostly related to long-term excessive consumption of foods containing more pigments.
When we want to judge the impact of a certain substance on health, in addition to looking at the toxicity of the substance itself, we also need to consider the intake. Pigments are no exception. They themselves are non-toxic or have low toxicity. As long as the intake is controlled and long-term excessive intake is avoided, there is no need to worry about safety issues.
Ice cream, to eat or not to eat?
Food coloring is not that scary. It is perfectly fine to occasionally buy ice cream for your children to cool down and satisfy their cravings. But it is not advisable to eat several ice creams every day, or even eat some other colorful candies, snacks, drinks, etc.
When buying ice cream for your children, you should choose products produced by regular companies. Before purchasing, pay attention to the relevant information on the product label. The problem with some ice creams that don’t even have packaging may not be just the coloring. Some even use non-food colorings, which makes the problem even bigger.
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Author | Dr. Ma Health Group Dr. Wang Xiaodan
Editor | Dr. Ma Health Group Feng Qi
Pictures | Self-Photography Network and Internet
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