Question: is food/drinks with colouring substances and preservatives harmful

Sammy Wambua answered on 14 Jul 2017:

Hi Nish,

This is a great question especially for those interested in standards and regulatory affairs.

Some food additives and preservatives provide nutritional benefits or improve food safety, but others like dyes and flavorings to thickeners and whiteners, are added for consumer appeal and have known or potential health risks. Kenya isn’t keen on regulation of additives and preservatives but other developed countries are and too much research has gone into establish what risks these present. The following risks have been observed in mainly in animal studies:

Cancers, Asthma and allergic reactions, Bowel symptoms eg nausea and diarrhea, Preterm delivery, Hyperactivity and attention deficit disorder in children, Human resistance to antibiotics, Increased risk of heart disease etc