Have you heard the speculation regarding red dye #40 and behaviour in children? (Go ahead and google it.) Every so often, I hear (or read) its evils pronounced, but honestly, I haven't really thought too much about it. So the other day, when Ryan said,"We should look into this red dye #40 stuff. Maybe there's something to it," I was a little surprised.
You see, Ryan is all about anti-hype. Should someone suggest seeing a much-raved about movie or trying a great new restaurant, Ryan can be somewhat.... disdainful. (Unless I ask him, of course, to consider something different. Then he naturally acquiesces. Ha-ha.) If something (or someone, or somewhere, etc.) has any popularity attached to it, Ryan hasn't much interest in it. Should he express an opinion, it is usually contrary to any media frenzy. Let's put a positive spin on this: Ryan will form an opinion based on his own conclusions. He will not be falsely swayed due to popular conception.
....In fact, that reminds me of this missionary companion I had. There's this LDS Japanese musician who was quite popular 10-15 years ago. Irie Kyodai (or Brother Irie) was like Afterglow. Except he was a solo act. And a lot of single female church members thought he was it. His name was gushed like he was the the holy grail of single LDS women in Japan. Except Tada Shimai, my companion, didn't agree. She actually knew him personally (they were in the same ward or stake in Osaka.) So one day I asked her, "Why don't you like this guy?" And her answer was, "Ninki ga aru." Translation: he's popular. And that was pretty much the only reason why she didn't like him. Oh, Tada Shimai - what a hoot! When I transferred into the city, she had already been there about 7 months. Our first evening out together, while riding our bikes back to our apartment, she stopped at an intersection and asked, "Where are we? I don't know how to get back to the apartment." (Did I mention that we had been out to see people she had visited countless times?) Seriously, she had no clue how to get back. Turns out we were only a few blocks away. After that, she informed me, "You have to know where we're going and how to get back because I'm not very good at that." You think so? Oh, I miss that girl. I can almost hear her high-pitched voice singing, "....I shot the sheriff, but I didn't shoot the deputy...." -- that was her theme song while riding our bikes around. Boy, I could reminisce for hours about Michiru, laughing with tears rolling down my cheeks. We all know people who are just so, I don't know, entertaining. And they don't mean to be, which makes them all the more endearing.
Wait, what was I blogging about before I jumped on the train rumbling down memory lane? Oh, right, Ryan's detachment to anything the media likes and red dye #40. Um, I'll get back to you on what we decide about red dye #40 and our diet. But first, I have to track down someone....
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2 comments:
I HAD heard about that, from my mom-in-law. About Japanese Afterglow. Ha ha! No, about the dyes thing. It's not just red #40. My little 9 year old bro-in-law Josh, who was adopted from Romania, has the worst case of ADHD the experts they've taken him to have ever seen. So they tried taking him off of all that stuff...and there was no change. So I'm wondering if it works for kids that are not REALLY severe in their disorders.
Sure, it's a great idea to stay far away from Red 40, but don't stop there! Ditch the Yellow 5&6, the Blue 1&2, the Green 3 and -- most of all the Red 3.
All of them are made from petroleum -- like gasoline. In fact, most of the dyes used in food in this country start out in petroleum refineries in China.
Not only are these chemicals linked with ADHD and other behavior problems, but they have been found to cause many health problems including asthma, hives, eczema, headaches, bedwetting, ear infections, immune system damage, reproductive damage, nerve damage, DNA damage and cancer. See www.diet-studies.com for lots of information.
If you want to find the foods you enjoy, but minus the worst of the additives, see http://www.feingold.org.
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