Marty Makary on Synthetic Food Dyes: warns against

Dr. Marty Makary warns of “growing concerns of doctors and parents” about petroleum-based synthetic food dyes, especially for children. At the April 22, 2025 announcement of the phaseout of eight dyes (Red 40, Yellow 5/6, Blue 1/2, Green 3, Orange B, Citrus Red 2), he called the prior regime “one of the largest uncontrolled scientific experiments in the world on our nation’s children,” and said the agency should “not be taking risks.”

Makary’s stated reasoning is precautionary: where doctors and parents have growing concerns and the dyes serve no nutritional purpose, regulators should not wait for definitive proof of harm before acting. The voluntary industry phaseout — with reformulations reported complete at companies including Tyson, Nestlé USA, and In-N-Out by August 2026 — was the policy expression of that warning.

This is Makary’s position, attributed to him — not medical advice.

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