▎ WuXi AppTec content team editor
Carmine, sunset yellow, red moss red, lemon yellow, seductive red, bright blue... What comes to mind when you see these words? Is it a beautiful color, or a classical charm?
In fact, these are food colorants, also known as food coloring. In many ultra-processed foods, these substances are contained.
In recent years, scientists have suspected that adding food colorants to foods may increase the risk of certain cancers.
For example, Professor Lorne J. Hofseth, director of the Colorectal Cancer Research Center at the University of South Carolina, believes that food colorants can cause colorectal cancer.
So will food colorants cause colorectal cancer? Today we will take a look at it together.
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What is a food colorant?
Food colorants are substances that give and improve the color and color of food, which can change the color of food and make it "colorful", which belongs to a category of food additives.
Adding colorants to food can make food look fresher, tastier, and appetizing.
At present, there are more than 60 kinds of food colorants commonly used in the world, which can be divided into two categories: food natural colorants and food synthetic colorants.
Natural colorants for food are mainly derived from natural pigments and can be divided into 3 categories according to different sources:
Plant pigments, such as beet red, turmeric, β-carotene, chlorophyll, etc.;
Animal pigments, such as lac red, carmine, etc.;
Microorganisms, such as red yeast red, etc.
Food synthetic colorants are mainly synthesized according to some special chemical groups or chromogenic groups, and can be divided into 2 categories according to different chemical structures:
Azo pigments, such as amaranth red, carmine, sunset yellow, lemon yellow, new red, temptation red, acid red, etc.;
Non-azo pigments, such as red moss, bright blue, etc.
For the use of food colorants, each country has strict regulations, including the variety of use, the scope of use, the maximum amount of use and the amount of residue.
Image credit: 123RF
What factors can cause colorectal cancer?
DNA damage is a major driver of colorectal cancer. When the DNA of the oncogene associated with colorectal cancer is damaged, it will lead to genetic mutations, causing the cells to divide and proliferate uncontrollably, become cancerous, and form tumors.
Another driver of colorectal cancer is inflammation. When inflammation persists in the body for long periods of time, it releases a molecule called a "free radical" that not only harms healthy cells in the colorectum, but also dna.
Another molecule, called "inflammatory cytokines," can also drive cell division in the gut, increasing the risk of colorectal cancer.
In addition, long-term unhealthy eating habits can also lead to a low-grade inflammation. This inflammation can damage healthy cells for a long time, but it does not produce obvious symptoms.
What is the association between food colorants and color cancer?
Professor Hofseth said the incidence of early-onset colorectal cancer (colorectal cancer under 50 years of age) has been on the rise worldwide since the early 1990s. The incidence of colon and rectal cancer is expected to increase by 90% and 124%, respectively, compared to 2020 by 2030.
One of the dubious reasons behind this trend is the global popularity of Westernized diets.
The Westernized diet consists mainly of red meat, processed meats, ultra-processed foods, added sugars, and refined grains. Among them, ultra-processed foods account for more than 60%, such as industrial bakery candy, soft drinks and so on.
In ultra-processed foods, most food colorants are added, and they are synthetic colorants rather than natural colorants.
Compared with natural colorants, synthetic colorants are relatively inexpensive, and the effect of changing the color and color of food is better.
Professor Hofseth noted that in some studies it has been found that food synthetic colorants may have potential health risks.
Studies have found that the microbiota in the intestine can break down food synthetic colorants into carcinogens. However, the specific intestinal flora and how it interacts with food synthetic colorants need more research and exploration.
It has also been found that food synthesis colorants can bind to DNA and proteins within cells, increasing the risk of DNA mutations and stimulating the body's inflammatory response. Both mechanisms can cause harm to colorectal health.
Animal experiments have also found that food synthesis colorants can damage the cellular DNA of rodents.
Do food colorants cause colorant cancer?
Professor Hofseth believes that the current research on the potential carcinogenic risks of food synthetic colorants is just beginning, and it is not yet clear that "food synthetic colorants can cause colorectal cancer".
Moreover, none of the several synthetic colorants approved by relevant institutions and can be added to food have been classified as carcinogens by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).
However, Professor Hofseth said that food synthetic colorants are mostly found in ultra-processed foods, and eating more ultra-processed foods does increase the risk of colorectal cancer. Therefore, in order to reduce the risk of colorectal cancer, it is recommended that everyone eat less ultra-processed foods. For more harms of ultra-processed foods, you can refer to the previous content to understand: there are old cardiovascular problems, do not eat more such foods, otherwise...
How do we think about food colorants?
At present, the safety of synthetic colorants used in food has been evaluated, and there is no need to worry about synthetic colorants used in the case of compliance with the standard.
However, when eating foods containing synthetic colorants (generally ultra-processed foods), be sure to eat less. After all, eating once and eating for months in a row, the amount of synthetic colorant ingested is not the same. Eating too much is likely to be too much, which is harmful to health.
In addition, there are cases of excessive range and excessive use of food synthetic colorants in some foods, so it is best to pay attention to reducing consumption.
According to the Provisions of the General Principles for the Labeling of Prepackaged Food in the National Standard for Food Safety (GB7718-2011), as long as the colorant is used in food, it must be marked on the food label. Therefore, when buying food, be sure to look at the food label and whether there are any food colorants added, especially synthetic colorants.