Food Dyes, ADHD, and the Nervous System

Apr 10, 2025

doughnut with toppings — Photo by Kobby Mendez on Unsplash

There’s a moment I remember very well. I was standing in a grocery store aisle, reading the back of a snack label, not for calories or fat, but for something much smaller and more deceptive: color. Specifically, Red dye 40.

There was a time when I didn’t know what food dyes were or what they were doing to the body, let alone the brain. But once I learned the connection between synthetic dyes and the nervous system, especially in children and adults with ADHD, I couldn’t unsee it.

The Brightly Colored Truth

Let’s just call it what it is: our food supply is loud. Loud in color, loud in flavor, loud in packaging. And it’s designed to be that way.

Food dyes like Red 40, Yellow 5, and Blue 1 are everywhere, from candy and cereal to sports drinks and cough syrup. They’re added not to enhance nutrition, but to make food look more “fun,” more appealing, more marketable.

But here’s the kicker: what we consume isn’t just broken down by the digestive system. It’s interpreted by the nervous system. And artificial dyes? They’re not neutral bystanders.

They stimulate. They agitate. They mimic. And for many people, especially those with a more sensitive system, they dysregulate.

My Lens: The Nervous System

As someone who teaches stress management through the lens of nervous system support, I always come back to the question: What does this food (or behavior, or pattern) do to the body’s ability to regulate itself?

When we talk about ADHD, we're not just talking about focus. We’re talking about self-regulation. The ability to manage impulses, attention, energy levels, and emotions.

That’s a big job for the nervous system and one that’s already working overtime in people with ADHD.

Now add in a synthetic compound that excites neural activity, disrupts neurotransmitter balance, and in some cases triggers inflammation or allergic-like responses... and we wonder why so many people feel overstimulated, under-resourced, and “off.”

Real People, Real Reactions

I once worked with a parent who said to me, “I thought it was just sugar. But then I noticed that when my son ate certain colors, his behavior completely shifted. The yelling, the crashing, the inability to sit still. It wasn’t about being ‘bad.’ It was his body trying to cope.”

That hit me hard. Because once you start looking, you see it everywhere. The cupcakes at birthday parties. The glowing blue slushies at the sports field. The “kid-friendly” vitamins shaped like bears and filled with dyes.

*And it’s not just children.*

I’ve had adults tell me, “I cut out food dyes and suddenly I could think again,” or “My energy didn’t spike and crash so violently.” These are people who’d been self-blaming for years, not realizing their system wasn’t flawed, it was inflamed.

The Science Is There, Even If It’s Quiet

There’s a long-standing debate in scientific communities about the effects of food dyes. Some say there’s not enough “conclusive” evidence. But the anecdotal evidence? Overwhelming. And the studies that do show connections between dyes and hyperactivity, mood swings, irritability, are often minimized or buried under industry-sponsored rebuttals.

But here’s the thing: I don’t need perfect science to trust my body. Or yours.

If you notice that certain foods lead to more restlessness, more brain fog, more emotional dysregulation, why wouldn’t you listen to that?

ADHD, Dyes, and the Energy Spectrum

People with ADHD don’t just “struggle to pay attention.” They often experience life with heightened sensitivity. To light. To sound. To texture. To emotional nuance. And yes, to food.

If we imagine the nervous system like a dial, synthetic dyes often turn that dial up…fast. That might look like hyperactivity, distraction, or emotional outbursts. But for others, it might look like shutdown. Fatigue. Meltdowns. Even depressive symptoms.

We assume more color equals more joy. But in the body, it can mean more chaos.

What Regulation Actually Looks Like

When I work with clients or teach in workshops, I always circle back to one core truth: regulation is about access. When your nervous system is regulated, you can access your full range of capabilities: focus, calm, creativity, communication.

Food dyes rob people of that access.

It’s like trying to nap with a fire alarm going off. Or trying to do math while riding a rollercoaster. That’s what it feels like, internally, when your system is overwhelmed.

We don’t need more productivity hacks. We need fewer disruptors. And food dyes are disruptors.

Now, I’m not here to shame or scare anyone. I’ve eaten my fair share of rainbow sprinkles. And I know what it’s like to feel like the “food police” at a party or to overthink every label. That’s not the goal.

The goal is awareness.

When you know what’s affecting your body or your child’s body, you can make informed decisions, not perfect ones.

You can experiment. You can track. You can notice patterns. You can swap in naturally-colored alternatives or reduce the frequency of dye-heavy foods.

And most importantly, you can validate your experience. You can stop blaming yourself for feeling scattered or exhausted or reactive, and start asking: What’s happening in my system? And what support does it need?

Final Thought

We talk so much about “eating clean” or “cutting sugar,” but often overlook the quieter ingredients, like food dyes, that are silently hijacking our ability to stay grounded, present, and well.

Whether you’re neurodivergent or just navigating a stressful season, your nervous system deserves care. Not just through deep breathing and better sleep, but through the food you give it, too.

Because food isn’t just fuel—it’s information.

And when you remove the chaos of synthetic dyes, you might just hear what your body’s been trying to say all along:

"Thank you. I can think clearly again."

I hope you found this helpful and please feel free to leave a comment - your feedback is invaluable to me.