Why are we poisoning our kids?

I was at a child's birthday party the other day enjoying the excitement, food and company. Everyone had just finished singing "Happy Birthday" to the Birthday Girl and they were currently plowing into the birthday cake. My son had been given a piece and I was sharing a piece with my one year old daughter. I have always had a sweet tooth and enjoy birthday cake, but as I looked down at my piece of chocolate cake, I thought to myself "What am I doing?" I was eating cake with bright red and black icing. This was not the natural red that you might find from strawberries or raspberries. This red was almost glowing. What are we doing to our children? Why do I watch everything that my children eat and then decide that it is okay to feed them icing with copious amounts of bright synthetic dyes????

I was at another birthday a few weeks ago and it was such a refreshing scene. The birthday was a gift-free event and the cake was a simple white cake with icing. There was no food colouring, just cake and icing. The kids didn't even know the difference.

When I was a little girl, my brother had a birthday party with a bright and colourful cake made by a local cake decorator. It was blue and red and black and yellow. While everyone else was partying, I had made my place beside the half-eaten cake and began to eat spoonfuls of dyed icing. I woke up in the middle of the night with stomach cramps and was taken to the hospital. The doctor did not have to do much because the tummy pains soon went away. However, it was not a pleasant experience.

We have noticed that my son reacts to food colouring. He was at a birthday party and like most kids licked off the icing, but didn't eat much of the cake. In about half an hour the blue icing kicked in and my son had his very first major tantrum at the age of 3. It wasn't a pretty sight and my husband and I were horrified to see our sweet child acting in this manner. We soon came to the conclusion that he was reacting to the colouring and noticed the behaviour 2 more times with blue colouring and fruit loops at preschool. (As I am writing this, I just made a request, by e-mail, to the school to eliminate or find an alternative to Fruit Loops.)

I came across an interesting article on colouring and the behaviour of our children after consuming it. In 2009, the European governnment ordered that products featuring the South Hampton Six colors should include warning labels noting that they "may have an effect on activity and attention in children." Hopefully the Canadian and US government will join the band wagon and require similar labels on these brightly coloured products that are intended to entice our children.

So what are our options? Do we make a cake and add the colour or do we fight consumerism and opt away from a Disney or Treehouse character embellished in every colour under the rainbow?

I am opting for a healthier cake that is free of chemicals. I have experimented with a few different fruits, such as wild blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries to add some colour to white icing. I have attempted to use chlorella, but the taste was too strong. India Tree claims to make a vegetable- derived colouring that uses no synthetic dyes. Chocolate is always a good option. All you need to do is add dye-free cocoa.

There are many items that can be used to decorate a dye-free cake. These include, but are not limited to, toys, fruit, sugar, coconut, chocolate chips, drizzled or shave chocolate, edible flowers, natural candies, grated veggies, food cut out with a cookie cutter, and any other edible or non-edible item that you can find around the home. I personally find it challenging and exciting to bake a great cake, ice and decorate it using my imagination and no dyes. For some neat, natural food coloring ideas check out Vegetarian Secrets. And have a healthy, happy birthday party for your child!