Food colorings linked to higher cardiovascular disease risk
The highest versus lowest intake group had hazard ratios of 1.36 for high blood pressure and 1.18 for cardiovascular disease.
Limit: Participants’ dietary records can misestimate food coloring intake
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
An observational study followed 112,395 participants in the NutriNet-Santé cohort, 78.7% of them female. Researchers estimated food coloring additive intake using repeated 24-hour food records, including brand names, composition databases and laboratory tests of foods.
They recorded 5,544 new cases of high blood pressure over an average 7.6 years and 2,450 new cases of cardiovascular disease—disease of the heart and blood vessels—over an average 7.9 years. Compared with the lowest third of intake, the highest third had hazard ratios of 1.36 for high blood pressure and 1.18 for cardiovascular disease. Hazard ratios compare rates of new cases over time; values above 1 indicate higher rates.
Why it matters
Cardiovascular disease is an age-related health concern. The authors said the results supported re-evaluating these additives’ safety assessments and limiting exposure to nonessential cosmetic additives.
Caveats
This observational study cannot establish that food colorings caused disease. Intake estimates relied on participants’ dietary records, and the cohort was predominantly female.
The paper
Food colouring additives, hypertension & cardiovascular disease incidence: NutriNet-Santé cohort
Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers
European Journal of Public Health, Oct 2026, Open access, CC BY-NC
