HHS planning studies on autism spectrum disorder, RFK Jr. says
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says the agency plans to study possible environmental links to autism spectrum disorder.
Eight artificial dyes will be eliminated from medications and the nation’s food supply by the end of 2026, including those found in candy, ice cream, soft drinks and jams, according to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
These artificial dyes – detailed during an April 22 news conference in Washington, D.C. – are used to offset color loss due to exposure to light, temperature extremes as well as to provide color to colorless and “fun” foods, according to the Food and Drug Administration.
For years, Kennedy has railed against Big Food and Big Pharma and blamed the nation’s “chronic disease epidemic” on additives and junk food, including during his campaign for president in the 2024 Democratic primaries and then as an independent. After he endorsed President Donald Trump, Trump incorporated those ideas into his own campaign and they’re now part of the new administration’s Make America Healthy Again agenda .
In March, Kennedy met in private with the leaders of food companies such as PepsiCo, General Mills, Tyson Foods, Kraft, Heinz and Kellogg’s. During that meeting, Kennedy told CBS News that he demanded artificial food dyes would “all have to be out within two years.”
The FDA, under the Biden administration, had already mandated a ban on Red Dye No. 3, found in candy, desserts, and some medications, by January 15, 2027.
The Consumer Brand Association, which represents companies that manufacture food, beverages and household products, told its members that it was an “urgent priority” for the Trump administration to remove certain artificial colors from the food supply – and that Kennedy Jr. wanted it “done before he leaves office.
Food activist and blogger Vani Hari, who has run campaigns around ingredients and transparency against food companies for more than a decade, said Kennedy Jr.’s efforts were a win for American parents.
“I never thought I’d see the day when the FDA actually did this,” Hari told USA TODAY. “I had lost faith in my government leaders and now it’s been restored. The FDA is no longer sleeping at the wheel.”
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy is a White House Correspondent for USA TODAY. You can follow her on X @SwapnaVenugopal
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