Effects of AFCs on hyperactivity in 3-year-old children in a double-blind, placebo-controlled experiment
In the first study, a double-blind, placebo-controlled experiment, including three different phases, was carried out on 3-year-old children, who were registered with doctors that lived on the Isle of Wight (IOW). The study was carried out in the UK, and in the late 1990s. Furthermore, the subjects of the study were all previously diagnosed to be hyperactive (HA). Each phase in the investigation eliminated the children who did not fit the requirements of the experiment. In Phase 1, 1873 children were screened using a behavior questionnaire. During …show more content…
Before the investigation was conducted, the rats were housed in pairs in shoebox cages. The room in which the animals were housed in was maintained at 20 degrees Celsius and had a humidity level of 30%. The animals were then split up randomly into four groups, with eight rats in each group, and two rats from one litter. The first group was used as a control group, meaning that they were not treated with any food dyes or prenatal stress. The second group was treated with AFCs but not prenatal stress, the third group was treated with prenatal stress but no food colorings, and the fourth group was tested upon with both AFCs and prenatal stress. By performing the study in this particular format, the scientists were able to observe which variable (prenatal stress or AFCs) affected the hyperactivity of the rats, and how much it affected …show more content…
Scientists performed this study to test the hypothesis saying that both artificial food colorings and preservatives in the diets of the population of 8/9-year-olds in China affected their behavior. The children were taken from all three school districts in Hong Kong to ensure a variety of children. Throughout the course of the study, the subjects were given AFCs (capsule A), sodium benzoate (capsule B), and a placebo. All participants received a random sequence of when they would consume the capsules or placebo. Capsule A included 62.4 milligrams of AFCs. There was 15.6 milligrams of sunset yellow, 15.6 milligrams of carmoisine, 15.6 milligrams of tatrazine, and 15.6 milligrams of ponceau 4R in Capsule A. Capsule B included 45 milligrams of sodium benzoate, and Capsule C included 45 milligrams of lactose, which served as the placebo throughout the