How Much Food Dyes Are in Gatorade?
Gatorade, distributed by The Gatorade Co., is a popular sport beverage which comes in a variety of flavors like Glacier Freeze, Blueberry Pomegranate, Lemon-Lime, Tropical Blend, Orange and Tropical Mango considered below. However, their composition is almost all the same (G2 series reviewed):
- Water
- Sucrose
- Citric acid
- Flavor
- Salt
- Sodium citrate
- Mono-potassium phosphate
- Sucralose (The Development and Applications of Sucralose)
- Acesulfame potassium and
- Food dye(s) (Food Dyes: A Rainbow of Risks)
A chemical flavor and a combination of the artificial food dyes is what makes the same composition look and taste differently.
Gatorade G2 brand comparison
$1 per 32 OZ (946 ml) bottle
| G2 | Dye content mg/L | Overall health risk (DDRS) | Foreign additive impact (DDFI) | Nutritional value (DDNF) |
| Gatorade Glacier Freeze | Blue 1, 1 | 48 | 5 | 0.1 |
| Gatorade Blueberry Pomegranate | Blue 1, 10 | 50 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Gatorade Lemon-Lime | Yellow 5, 6 Blue 1, 0.1 | 55 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Gatorade Tropical Blend | Yellow 5, 50 Blue 1, 2 | 55 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Gatorade Orange | Yellow 5, 3 Red 40, 1 | 55 | 6 | 0.1 |
| Gatorade Tropical-Mango (G) | Yellow 5, 17 Yellow 6, 14 Red 40, 10 | 80 | 3 | 0.2 |
The amounts of the food dyes detected by the DyeDiet are significantly lower than Acceptable Daily Intake established by FDA. We have found 70 mg/L of Red 40 dye in the previously reviewed Gatorade Fruit Punch. All the reviewed Gatorades have high health risks and low nutritional values. The electrolyte content is so low that you would have to drink 6 gallons of a Gatorade to replenish 100% of your daily potassium.
Gatorade Glacier Freeze Risk Score, DDRS ~ 48
Blue #1 food dye concentration detected by the DyeDiet in this light-blue beverage was 1 mg/L; very low. However Blue #1 is able to cross blood-brain barrier so not only your tongue but also your brain is colored blue.
With 3 foreign (anti-nutritional) additives (red segments, 25 units), 5 benign food additives (yellow, 18 units) and only 2 nutritional ingredients (green segments, 5 units) you get high health risk DDFI = 25/5 ~ 5 and low nutritional value DDNF = 5/43 ~ 0.12
Gatorade Blueberry Pomegranate Risk Score, DDRS ~ 50
Blue 1 concentration is 10 mg/L.
With 4 foreign (anti-nutritional) additives (red segments, 31 units), 5 benign food additives (yellow, 14 units) and only 2 nutritional ingredients (green segments, 5 units) you get higher health risk, DDFI = 31/5 ~ 6 and low nutritional value DDNF = 5/45 ~ 0.1.
Gatorade Lemon-Lime Risk Score, DDRS ~ 55
Yellow 5 content is 6 mg/L and Blue 1 concentration was found minimal 0.1 mg/L.
With 4 foreign (anti-nutritional) additives (red segments, 32 units), 5 benign food additives (yellow, 18 units) and only 2 nutritional ingredients (green segments, 5 units) you get high health risk DDFI = 32/5 ~ 6 and low nutritional value DDNF = 5/50 = 0.1.
Gatorade Tropical Blend Risk Score, DDRS ~ 55
Higher dye content of Yellow 5, 50 mg/L and Blue 1, 2 mg/L is what converts the Lemon-Lime to the Tropical Blend.
With 4 foreign (anti-nutritional) additives (red segments, 32 units), 5 benign food additives (yellow, 18 units) and only 2 nutritional ingredients (green segments, 5 units) you get high health risk DDFI = 32/5 ~ 6 and low nutritional value DDNF = 5/50 = 0.1.
Gatorade Orange, DDRS ~ 55
Yellow 5 content: 3 mg/L and Red 40: 1 mg/L.
With 4 foreign (anti-nutritional) additives (red segments, 32 units), 5 benign food additives (yellow, 18 units) and only 2 nutritional ingredients (green segments, 5 units) you get high health risk DDFI = 32/5 ~ 6 and low nutritional value DDNF = 5/50 = 0.1.
Gatorade Tropical Mango, DDRS ~ 80
Yellow 5 content: 17 mg/L, Yellow 6: 14 mg/L and Red 40: 10 mg/L.
With 5 foreign (anti-nutritional) additives (red segments, 38 units), 7 benign food additives (yellow, 30 units) and 4 nutritional ingredients (green segments, 12 units) you get health risk of DDFI = 38/12 ~ 3 and low nutritional value DDNF = 12/68 ~ 0.2.
Bottom Line: Too much red color in the diagrams is NOT what our body needs for nutrition. As a safer choice, the DyeDiet would recommend Smart Water by Glaceau instead.
Category: Soft drinks, Sports drinks
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- Pure Performance « Eco-Wellness LLC | July 10, 2012
This is a really good read for me. Must agree that you are one of the coolest blogger I ever saw. Thanks for posting this useful information. This was just what I was on looking for. I’ll come back to this blog for sure!
Drank a Gatoraide g2 fruit punch and was in ER within 30 minutes. This was the first time I ever drank any type of g2.ER doctor said he had two other cases recently and both were g2 punch drink. . It is the Red Dye 40. Do not drink this liquid.
You’re an idiot.
Thank you for your brief comment. Please give me your facts and reasons, if you can, and maybe I will agree with you…
Otherwise just go… drink your Gatorade quietly. OK?
Everyone’s body chemistry is different, at least slightly. In some cases broad differences exist. Chemical sensitivity in one person may not be significant but in another quite so. I have seen people with dyslexia appear to go insane after chewing bubble gum which had red food dye in it. and yet I chewed hundreds as a kid and simply got a sugar rush. To criticize another for their sensitivity, an inborn trait, simply because you fear your own ignorance makes you appear to be somewhat of a neanderthal… and you know what happened to them.
Michael, thank you for your comment. It’s time to understand that we live in a chemically polluted world which quickly deteriorates. In my opinion, which I do proclaim on my website, it is stupid, irresponsible AND immoral to deliberately add dozens of xenobiotic chemicals which may or may not cause serious health problems in our children. I don’t see how you can argue about this. Do not pretend that more strange chemicals in our food is what distinguishes modern humans from neanderthal.
ha-ha i could talk about this crap forever but no one believes me from this stuff to gmo crop to pesticides everything is done for a increase in profit why lowering cost to make. Hey mr obama well pay for your campaign but when ur in office were gonna need u to pass this an that just ignore the fact these chemicals are dangerous to peoples health cause remember we hooked u up. man they even made artifcial colors illegal in Europe. nobody questions this stuff cause they dont think the government would jeopardize our health but they keep approving crap like aspartame as safe. im 18 but i would like to start a movement and a huge protest over this crap we need to spread awareness. organic food could be just as cheap if it was the only thing demanded but instead money is being spent to supply gamma radized roided meat at mcdonalds. corporations own the government all u dumb need to vote with ur dollars and not at the polls. by the way have u read the warrior diet great book also the anti estrogenic diet. dont even get me started about religion cause were all gods and jesus our decisions will be the reason for our greatness or our downfall an right now were poisoning ourselfs from the inside out so all u better spread the word and get nailed to a cross if that what its going to take. helping yourself is helping the world
Hi, what are you sources? Where did you get this information from?
Thanks!
P
I have got the information from my own measurements based on use of commercial spectrophotometer. Please look at this article http://www.dyediet.com/2011/04/28/soft-drinks/how-much-dyes-do-we-drink/
The results are in agreement with the numbers obtained by other experimentalists, for instance at Feingold Association.