§ Mr. Eadieasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will set up an urgent inquiry into the effect on the health and well-being of children arising from additives contained in food manufactured for children; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mrs. Currie[pursuant to her reply, 11 March 1987, c. 234–35]: No. The safety of additives is already assessed by independent expert advisory committees.
Food additives are often accused of being responsible for a wide range of health problems in children. However, scientific evidence in support of this is lacking. Intolerance reactions to food additives are rare (an EC working party estimated that only 0.03 to 0.15 per cent. of the population react to food additives), and the types of reaction are largely confined to skin rashes, asthma, runny noses and gastro-intestinal disturbances. It is worth noting that intolerance reactions to everyday foods such as milk, eggs or shellfish are much more common (estimated at 1 to 3 per cent. of the population).
Foods prepared specifically for babies do not contain certain additives, such as colours, as their use in these products is considered unnecessary.