Article reprinted from Pure Facts December/January 2005
of the state of Virginia during their annual conference held in Portsmouth, VA in November, 2004
WHEREAS, the number of students in Virginia's schools with identified learning disabilities or disorders has increased 6.6% since the 1997-98 school year, exceeding the student population increases and resulting in growing expenses related to serving this student population (2,3); and
WHEREAS, the number of children diagnosed with asthma, allergies or other chronic respiratory ailments has increased 4.3% per year, costing an estimated $3.2 billion annually in health-care costs and 14 million lost days from school annually (4); and
WHEREAS, increasing evidence has linked ADD/ADHD, hyperactivity, autistic disorders and upper- respiratory symptoms to the consumption of artificial food additives, including dyes, preservatives and flavorings (5-9); now, therefore be it
RESOLVED, that Virginia PTA urge its units, councils and districts to encourage school districts and individual schools to read the available research on artificial food additives' negative effects on children's health, behavior and learning (5-9); and be it further
RESOLVED, that Virginia PTA and its units, councils and districts support actions by state and local governments and local educational agencies that will discourage the sale and consumption of foods and beverages containing artificial food additives on school campuses before, during, and after school hours; and be it further
RESOLVED that Virginia PTA and its units, councils and districts support nutrition and health education for parents, students, teachers and community members that addresses the potential effects of artificial food additives on children, including behavioral, educational and physical impacts; and be it further
RESOLVED that Virginia PTA urge the state Board of Education to review available research on the effects of artificial food additives on Virginia's public school students and attempt to assess the financial impact on Virginia public schools; and be it further
RESOLVED that Virginia PTA encourage other state PTAs to adopt similar resolutions.
- Object, Mission, Goals and Objectives of Virginia PTA/PSTA
- Virginia Department of Education, Report on Children and Youth with Disabilities Receiving Special Education, Part B, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, State Summary from school years 1997-98 through 2001-2002 (includes statistics for children identified with emotional disturbance, specific learning disabilities and autism)
- Virginia Department of Education, School Census July, 2002 and July, 1999
- Centers for Disease Control, National Center for Environmental Health: Asthma's Impact on Children and Adolescents
- The effects of a double blind, placebo controlled, artificial food colourings and benzoate preservative challenge on hyperactivity in a general population sample of preschool children, Bateman, Warner, Hutchinson, et al., Archives of Disease in Childhood, 2004
- Foods and additives are common causes of the attention deficit hyperactive disorder in children, Boris & Mandel, Annals of Allergy, May 1994
- Synthetic food coloring and behavior; a dose response effect in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, repeated-measures study, Katherine & Kenneth Rowe, The Journal of Pediatrics, November, 1994
- Unsafe at Every Meal: How to Avoid Hidden Toxins in Your Food, Dr. Earl Mindell, 2002
- Tenth Report on Carcinogens: Butylated Hydroxyanisole (BHA) CAS No. 25013-16-5, International Agency for Research on Cancer
This resolution was adopted by the representatives of the PTAs and PSTAs of the state of Virginia during their annual conference held in Portsmouth, VA in November.
FAUS has a collection of information on the research connecting diet and behavior.
Also, see www.School-Lunch.org for information on how to improve the
foods in your community's schools.
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