Do certain food additives change how three-year-olds behave? Artificial colors and preservatives appear in many everyday foods. Their effect on behavior has been debated for decades. Researchers gave young participants either a placebo drink or one with additives. The active drink contained five substances: - sunset yellow - tartrazine - carmoisine - ponceau 4R - sodium benzoate Clinic-based psychological tests measured behavior changes. Parents also filed their own reports. The psychological tests showed no significant effect from the additives. But parents reported more hyperactive behavior when the additives were present. They also noticed calmer behavior when additives were removed from the diet. These parent-reported effects appeared across the whole group, not just in allergic or hyperactive participants. Independent experts agree the evidence is not yet conclusive. This remains an area of ongoing scientific study.