Adams 1981: Lack of behavioral effects from Feingold Diet violations

Perceptual and Motor Skills, 52: 307-313. (FDA study)

NOTE: The Conners’ scores for the children when they were ON the diet were not given, but it is assumed the children had actually responded to the diet before being tested on “violations” of the diet.

NOTE: Math error in Table 2: The food dye amounts actually total 18.8 mg — not 26.3 mg as printed in the study.

The placebo cupcakes had vanilla frosting. The “challenge” cupcakes had vanilla frosting with an amount of food dye so small that it DID NOT CHANGE THE COLOR of the frosting.

9 of the 14 variables tested “showed a tendency toward deterioration for the artificial snack.” But significance could not be reached — the study was too small.

NOTE: Adams concluded the diet didn’t work. But this was not a test of the diet – it was a test of a small challenge. Possibly, the diet worked so well that the small challenge had no effect. Or perhaps it was the wrong challenge … the diet excludes thousands of additives, not just food dyes.