Reproductive and neurobehavioral effects of Allura Red AC administered to mice in the diet.

The color additive, Allura Red AC, was given in the diet to provide levels of 0.42, 0.84, and 1.68% (control, 0%), from 5 weeks of age of the F0 generation to 9 weeks of age of the F1 generation in mice, and selected reproductive and neurobehavioral parameters were measured. There were few adverse effects of Allura Red AC on either litter size or weight, and ratio of male to female was significantly reduced in the lowest dosed group. Average body weight of offspring during the lactation period was significantly increased in the lower dosed groups of each sex. As regards the neurobehavioral parameters, no adverse effect was observed in the behavioral development during lactation period. There were few adverse effects of Allura Red AC on either movement activity or maze learning in F1 generation mice, compared with controls in each sex. The dose levels of Allura Red AC in the present study (approximately 86-1430 times greater than human ADI) produced few adverse effects in reproductive and neurobehavioral parameters in mice.