The document analyzes the content of food colorants, fats, nitrates, and nitrites in foods advertised to Egyptian children on television and in the biological fluids of Egyptian children. It found that 46-54% of total advertisements were for foods. Advertised restaurant dishes and processed meats were high in fats at 63% and 55%, respectively. Tartrazine was found in soft drinks and jelly powders. Nitrate and nitrite levels in advertised foods exceeded Egyptian and WHO limits. Urinary Tartrazine and serum/urinary nitrates and nitrites were higher in children who watched the channels compared to non-watchers, as was their lipid profile. The advertisements may expose children to increased risk of

1. Analysis of the content, colourants, fats,
nitrate and nitrite in advertised foods and
biological fluids of Egyptian children

4. Food colourants

5. Presentation Outline
 Introduction
 Aim of the Study
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 Conclusion

6. Abstract
 Analysis of the content of the AF was done by watching the
three Egyptian children’s channels (ECC) for 38 hours.
Amaranth, Indigo Carmine, Tartrazine, nitrate and nitrite
were analysed in all AF and in serum and urine specimens
of children.
 Lipid profile was also estimated in children.
 Total fats were only analysed in the advertised processed
meats and in the restaurant dishes.

7. Abstract
 The AF accounted for 46-54%of the total advertisements
presented. The advertised restaurant dishes were
predominantly high in fats, 63 and 55% in restaurant dishes
and processed meats, respectively.
 Tartrazine was the only food colourant found in soft drinks
and jelly powders measuring 0.2-15 μg/ml and 25-125 μg/g,
respectively.
 The average levels of total nitrate and nitrite were higher
than the acceptable daily intake of the Egyptian and WHO
limits (125 mg/kg).

8. Abstract
 Urinary Tartrazine and serum and urinary total nitrate and
nitrite were significantly higher in the viewers’ children for the
ECC and at borderline for lipid profile compared to non-
viewers’ children.
 The most harmful effect of these advertisements is the
cumulative effect of AF that undermines progress towards a
healthy diet for children.
 AF may expose children to non-communicable disease in the
future.

9. Abstract
 The local policy context requires action to set clear
rules for children’s food advertising and monitor
processed meat products to tackle exceeded levels
of nitrate and nitrite.
 This research shows a large number of AF (1,112)
in the ECC for 38 hours with statistically significant
increase of Tartrazine, nitrate and nitrite in AF
( p˂0.0001) and in biological fluids (p ˂0.05).

10. Aim of the Study
 Analyse the content and some synthetic food colourants,
total fats, nitrate and nitrite in both advertised foods (AF) and
serum and urine samples of children (8 to 12 years).
 watching the three Egyptian children’s channels (ECC) and
its impact on children’s diet and health and their impact on
childrens’ diet and health.

11. Introduction
 Advertising can play a prominent role in influencing
children’s eating habits.
 Studies suggest that children will make “healthy choices” but
need the knowledge supporting these “healthy choices”
 Most synthetic dyes contain azo functional groups and
aromatic rings; they may have negative effects on health
including allergic and asthmatic reactions, DNA damage and
hyperactivity.

12. Introduction
 Some synthetic dyes are even considered to be potentially carcinogenic
and mutagenic to humans (EFSA, 2005).
 EFSA, (2010) concludes that it is unlikely that oral consumption of food
colours either individually or in combination, would trigger severe
adverse reactions in human subjects at the current levels of use.
 what about in case of exceeding the limit of the current levels of use?
 Tartrazine (E102) has been implicated as the food additive most often
responsible for allergic reactions in children, having thus been targeted
by the scientific community (Ward, 1997).

13. Introduction
 Nitrite (E249-E250) has been used for preservation of meat
products for decades and is still widely used for preservation
of products such as sausages and luncheon meats.
 Nitrite curing provides an efficient inhibition of the growth of
Clostridium botulinum, and gives cured meat unique colours,
flavours and aromas.
 It was suggested that increased consumption of dietary
nitrate and nitrite is associated with elevated levels of
salivary nitrite (Badawi et al., 1998).

14.  Also children might be susceptible to the toxic effects of
these compounds as they have low body weight, immature
enzymatic system especially for xenobiotic metabolism and
high gastric acidity that is a good environment for N-
nitrosamine formation (Okafor and Nwogbo, 2005).
Introduction

15. Materials and Methods
 Purchasing and sampling AF
 Chemicals
 Content analysis of TV advertisements
 Analysis of the AF
 Preparation of samples for synthetic food colourants analysis
 Chromatographic separations
 Quality control of the method
 Total fats

16. Materials and Methods
 Determination of nitrate and nitrite in the AF
 Preparation of samples for nitrate and nitrite
 Recruiting children
 Anthropometric measurements
 Collection of blood and urine specimens
 Urinary synthetic food colourants analysis
 NOx in serum and urine
 Lipid profile
 Statistical analysis

17.  Standard deviation (SD) and CV were calculated using
Excel for the HPLC results, total fats, nitrate,. nitrite and
biochemical determinations.
 The results obtained for Tartrazine, nitrate, nitrite and total
fats analysis of soft drinks, jelly powders, processed meats and
restaurant dishes were statistically analysed using analysis of
variance (ANOVA) (Genstat 6 package).
Materials and Methods
Statistical Analysis

18. Materials and Methods
 Due to the large differences in analyte concentrations
obtained from the range of AF studied, a logarithmic
transformation was applied to the data to obtain variance
homogeneity.
 The Vassar Stats online programme one-way ANOVA was
used in biochemical analyses; Tukey’s pairwise test was
used for comparisons of sample means at p˂0.05.
Statistical Analysis

19. RESULTS
Tartrazine, nitrate, and nitrite in advertised foods in the ECC

20. Results
Colourants, nitrate, nitrite and total fats of advertised foods in
the three Egyptian childrens channels

21. Results
Colourants,fats, nitrate and nitrite in the advertised foods in the three
Egyptian childrens channels

22. Results
Lipid profile, serum and urine nitric oxide and Tartrazine in the
viewers and non-viewers children for ECC.

23. Results
HPLC Chromatograms of standard of Tartrazine E102(RT 4.12),
Amaranth (RT 5.9) and Indigo Carmine E102(RT 7.6).

24. Results
UV/visible detector of the spectra collected by DAD of Tartrazine
in cherry jelly, powder, with 999.9 purity factor.

25. Results
HPLC Chromatogram of Tartrazine E102 in cherry flavour of jelly
powder.

26. Conclusion
 Synthetic food colourants, fats, nitrate and nitrite were
determined in 26 AF and beverages in the three ECC. Also
these parameters were determined in serum and urine
specimens of children.
 AF were categorized into four groups: soft drinks, jelly
powders, processed meat products and restaurant dishes.
 Levels of nitric oxide, Tartrazine and total fat were
significantly higher in the viewer children of those channels
compared to control group.
 The AF seem to promote foods mainly high in fats, synthetic
food colourants, nitrate and nitrite that are precisely opposite
of what is recommended for healthy eating for children.

27. Thank you