What’s Really Hiding in That Bright Capsule? The Health Risks of Artificial Dyes

One of the first things I noticed when I started examining mainstream supplements was how brightly colored so many of them were. Neon pinks, electric blues, and unnaturally deep purples. I couldn’t help but ask why?

The answer wasn’t encouraging. Those bright colors are usually the result of artificial dyes, like Red 40, Yellow 5, or Blue 1 petroleum-derived colorants added for aesthetic purposes. They don’t improve the supplement, they don’t help your body, and in many cases, they may actively work against your health.

Why Supplement Companies Use Artificial Dyes

Here’s the truth: supplement companies use artificial dyes for the same reason they use cheap fillers to make products look “clean,” uniform, and marketable. A bold color makes a capsule stand out in the bottle or on the shelf. For softgels and chewables, dyes help disguise ingredient variation and give everything a consistent brand look.

But here’s the thing: these dyes don’t serve your body—they serve branding.

The Health Risks Behind Synthetic Dyes

Artificial food dyes have been linked to a growing list of health concerns, especially when consumed regularly or in higher amounts.

• Hyperactivity and behavioral issues
  Multiple studies have shown a potential link between dyes like Red 40 and increased hyperactivity in children. While most of this research focuses on kids, the mechanisms may affect adults too especially those who are already neuro-sensitive.

• Allergic responses and inflammation
  Some people experience headaches, rashes, or GI upset when exposed to artificial dyes. Even if you don’t notice it immediately, the cumulative effects may quietly add to your body’s inflammatory burden.

• Gut disruption
  Emerging research suggests that artificial dyes may alter the gut microbiome your body’s central hub for immunity, mood regulation, and metabolism. Disrupting your gut ecosystem can have widespread downstream effects.

• No nutrient value—just toxicity potential
  The bottom line? These colorants offer zero nutritional value and introduce unnecessary chemical load. That’s a poor tradeoff in something you're taking to support your health.

Why We Skip the Dyes at Brother Barbell

When I created Brother Barbell Supplements, I made a promise to myself and my customers: no artificial shortcuts. That includes fillers, flavoring agents and definitely colorants.

That’s why our supplements come in a variety of natural colors from light beige to deep brown to golden yellow. We don’t try to mask nature. If a compound looks different from batch to batch, that’s because nature isn’t uniform and neither are the real herbs, roots, and bioactive extracts we use.

What matters to us is efficacy, purity, and transparency not shelf appeal.

A Better Way to Supplement

If you’re being mindful about what you eat and how you train, your supplements should reflect that same level of care. What seems like a harmless splash of color might actually be slowing your progress, irritating your system, or pushing your body in the wrong direction.

You deserve supplements that work with your biology not against it.

At Brother Barbell, we’ll never prioritize marketing gimmicks over your health. Our formulas are built around clean ingredients, optimal dosing, and real results nothing more, nothing less.