Red dye number 3 has been banned.

My first thought upon hearing the news was, "What the heck is that?" My second, after a quick Google, was whether I should stockpile in my basement a stash of maraschino cherries, double bubble gum, Brach’s jelly beans, candy conversation hearts, Fruit Loops and — be still, my heart! — as many bags of candy corn as I could find.

After filling my entire car up with these precious reserves at Costco, I got to thinking — is this stuff really that bad for you? Let’s take a look at the real numbers behind this ban.

The official line is that the Food and Drug Administration banned red dye number 3 due to the Delaney clause, which says that the FDA cannot allow a food additive if it has been found to cause cancer in animals or humans. However, the FDA is a little late to the game. It’s been 30 years since a study found that the additive caused cancer in rats.

But let’s take a look at that study, which was done on animals, not people.

In the 1980s, a tiny study involving just

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