Comments on: Blue Food Dye Helps Rats With Spinal Injuries–But Also Turns Them Blue

By: hannah

hannah — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 01:45:53 +0000

if you gave a rat this by mouth would it work the same? (still turn it blue?) email me with the answer at hannahbragelman@ymail.com

By: MarkD

MarkD — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 05:59:20 +0000

Ok, if it actually can’t do damage when injected with proper sterile technique, finish up human trials quickly and get these on all ambulances and police med kits!

Why would you need to get to a hospital if it really is that safe? Give it in the field.

I’ll happily deal with smurf jokes for a few months instead of being paralyzed. Heck just stab me with it just in case.

By: ctw

ctw — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 23:08:57 +0000

Can a few food additives (not all food additives) including some food dyes and artificial sweeteners act like undisclosed drugs for a few human beings (not all human beings)? Yes. Source: http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/Tartrazine_and_ADHD/

By: Art

Art — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 17:35:23 +0000

I think the picture made me sympathetic. It looks like it’s posing.
I think more testing should be done on degenerates instead of little white mice. Just drug ‘em then anesthetize. They’ll never know what hit ‘em and they won’t understand.

By: Eliza Strickland

Eliza Strickland — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 17:13:55 +0000

Jumblepudding: I thought of Violet, too!

Angela: The researcher actually suggested, semi-seriously, that patients en route to the hospital could be given blue Gatorade to drink…

Art: The researchers inflicted the spinal cord injuries on the mice, sorry to say, by dropping a 10-gram weight on their backs while the mice were under anesthesia.

By: Art

Art — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 16:58:28 +0000

Where do they find rats with spinal cord injuries?

By: Gadfly

Gadfly — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 16:44:40 +0000

Angela, just make sure they’re all blue ones. Wouldn’t want to dilute the therapeutic effect.

By: Angela

Angela — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 16:26:05 +0000

Hmm, so maybe I should keep a bag of M&M’s on hand, just in case? ;-)

By: Jumblepudding

Jumblepudding — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 15:50:00 +0000

flashbacks to Willy Wonka and the Chocolate factory.
Perhaps other food dyes have unknown effects on our health as well, making a bag of M&Ms or skittles a pharmalogical cornucopia. (try saying that five times fast)

By: Biology Science Fair Projects

Biology Science Fair Projects — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 15:36:18 +0000

When you are developing a science fair project you need to look at how common things can be used to do uncommon tasks. Read this news blog on how chemical compounds that are similar to those found in blue food dye are improving the condition of spinal cord injured mice.