Read Online  |  April 23, 2025  |  E-Paper

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Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Martin Makary holds up a vial of carrot juice, an alternative to synthetic food dyes, at a press conference at the Hubert H. Humphrey Building in Washington on April 22, 2025. (Nathan Worcester/The Epoch Times)

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced a plan to remove artificial dyes from the United States’ food supply.

The government is banning two synthetic colorings, Citrus Red No. 2 and Orange B, which can currently be used to color hot dogs and sausages. The government is then going to work with companies to eliminate the other dyes by the end of 2026.

“For the last 50 years, American children have increasingly been living in a toxic soup of synthetic chemicals,” Dr. Marty Makary, commissioner of the FDA, said at a news conference in Washington.

He cited a randomized trial that found that artificial dyes in the diet resulted in increased hyperactivity in 3-, 8-, and 9-year-olds.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told a crowd that National Institutes of Health Director Jay Bhattacharya was investigating various other food additives.

Melissa Hockstad, president and CEO of the Consumer Brands Association, which represents food and drink manufacturers, said in a statement that additives have been studied and demonstrated to be safe.

The FDA lets manufacturers use nine artificial dyes in food and drinks. Many are made from petroleum.

The agency in January banned one of the dyes, citing concerns about potential carcinogenic effects, but gave food manufacturers until January 2027 to stop using it. Makary said companies should stop using it sooner. (More)

California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks with oil pumps in the background in Los Angeles on Sep. 25, 2024. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

California Gov. Gavin Newsom is urging his own party to confront its 2024 election losses with honest self-examination, warning that without serious introspection, Democrats are destined to fail again.

Newsom said Democratic leaders have yet to engage in a deep exploration of why they lost the White House, failed to reclaim the House, and saw their Senate majority evaporate in November.

“We have not done a forensic of what just went wrong, period, full stop,” Newsom said during a sit-down interview with The Hill. “I don’t think it, I know it.”

The two-term governor, who is widely viewed as a possible 2028 presidential contender, said his party’s silence in the face of defeat reflects a broader crisis of identity and leadership.

“I don’t know what the party is,” he added. “I’m still struggling with that.”

As Democrats look toward the 2026 midterms and the long lead-up to the 2028 presidential election, Newsom is concerned that without an honest audit of recent failures, the party may find itself locked out of power once again. (More)

More Politics:

Members of the South Carolina Senate voted to remove the state’s embattled treasurer for “willful neglect” of his duties tied to a $1.8 billion accounting error, sending the matter to the state House for consideration.

The 33–8 vote followed an hours-long hearing of the full Senate, during which state Sens. Larry Grooms and Stephen Goldfinch, both Republicans, pushed for state Treasurer Curtis Loftis’s removal over a $1.8 billion accounting error.

“The big secret of Treasurer Loftis, the one that he’s kept hidden away, is that there are hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars in errors in the Treasury books today, and he doesn’t know how to fix them,” Grooms said in opening the hearing.

A state Senate Finance subcommittee report released last month said Loftis, a Republican, “failed to maintain the integrity” of South Carolina’s banking and investment records after state officials were alerted to an unexplained $1.8 billion in funds under his office’s exclusive control.

An outside forensic audit determined that most of the funds in question were not real cash but the result of bookkeeping errors that followed the state’s transition to a new accounting system in the 2010s.

Loftis, now in his fourth term, was first elected treasurer in 2010 and has held the office since. (More)

More U.S. News

As Catholics around the world mourn the late Pope Francis ahead of his funeral on April 26, speculation has begun about a possible successor. While the process has historically often ended with an unexpected outcome, there are several possible contenders.

Behind the scenes, preparations for the next conclave—the papal election—have begun.

The papal account on social media platform X, previously bearing the name of Pope Francis, has been changed to Apostolica Sedes Vacans, Latin for “the apostolic seat is empty.”

When the most recent conclave convened to replace resigning Pope Benedict XVI, few predicted that Francis, then Jorge Mario Bergoglio, would be elected.

An old Italian saying riffs on the historical difficulties that observers have had in predicting the new pope.

“He who enters the conclave as pope, leaves it as a cardinal,” it states.

Nevertheless, there are some expected frontrunners in the race to become the leader of the 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide.

Here is a brief look at a few of the top contenders.

More World News:

📷 Photo of the Day: Afghan school boys wearing salwar kameez and turbans as part of a new uniform code attend class at a high school in Kandahar, on April 22, 2025. It is now mandatory for male students in public schools to wear the traditional Afghan attire, with some students reporting beatings if they do not comply. Sanaullah Seiam/AFP via Getty Images

Our photography editors comb through the best images in the world every day. See their picks for today here ➞ JD Vance in India, Shark Attack in Israel, and Earth Day Volunteers

🎤 Interview: How Therapists Are Failing Our Children: Pamela Garfield-Jaeger (Watch)

🎙️Podcast: US Army Authorized to Take Control of Land to ‘Seal’ US-Mexico Border (Listen)

✍️ Opinion: The CCP Is America’s Enemy—and It’s Time to Act Like It by Robert Chernin

🎵 Music: Tchaikovsky – The Nutcracker  (Listen)

Towfiqu Ahamed Barbhuiya/Shutterstock

You might recognize chia seeds as the tiny black specks that end up in smoothies, yogurts, or occasionally stuck between your teeth. Despite their unassuming size, these little seeds are packed with fiber, omega-3s, and antioxidants—making them more than just a topping.

Chia seeds support digestion and heart health, helping to keep things moving while supporting lower levels of cholesterol and blood pressure. They may not look like much, but inside, they’re doing a whole lot of good.

“Chia seeds play a therapeutic role in managing chronic diseases,” Mary Curristin, a nutritionist at ART Health Solutions, told The Epoch Times.

One of the standout qualities of chia seeds is their high omega-3 fatty acid content, which contributes to their reputation as a “powerhouse of omega fatty acids.”

The omega-3s found in chia seeds help reduce inflammation, benefiting conditions like heart disease, she added. Of note, inflammation contributes to plaque formation that blocks arteries in coronary artery disease.

Chia seeds also support cardiovascular health by reducing oxidation, cholesterol, and blood pressure.

One study found that eating chia seeds led to an average drop of 7.87 mmHg in systolic and 6.33 mmHg in diastolic blood pressure.

Because chia seeds are high in omega-3 fatty acids, they improve heart health by decreasing inflammation and improving blood circulation. These benefits can help maintain a normal heart rhythm and decrease the risk of arrhythmias or irregular heartbeats.

Chia can also help reduce triglyceride levels and increase good HDL cholesterol, contributing to better heart health. (More)

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Thanks for reading.

Have a wonderful day.

—Ivan Pentchoukov, Madalina Hubert, and Kenzi Li.

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