- The Food and Drug Administration banned two synthetic food dyes and announced a plan to prohibit the rest.
- Here’s everything we know about Abrego Garcia, the El Salvador deportee at the center of the political firestorm over illegal immigration.
- Secretary of State Marco Rubio released a plan to significantly restructure the Department of State to reduce “decades of bloat.”
- 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.
- 🍵 Health: The omega powerhouse for heart and gut health.
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☀️ It’s Wednesday. Thank you for reading the Morning Brief, an exclusive newsletter for subscribers of The Epoch Times.
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Ivan Pentchoukov
National Editor
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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)
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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)
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California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks with oil pumps in the background in Los Angeles on Sep. 25, 2024. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)
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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:
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- President Donald Trump continued to pressure the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates, but said he doesn’t plan to fire the central bank’s chairman, Jerome Powell.
- In response to reports that the Chinese regime is warning other countries against making deals with the United States that could be detrimental to Beijing, the White House highlighted the crucial role the United States plays in the global economy.
- Tesla CEO Elon Musk told investors that the time he is spending with the Department of Government Efficiency will “drop considerably” as he moves to spend more time with his auto company.
- The Trump administration must provide Venezuelans whom officials arrest for alleged links to the Tren de Aragua gang three weeks’ notice before removing them from the country, a federal judge ruled on April 11.
- With an announcement on tariffs on pharmaceuticals expected from the White House, Switzerland-based pharmaceutical company Roche said it will invest $50 billion in the United States over a five-year period, setting up new facilities and expanding existing ones.
- The Supreme Court seemed receptive to Maryland parents who want to opt their young children out of having to be taught from storybooks that promote LGBT lifestyles.
- The Pentagon said that military personnel can now carry out security support operations on a strip of land recently transferred to the Army’s control, strengthening measures against trespassing by illegal immigrants.
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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
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- The spike in anti-Semitic incidents following the Hamas terrorist group’s attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, continued into 2024, with totals again reaching record levels, according to a report by the Anti-Defamation League.
- Several New York City libraries received bomb threatstargeting events organized by local Falun Gong practitioners.
- The second Manhattan jury to hear Sarah Palin’s lawsuit against The New York Times returned the same verdict as the first, finding on April 22 that the newspaper was “not liable” for defaming the former Alaska governor.
- The Department of Justice charged 27 alleged members or affiliates of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua under legislation designed to bring down criminal enterprises.
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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:
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- Dual‑use ports, runways, and telecom lines in 10 Pacific nations could help the Chinese military leapfrog U.S. defenses and threaten shipping between Hawaii and Australia.
- The U.S. Department of Commerce plans to impose duties of up to 3,521 percent on solar cell imports from four Southeast Asian nations in a bid to curb unfair trade practices.
- Israel has canceled the visas of 27 French left-wing lawmakers and local officials who had been scheduled to arrive this past weekend to tour Israel and the Palestinian territories. Most of them are members of the Ecologist or Communist party.
- The U.S. government has imposed sweeping sanctions on an Iranian liquefied petroleum gas magnate and his sprawling international network of companies and affiliates, accusing them of facilitating hundreds of millions of dollars in oil and gas exports that fund Iran’s nuclear weapons program and terror proxies across the Middle East.
- Filipino President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has eased decades-old travel restrictions, opening the door for some government officials from his country to visit Taiwan and allowing visits from Taiwanese officials to the Philippines.
- Russia is open to holding talks with Ukraine with a view to reaching a conditional cease-fire, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.
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📷 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
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Towfiqu Ahamed Barbhuiya/Shutterstock
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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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