Does Food Really Make a Difference with Fish Color?

A colorful betta fish

When perusing the fish food aisles at your local tropical fish store, you may have noticed that some of the foods claim to enhance the coloring of your fish. Have you ever wondered whether those claims are true? Or just how it is that food affects fish coloring?

You’re not the only one.

This article covers whether the food you feed your fish really makes a difference with its color, how that works, and which foods are best for fish color enhancement.

Does food affect fish color?

Colorful cichlids in a tank

The short answer is yes. The kind of food you give to your fish can make their color look different.

You cannot completely change the color of a fish by feeding particular foods, of course. Their colors are genetically set. But you can make their natural colors look brighter and more noticeable.

Why does this work?

The main reason that particular foods enhance fish color is simply that having a good diet makes your fish healthier, and healthier fish tend to have better coloring. It’s the same as with humans, really. If you’re sick or tired, you may have noticed that the coloring in your face can change. And people who are healthy and get plenty of sleep also have noticeable facial coloring that is different from being sick or tired.

Which fish foods enhance color?

So, when we’re talking about overall health for color enhancement, the best thing you can do for your fish is be sure to provide them with a varied diet. Fish flakes are a great base diet, and you can supplement the flakes with freeze-dried foods, fresh foods, or other processed fish food types, depending on the species.

In addition to the basis of a nutritious and varied diet, you can also feed your fish food that is specifically formulated for color enhancement. Note that color-enhancing food alone is not the best way to improve coloring—that’s what a good diet is for.

What color enhancing food can do is provide even better color results on top of a nutritious and varied diet for your tropical fish.

A canister of color-enhancing fish flakes