china products with titanium dioxide

  • A study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry in 2019 sought to examine the effects of titanium dioxide on intestinal inflammation. Researchers did this by feeding rats titanium dioxide nanoparticles and found that, after the course of two to three months, the animals had lower body weights and induced intestinal inflammation. The researchers also found the nanoparticles altered gut microbiota composition and aggravated chronic colitis. The rats also experienced reduced populations of CD4+T cells (which are cells that help organize immune responses by prompting other immune cells to fight infection), regulatory T cells, and white blood cells in mesenteric lymph nodes. The researchers wrote: “Dietary TiO2 nanoparticles could interfere with the balance of the immune system and dynamic of gut microbiome, which may result in low-grade intestinal inflammation and aggravated immunological response to external stimulus, thus introducing potential health risk.”

  • TiO2 comes in many different forms. However, only a few of these forms are considered food-grade (acceptable to be added to food). Many studies that raised concern about the safety of TiO2, including the concern for genotoxicity, used forms of TiO2 that are not considered acceptable for use in food and have different properties than food-grade TiO2. Other studies did use food-grade TiO2, but took steps to break the material down into smaller particles than what would normally be found in food.