Our scientific experts applied for the first time the 2018 EFSA Scientific Committee Guidance on Nanotechnology to the safety assessment of food additives. Titanium dioxide E 171 contains at most 50% of particles in the nano range (i.e. less than 100 nanometres) to which consumers may be exposed.
paint lithopone factories. Pigment scientists are diligently working on enhancing the properties of lithopone to make it more durable, lighter, and adaptable to an expanding range of substrates. Their efforts promise to unlock new markets and applications for this already versatile pigment.
TiO2 possesses different qualities depending on whether it is produced as a pigment or a nanomaterial. Both forms are tasteless, odourless and insoluble.
Micronized titanium dioxide doesn’t penetrate skin so there’s no need to be concerned about it getting into your body. Even when titanium dioxide nanoparticles are used, the molecular size of the substance used to coat the nanoparticles is large enough to prevent them from penetrating beyond the uppermost layers of skin. This means you’re getting the sun protection titanium dioxide provides with no risk of it causing harm to skin or your body. The coating process improves application, enhances sun protection, and prevents the titanium dioxide from interacting with other ingredients in the presence of sunlight, thus enhancing its stability. It not only makes this ingredient much more pleasant to use for sunscreen, but also improves efficacy and eliminates safety concerns. Common examples of ingredients used to coat titanium dioxide are alumina, dimethicone, silica, and trimethoxy capryl silane.
Additionally, the committee noted that the available data did not provide convincing evidence of genotoxicity for titanium dioxide as a food additive, but recognized the limitations in current methodologies with respect to the testing of poorly soluble particulate materials. Although there were uncertainties in the genotoxicity data, the experts took into account the fact that the additive was not carcinogenic in adequately conducted two-year studies in mice and rats at doses of up to 7,500 mg/kg BW per day for mice, and 2,500 mg/kg BW per day for rats, the highest doses tested. There was also no evidence of reproductive or developmental toxicity in studies in rats at doses up to 1,000 mg/kg BW per day, the highest doses tested.