In a 2022 study published in the Journal of Hazardous Materials, scientists wanted to examine the effects of titanium dioxide as a food additive on atherosclerosis in mice. (Atherosclerosis refers to a hardening of the arteries.) Researchers fed mice 40 mg/kg of the food additive every day for 4 months, and found that it not only altered gut microbiota but also led to a significantly increased atherosclerotic lesion area, especially in animals that consumed a high-choline western diet (HCD).

Though the regulated use of titanium dioxide in food products is legal in the U.S. and Canada, it's banned in some other countries, notably throughout Europe. In May 2021, the European Food Safety Authority announced that titanium dioxide can no longer be considered safe as a food additive.

China’s government is working on its plan to eliminate outmoded capacities of TiO2 and strengthen environmental protection measurements. Small and middle-sized enterprises, with a production capacity under 50,000t/a, are the ones to suffer. They mostly get merged or need to withdraw from the market. Without their production capacity of about 500,000 tonnes yearly, the domestic output might shrink about 20%. This will enhance the power of listed companies in China immensely, which is one of the main reasons for the effort to go public.

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