There seems to be a lot of misunderstanding about titanium dioxide, which can be used as a colorant in foods. While headlines may suggest titanium dioxide is a health concern, scientific research has actually shown titanium dioxide to be safe. So what is it used for and why is it used? Read on to learn more!

Why all of a sudden is there so much interest in the safety of Titanium Dioxide?
Researchers from France and Luxembourg gave E171 (the much more food friendly name for Titanium Dioxide) in Europe and the United States, to lab rats in their drinking water for 100 days.
Of those rats, 40 per cent of the exposed rodents developed “preneoplastic lesions” or precancerous growths. The Titanium Dioxide also inhibited the immune systems of the rats and “accelerated” the growth of the lesions. France’s INRA agricultural research institute, which took part in the study, said in a statement.“These results demonstrate a role in initiating and promoting the early stages of colorectal cancer formation,” though it said no conclusion could be drawn about later phases of cancer, or of any danger to humans……….(not till they test it on us!!)
The results of the study were published in the Nature journal Scientific Reports.

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is a chemically inert inorganic compound and an insoluble white solid that occurs naturally in several minerals, including rutile, anatase, and brookite. It is created synthetically from the mineral ilmenite. It is an insoluble white solid. Anatase, when compared to brookite and routine, has the most industrial applications, but it is the most toxic form of TiO2.
The supply in North America remained adequate, as companies were seen constantly altering their production rates in response to the volatility in the demand pattern. In the final week of September, news of Chemours' forthcoming titanium dioxide factory in Georgia valued USD 86 million alleviated fears about supply strain.


What's the deal with titanium dioxide?

It's sort of ironic, maybe ironic is the wrong word, that the ingredient in paint that makes your kitchen shiny also makes your Hostess cupcakes shiny, Environmental Working Group's senior vice president of government affairs Scott Faber added.
Titanium dioxide as used in sunscreens is commonly modified with other ingredients to ensure efficacy and stability. Examples of what are known as surface modifier ingredients used for titanium dioxide include stearic acid, isostearic acid, polyhydroxystearic acid, and dimethicone/methicone copolymer.

Relative to a lot of other things that people should be concerned about, titanium dioxide in my mind, is really low on the list. I would be more worried about some substitutes that people are using for titanium dioxide that don't have decades of research associated with it, said Westerhoff.
When E171 isn’t combined with other ingredients and administered in water, some studies suggest that under these artificial conditions, E171 may be processed differently in the body resulting in some biological changes in experimental animals that are poorly understood.

The FDA is reviewing the safety of titanium dioxide in response to an April petition from EWG and other environmental and public health groups. This is the FDA’s first comprehensive review of titanium dioxide since 1973.
Le Lithopone s'utilise au maximum à 10% du liant employé, sans quoi, il sera nécessaire d'utiliser des fixateurs & adjuvants.


The integrity of surface skin cells was evaluated with and without solar simulated irradiation. The integrity of the stratum corneum was significantly lower in individuals treated with P25TiO2NPs under the light in comparison to the ones that received the functionalized nanoparticles. Cell membrane suffering is evident (Fig. 9), and it is in accordance with the ROS levels and macromolecule oxidation found in vitro for the irradiated P25TiO2NPs. Disruption of the superficial skin layer was observed in all animals treated with no functionalized nanoparticles, under irradiation. This data expands the findings by the group of Professors Fubini and Fenoglio, who showed that P25TiO2NPs could impact the lipid structure at the top few microns of the stratum corneum [55]. Control skin under irradiation and without any topic formulation did not show changes in cell structure.
Titanium dioxide mainly comes from the earth’s crust, where it’s actually the ninth most common element. When processed, it becomes a fine powder with a vibrant white pigment.

