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Titanium Dioxide
Titanium Dioxide
Titanium Dioxide
What is it:
Titanium dioxide is an additive used for white, cloudy coloring in candies such as Skittles and Starburst, as well as soups, spreads, and other foods. Titanium dioxide is derived from naturally occurring minerals in the Earth’s crust, typically ilmenite and rutile. The extracted titanium dioxide then either undergoes a series of chemical reactions with sulfuric acid or a high-temperature chlorination process to yield a purer product. It then undergoes calcination to further purify it into a fine white powder.
Rating:
Titanium dioxide has been added to the list of proposed banned ingredients in California’s bill AB 418, due to its potentially genotoxic properties, which means it could cause DNA damage, leading to cancer and other health problems. The European Food and Safety Administration released a statement in 2021 stating that it no longer considered titanium dioxide safe when used as a food additive.
Resources:
- European Food and Safety Administration Re-Evaluation of Titanium Dioxide Safety
- Titanium dioxide may have a genotoxic effect on intestinal cells (in vitro study)
- Genotoxic effects of titanium dioxide in human and plant lymphocytes (in vitro study)
- Titanium dioxide can cause genotoxicitiy in vitro (systematic review and meta-analysis of in vitro studies)
- California Assembly toxics panel advances landmark ban on chemicals in processed food
How we rate ingredients
Health is like a bank account, certain ingredients make a deposit into your health bank, meaning they add to
your health. Certain ingredients withdraw from your health bank. We want health promoting ingredients in our diet. To keep things simple, we rate ingredients on a green, yellow, red scale:
Clean
It is naturally occurring in food and has no harmful effects on the body. It is real food. It is health promoting.
Caution
It goes into one or more of the below categories
- It is not naturally occurring in food but doesn’t have data showing it has a harmful effect on the body (additives like Gellan Gum)
- It is naturally occurring but can have some harmful effects on the body (added sugars, oils, gums etc.)
We Avoid
It is known to have a harmful effect on the body (ex. All food colorings, Natural Flavors, MSG, Potassium bromate, aspartame, artificial flavors)
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