Why titanium dioxide, a common sunscreen ingredient, is added to foods

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Titanium dioxide is a common sunscreen ingredient that helps block the sun’s rays. Manufacturers use it in various industrial and consumer goods, from paint to toothpaste. Europe banned it as a food additive in 2022, but in Canada (among other countries), companies add it to foods such as salad dressings, frozen pizzas, pastries, chewing gum and candies to enhance their visual appeal. As The Wall Street Journal reports, some scientists are concerned about the potential health risks of eating it and what’s more, it can be challenging to tell when you are.

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Titanium dioxide plays a visual role in food, making the cheese topping on pizza whiter and candy coating in a bag of sweets brighter. According to McGill University‘s Office for Science and Society, “It has no nutritional value,” and the International Agency for Research on Cancer considers it “possibly carcinogenic in humans.”

Earlier this year, California legislators introduced a bill to prohibit colour additives, including titanium dioxide, in foods served in public schools. In 2023, environmental groups started a petition seeking a United States Food and Drug Administration ban.

Health Canada has long permitted the synthetically produced white powder as a colouring agent and concluded in a 2023 report that “there is no conclusive scientific evidence that the food additive (titanium dioxide) is a concern for human health.”

The Wall Street Journal reports that the science is inconclusive. Some animal studies haven’t found toxic effects. Others have shown links between titanium dioxide consumption and damage to the liver, immune and reproductive systems, and DNA, as well as adverse effects on beneficial gut bacteria, according to The Independent.

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There’s also disagreement in the scientific community about which studies apply to how humans consume the substance. Nicolaj S. Bischoff, a PhD student at Maastricht University Medical Centre in the Netherlands who has researched the possible health effects of titanium dioxide, told The Wall Street Journal that “the occasional cupcake or creamer with titanium dioxide likely isn’t a problem.” Long-term chronic exposure could be.

Some companies, such as Whole Foods and Beyond Meat, have reformulated products and removed titanium dioxide in the wake of concerns, which is a move Thomas Galligan, a scientist who studies food additives for the Center for Science in the Public Interest, supports. Galligan told Marketplace earlier this year: “I’d like them to make the choice to reformulate their products, to get rid of titanium dioxide … for the good of public health.”

Meanwhile, industry organizations such as the Consumer Healthcare Products Association oppose “knee-jerk” bans, saying, “Based on extensive scientific research and regulatory evaluations, (titanium dioxide) is deemed safe for use as a food additive when consumed within established regulatory limits.”

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