You Won’t Find Titanium Dioxide in Supplements from Metabolic Maintenance

At Metabolic Maintenance, we are serious about purity. Our supplements only contain nutrients that provide benefits. Nothing else. If you are taking multivitamins from other brands, however, we can’t guarantee the same standards. Check your ingredient labels, because titanium dioxide in supplements is toxic and could be harming your health.

What is Titanium Dioxide?

If you follow the headlines, you’ll notice that recently, a class-action lawsuit was filed against Skittles candy. The lawsuit claims they are “unfit for human consumption” due to the inclusion of a known toxin: titanium dioxide [1].

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has listed titanium dioxide as a Group 2B carcinogen: an agent that may be carcinogenic, but lacks sufficient animal and human research (more on this below) [2]. 

Apparently, Mars Inc. (Skittles parent company) promised to start phasing out the ingredient in 2016, after consumers voiced concerns about its toxicity. Yet, here we are in 2022 and the product still contains the toxin [1]. 

Titanium dioxide is a chemical compound, derived from a naturally occurring mineral, that is processed and used as a color additive, anti-caking agent, and whitener [1]. It is cheap, abundant, and works well for these applications, which are the motivations for use. Unfortunately, some producers are less concerned with your health than they are with the bottom line.

Why is Titanium Dioxide Potentially Dangerous?

When ingested by humans, this additive gets absorbed into the bloodstream via the intestines and accumulates in organs such as the lungs, heart, liver, spleen, cardiac muscle, and kidneys. [1,3].

An animal study from 2017 linked titanium dioxide with an increased risk of intestinal inflammation, cancer, and damage to the immune system [4]. In response to this study, the French government banned titanium dioxide in 2020.

In 2021, a review of both animal and human studies suggested that titanium dioxide could play a role in inflammatory bowel diseases and colorectal cancer [3]. 

This year the European Union banned titanium dioxide in food. The agency highlighted its concern that the additive has demonstrated genotoxicity (causing damage to DNA which can lead to cancer) [1]. While more research is still needed, the European Food Safety Authority concluded that there is no “safe level” of titanium dioxide that can be established for ingestibles [1]. 

The country’s most popular multivitamins contain titanium dioxide [5]. Not only are consumers of Centrum vitamins absorbing titanium dioxide occasionally, as one consumes candy, they are literally getting a daily dose of it; potentially for their entire adult lives.

Due to the accumulation of the chemical in organs over time, it is difficult to determine the detrimental long-term effects of consumption throughout a lifetime.

How Can I Avoid Titanium Dioxide?

Check your labels before you purchase any processed goods. You can safely avoid titanium dioxide by eating whole, organic foods. All processed or shelf-stable foods are potential contenders, but he most common foods to contain the ingredient are chewing gum, packaged pastries, candies, coffee creamers, and cake decorations.

In terms of your supplements, make sure there is an ingredient label, and if titanium dioxide is on it, put that bottle back on the shelf.

This is yet another example of how important it is to research your food and health products, and purchase from brands you respect. 

Metabolic Maintenance has never used, and will never use additives like titanium dioxide in our products. You can trust that the ingredients in our capsules have been carefully selected for their benefits and third-party tested for safety. If an ingredient does not provide a benefit to your health, you will not find it in your capsules. 

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References

  1. Peachman, Rackel Rabkin. “Are Skittles Toxic?”. New York Times. July 26, 2022. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/26/well/eat/skittles-lawsuit-titanium-dioxide.html
  2. IARC Working Group on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans. “Carbon black, titanium dioxide, and talc.” IARC monographs on the evaluation of carcinogenic risks to humans 93 (2010): 1.
  3. Shabbir, Samina, et al. “Toxicological consequences of titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2NPs) and their jeopardy to human population.” BioNanoScience 11.2 (2021): 621-632.
  4. Bettini, Sarah, et al. “Food-grade TiO2 impairs intestinal and systemic immune homeostasis, initiates preneoplastic lesions and promotes aberrant crypt development in the rat colon.” Scientific reports 7.1 (2017): 1-13.
  5. Centrum Multivitamin Ingredient List and Supplement Facts: https://www.centrum.com/content/dam/cf-consumer-healthcare/bp-wellness-centrum/en_US/pdf/lbl-00000786-web-ready-centrum-silver-women-tablets-(version.pdf