In a lawsuit filed last week, a consumer alleged that Skittles were "unfit for human consumption" because the rainbow candy contained a "known toxin" &#; an artificial color additive called titanium dioxide.
In a statement sent to USA TODAY on Sunday, Justin Comes, vice president of research and development for Skittles maker Mars Wrigley North America, said the company couldn't comment on pending litigation &#; but that its use of titanium dioxide and "all Mars Wrigley ingredients are safe and manufactured in compliance with strict quality and safety requirements established by food safety regulators, including the FDA."
Titanium dioxide is used in a wide range of food products and consumer goods &#; from candy to sunscreen and house paint. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration maintains that the regulated use of titanium dioxide, specifically as a color additive in food, is safe under some restrictions.
However, some experts and food regulators in other countries disagree &#; pointing to potential, serious health consequences and rising concerns about the additive. Starting August 7, for example, the use of titanium dioxide in food will be banned in the European Union.
Here's what you need to know about titanium dioxide:
Customer sues Mars:Skittles are 'unsafe' for consumers, lawsuit charges, because they contain 'a known toxin'
Titanium dioxide, or TiO2, sometimes referred to as E171, is an inorganic, solid substance used in a wide range of consumer goods including cosmetics, paint, plastic and food, according to the American Chemistry Council.
In food, titanium dioxide is often used as an artificial color additive. Tasha Stoiber, senior scientist at the consumer health nonprofit Environmental Working Group, says titanium dioxide can generally be thought of as a "paint primer" &#; it often goes on a hard-shelled candy like Skittles before the color is added to give it a "uniform shine."
Titanium dioxide "can also be found in dairy products to make them whiter and brighter &#; like frosting or cottage cheese," Stoiber told USA TODAY, adding that the additive is used in other products &#; such as food or beverage instant mixes &#; as an anti-caking agent.
Phthalates on the fast-food menu:Chemicals linked to health problems found at McDonalds, Taco Bell
Titanium dioxide is used in an enormous range of food products, which can feel jarring when looking at some of its other uses.
"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.
While the FDA maintains that the regulated use of titanium dioxide is safe, the European Food Safety Authority and some other experts warn of potential, serious health risks.
Most notably, a European Food Safety Authority safety assessment published in May pointed to genotoxicity concerns, as suggested by previous research. Genotoxicity is the ability of chemicals to damage genetic information such as DNA, which may lead to cancer.
"After oral ingestion, the absorption of titanium dioxide particles is low, however they can accumulate in the body," Maged Younes, chair of the European Food Safety Authority's expert Panel on Food Additives and Flavourings, said in a May statement.
Can cancer patients skip post-surgery chemo? New research says some may be able to.
The authority did not identify a safe amount of titanium dioxide that could be consumed.
Matthew Wright, chair of the authority's working group on titanium dioxide, noted that "the evidence for general toxic effects was not conclusive," but that the panel couldn't rule out genotoxicity entirely. There were also some current data limitations and the assessment "could not establish a safe level for daily intake of the food additive," he stated.
It's hard to determine the total amount of food products that have titanium dioxide because federal regulations don't require all producers to list its use on ingredient labels, but the list of foods containing the substance certainly doesn't end with Skittles.
Of the products that include the additive in their labels, Thea Bourianne, senior manager at data consultant Label Insights, told Food Navigator USA in May that more than 11,000 products in the company's database of U.S. food and beverage products listed titanium dioxide as an ingredient. Non-chocolate candy led those numbers at 32%. Cupcakes and snack cakes made up 14%, followed by cookies at 8%, coated pretzels and trail mix at 7%, baking decorations at 6%, gum and mints at 4% and ice cream at 2%.
Food recalls:Some Jif peanut butter products recalled over salmonella outbreak concerns
In addition to Skittles, other candies that contain titanium dioxide include Nice! mints, Trolli sour gummies and Ring Pops, according to Environmental Working Group.
Other food products that list titanium dioxide are Lucerne cottage cheese, Beyond Meat's chicken plant-based tenders, Great Value ice cream and Chips Ahoy! cookies.
The FDA's Code of Federal Regulations allows for the legal, regulated use of titanium dioxide in food products, under some restrictions.
"The FDA continues to allow for the safe use of titanium dioxide as a color additive in foods generally according to the specifications and conditions, including that the quantity of titanium dioxide does not exceed 1% by weight of the food," the FDA said in a statement to USA TODAY.
The FDA first approved the use of titanium dioxide in food in , following its removal (along with the removal of other color additives) from the agency's original "Generally Recognized as Safe" list. In , titanium dioxide joined the list of color additives that are exempt from certification, which means "titanium dioxide" doesn't have to be listed on the packaging of every product it's used in, Faber noted.
"There are many uses of titanium dioxide that we don't know about because they were made exempt from being on the package in ," said Faber, who added that "nothing much has changed" since &#; other than the FDA approving some other uses of the color additive, such as expanding the use of mica-based pearlescent pigments (prepared from titanium dioxide) as color additives in distilled spirits over recent years.
FDA guidelines:Americans are eating too much salt. So the FDA wants food manufacturers to cut back on sodium.
Faber argued there hasn't been enough change in these federal regulations in the decades following the FDA's approval of titanium dioxide &#; especially as others increasingly point to potential health consequences.
"What titanium dioxide is really emblematic of ... is the failure of FDA to look back at these old decisions and ask whether its decisions that were made in this case ... 56 years ago (in the approval) still hold up," he said.
In its statement to USA TODAY, the FDA maintained that, in all post-approvals for food additives, "our scientists continue to review relevant new information to determine whether there are safety questions and whether the use of such substance is no longer safe under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act."
When asked about the recent Skittles lawsuit, the FDA said the agency does not comment on pending litigation.
What's everyone talking about? Sign up for our trending newsletter to get the latest news of the day
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 , the European Food Safety Authority announced that titanium dioxide "can no longer be considered safe as a food additive."
Following six months of phasing out the additive, titanium dioxide will be completely banned in the European Union starting August 7. France had previously banned the use of titanium dioxide in food starting in January .
Some food products will include titanium dioxide on their nutrition label. But again, it can be hard to tell for those who don't list the ingredient.
If you want to avoid titanium dioxide, Stoiber and Faber urge consumers to try and avoid processed foods as best as you can.
"By reducing processed foods in your diet, you can reduce the likelihood of not only eating titanium dioxide but eating other chemicals of concern," Faber said, noting that consumers can also call their elected representatives urging them to support increased food safety legislation and take action with organization alliances like Toxic Free Food FDA. "America, once again, is falling behind the rest of the world when it comes to chemical safety."
"We're not only just concerned about titanium dioxide, there's a whole host of other food additives that also have known harmful health risks associated with them as well," Stoiber added.
Healthy eating:Don't focus on 'good' or 'bad' food. Your lifestyle habits are key to a heart-healthy diet.
For more information, please visit Chuangge.
toggle caption
Mark Lennihan/AP
Mark Lennihan/AP
A California man, who claims Skittles candy contains a "known toxin" that makes it "unfit for human consumption," is suing the manufacturer, Mars.
That ingredient &#; titanium dioxide &#; is just one of the thousands of legal food additives in the U.S. In his lawsuit, Jenile Thames says Mars failed to warn consumers about the potential dangers of the ingredient, which is used as a color additive in Skittles.
According to the Center for Food Safety, Mars said in that it would phase out the use of titanium dioxide in its products over the next five years.
Sponsor Message
"Safety is of paramount importance to Mars Wrigley. Titanium dioxide is a common colorant widely used across many industries and in everyday products, including many foods," said Justin Comes, the company's vice president of research and development, in a statement to NPR.
Comes said the company's use of titanium dioxide fully complies with FDA regulations.
"While we do not comment on pending litigation, all Mars Wrigley ingredients are safe and manufactured in compliance with strict quality and safety requirements established by food safety regulators, including the FDA," Comes added.
Titanium dioxide is a white, powdery mineral used in a variety of everyday products, including sunscreen, cosmetics, plastics, toothpaste and paint. In food, titanium dioxide can appear in anything from candy and sauces to pastries, chocolates, chewing gum and other sweets as a color additive.
Titanium dioxide has been used for decades to whiten certain foods, though it has many other features.
A European Food Safety Authority report in declared that titanium dioxide "could no longer be considered safe" as a food additive.
The agency could not rule out "genotoxicity" &#; damage to DNA &#; from consumption of titanium dioxide particles and that they could accumulate in the body, although the absorption was low.
The European Commission decided in February to ban the use of titanium dioxide as a food additive. The ban will take full effect in August.
The additive builds up inside the body and "whenever you have accumulation to something that's in so many foods, you can get to really harmful levels that raise concerns," says Tom Neltner, a chemical engineer and lawyer who serves as senior director of the safer chemicals initiative at the Environmental Defense Fund.
That type of buildup could alter DNA, which creates potential concerns about cancer and other health issues, he said.
Sponsor Message
"That doesn't mean [titanium dioxide] is carcinogenic, it just means we've got to be careful, and the fact that it gets into the body and is retained in the body is important," Neltner said.
Neltner said the Environmental Defense Fund and other NGOs are working to prepare a color additive petition &#; a legal way of asking the Food and Drug Administration to review titanium dioxide for safety.
A spokesperson for the FDA told NPR that while the agency cannot comment on pending litigation, the agency continues to allow for the safe use of titanium dioxide as a color additive in foods under certain conditions, including a quantity that does not exceed 1% of the food's weight.
The FDA regulates food and color additives under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, enacted in .
The Food Additives Amendment to that set of laws meant that all food and color additives must get pre-market review and approval from the FDA.
Over 10,000 chemicals are allowed to be in foods and food contact materials, according to a policy statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics.
The FDA spokesperson told NPR that "the available safety studies do not demonstrate safety concerns connected to the use of titanium dioxide as a color additive."
"Federal regulations require evidence that each substance is safe at its intended level of use before it may be added to foods," the spokesperson said, adding that FDA scientists continue to review new information to determine whether the substance is no longer safe under the act.
There are many foods on the U.S. market that contain titanium dioxide apart from Skittles.
However, the makers of many candies and foods are careful to avoid using titanium dioxide in their foods as a color additive.
Sponsor Message
"There are plenty of candies that don't have titanium dioxide, so people have choices, and they can read the list," Neltner said.
Environmental and dietary health researchers face difficulties in tracing back health impacts to one specific exposure, especially when involving color additives like titanium dioxide.
"When I started out, we thought that a lot of these chemicals came from products ... and over time, we've really realized that we're exposed to a lot of these chemicals through diet, and that's exactly what we're seeing here," said Dr. Sheela Sathyanarayana, a pediatrician, environmental health specialist and a professor at the University of Washington and Seattle Children's Research Institute.
Sathyanarayana has focused much of her career on chemical exposures and how they affect child development.
"But what we don't know and what is really frustrating is: What are the long-term health impacts of these small exposures over time," she added.
Neltner also expressed concerns over the impact of color additives like titanium dioxide on children's health.
"We're most worried about children's health because that's when their immune system, the nervous system, their body &#; is growing so rapidly, that you have to get it right," he said.
For more Titanium Dioxide R-668information, please contact us. We will provide professional answers.