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- Nanotechnology and nanoparticles have been around for quite some time. In fact, consumers have been eating nanoparticles for years without being aware they are in their food.
Illustration - setixela/Thinkstock - Epoch Times In essence, nanotechnology revolves around the engineering and manipulation of particles at an incredibly small scale. Nanoparticles are measured in billionths of one meter.- Nanoparticles keep food fresh longer, and are often used to thicken and color processed foods.
- Some varieties of Dentyne gum and Jell-O, M&M’s, Betty Crocker Whipped Cream Frosting, Kool-Aid, Pop-Tarts, you name it, contain them. Even food packaging such as plastic containers and beer bottles have nanoparticles.
- Nanoparticles can also be used to deliver vaccines, treat tumours, clean up oil spills, protect skin from sun and kill bacteria.
- Because labelling and disclosure are not required for food and beverage products containing them, it’s difficult to determine how widespread their use is.
- Studies show nanoparticles can harm human health and the environment.
- They can damage lungs and cause symptoms such as rashes and nasal congestion, and we don’t yet know about long-term effects.
- Their minute size means they’re “more likely than larger particles to enter cells, tissues and organs” and “can be more chemically reactive and more bioactive than larger particles of the same chemicals,” Friends of the Earth says.
- A Cornell University study found nanoparticle exposure changed the structure of intestinal-wall lining in chickens.
- Like pesticides, they also bioaccumulate.
- Those that end up in water – from cosmetics, toothpaste, clothing and more – concentrate and become magnified as they move up the food chain.
- And in one experiment, silver nanoparticles in wastewater runoff killed a third of exposed plants and microbes, according to a CBC online article.
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