Nanosilver: Health Effects

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Silver nanoparticles are the most common commercialized nano technological product on the market. Due to its unique antibacterial properties, silver nanoparticles have been hailed as a breakthrough germ killing agent and have been incorporated into a number of consumer products such as clothing, kitchenware, toys and cosmetics. Many consider silver to be more toxic than other metals when in nanoscale form and that these particles have a different toxicity mechanism compared to dissolved silver. Scientists have concluded that nanoparticles can pass easily into cells and affect cellular function, depending on their shape and size. However, little has been done to evaluate these interactions and their health impacts on humans. Preliminary research with laboratory rats has found that silver nanoparticles can traverse into the brain, and can induce neuronal degeneration and necrosis (death of cells or tissue) by accumulating in the brain over a long period of time. Other potential harmful effects include the generation of dangerous radicals that injure cells by attacking DNA, proteins and membranes. Due to their size, these particles can readily penetrate the body and cells through various routes.

Routes of Exposure

Inhalation:

Nanoparticles can become airborne easily due to their size and mass. When inhaled, nanoparticles can go deeper into the lungs reaching more sensitive areas. There they inflame the lungs, which must work harder in attempts to remove the foreign particles. It is still unknown whether these particles can be removed by the lungs or whether they remain as deposits within lung tissue. Research is still ongoing to investigate whether nanosize particles cause pulmonary inflammation as well as systemic effects, and whether they translocate from the lungs to other organs such as the liver, kidney or brain.

Skin Absorption:

This route of exposure occurs mainly through cosmetics, sunscreens, textiles and clothing imbedded with silver nanoparticles. Nano particles are known to be absorbed by the skin. Broken skin, or skin with cuts and wounds, may give rise to easier and direct absorption of nanoparticles into the blood stream and translocation in the body. The fate and effects of these particles on, and within the skin and human body are not clearly understood. Other problems still to be investigated include the interference with resident microflora on the skin.

Ingestion:

This type of exposure can come about through hand to mouth transfer of particles from products imbedded with nano silver or from food and food packaging. Ingestion of particles can also arise due to respiratory clearing actions of inhaled particles. Little to no information is available for the fate and effects of silver nanoparticles within the digestive track. However, observations in laboratory animals have documented that uptake of particles from the digestive track into the lymphatic and circulatory systems can occur. Uptake also seems to primarily occur in the intestines and is dependent on size. While the health impacts are still unknown, the fact that the digestive process utilizes beneficial bacteria to assist in the digestive process, the presence of silver nanoparticles may undoubtedly have an adverse impact of these native bacterial populations.

Nanosilver in Food

Nanotechnologies have been employed in food production, processing and packaging. The Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars has followed the progress of the use of nanotechnologies in the food industry. According to their 2008 report entitled “Assuring the Safety of Nanomaterials in Food Packaging: The regulatory process and key issues,” nanoparticles raise safety questions different from those raised by conventional scale version of the same material.

Many food packaging materials have been incorporating nanoparticles, especially silver nanoparticles, to prolong the shelf life and safety of packaged food from microbial agents. Researchers are developing ‘smart packaging’ that would be able to tell if the packaged food becomes contaminated, as well as respond to changes in environmental conditions and self-repair holes and tears. Other nanoparticles have been known to be included in food to enhance flavor, improve emulsification and nutrient availability. Nanosized herbicides, fertilizers and other agrichemicals are also being developed to improve the efficiency of growing crops.

While these advances in technology are promising and exciting, the fate and impacts of these particles have not been equally studied. There are major concerns that silver nanoparticles can migrate from packaging and into foods, exposing consumers to risks that are not yet known. Many of these products are not labeled to alert the consumer to the use of nanoparticles in the product and thus taking away the consumer’s right to choose whether to avoid these products or not. A lack of governmental oversight and regulation on this new technology further compounds the problem of a lack of data and safety testing.

Know the Health Risks Before Investing in an Antimicrobial Nano-Silver Mask (and What to Buy Instead!)

By Jaydee Hanson, Policy Director, Center for Food Safety & Julia Ranney, Research and Policy Associate, Center for Food Safety

November 23, 2020

Capitalizing on the novel COVID-19 virus and the need for face coverings, several companies are now selling masks embedded with nano-silver. They claim these products are "especially" antimicrobial due to the addition of nano-silver and therefore ensure enhanced protection from the virus. Nano-silver's antimicrobial properties come from silver ions interacting with the DNA of pathogens to prevent reproduction and limiting key enzymes. Nano-silver has been found to kill a broad range of microbes that affect food. Its efficacy with regard to protecting against COVID-19, however, is less clear. Unfortunately, while nano-silver does have antimicrobial properties, its ingestion or inhalation by humans can cause significant harm and it is not approved for use in face masks by federal government agencies.

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The Basics

Nano-silver is one of the most common and widely used antimicrobial nanomaterials on the global market. Nanomaterials are so small that a nanometer cannot be seen by an ordinary microscope. Due to their small size, they have different chemical, physical, and even biological properties than conventionally-sized materials. As such, the size and novel properties of nanomaterials are not properly understood with regard to how they interact with the human body's immune and inflammatory response systems or the external environment.

Human Health Concerns

Due to their size, nanoparticles can enter the body and pass through biological membranes such as cell walls, cell tissue, and organs more easily. Following ingestion and inhalation, nanoparticles can easily cross the blood-brain barrier and produce damage to the barrier integrity. When ingested, nanoparticles have been found to circulate through the body and reach potentially sensitive target sites such as bone marrow, lymph nodes, the spleen, the brain, the liver, and the heart. Overall, research has shown many types of nanomaterials can be toxic to human tissue and cell cultures, resulting in oxidative stress, inflammatory cytokine production, DNA mutation, and even cell death. The health ramifications from nano-silver are of particular concern because human exposure is increasingly widespread. Neither the EPA nor the FDA has approved nano-silver for use in face coverings or masks.

With the advent of nano-silver being put in and on face masks, excessive exposure is more and more likely. This is concerning because with the aforementioned nanomaterial health concerns, nano-silver ingestion and inhalation is dangerous. In vitro studies demonstrate that nano-silver is toxic to mammalian liver cells, stem cells, and even brain cells. Further, an overwhelming majority of studies report that contact with nano-silver causes abnormalities in basic cell functions. Nano-silver may also affect the liver and interfere with beneficial bacteria within the gut upon ingestion. Further, nano-silver may potentially compromise the ability to control harmful bacteria by increasing antibiotic resistance which may have an overall negative impact on human health.

Environmental Hazards

In tandem with human health concerns, nano-silver also has a negative impact on the environment. Silver in regular form is already known to have harmful impacts with high toxicity for fish, algae, crustaceans, plants, fungi, and bacteria. In fact, EPA already regulates silver as a pesticide and requires labeling stating silver pesticides as, "toxic to fish and aquatic invertebrates." In nano-silver form, it can be many times more toxic. Additionally, the research found that washing nano-silver embedded clothing caused substantial amounts of nano-silver to leech into the discharge wastewater and eventually into the environment. Due to their greater surface area, nano-silver is more chemically reactive and more readily ionized than silver in large particle form. This is of concern because while that property makes nano-silver have strong antibacterial properties, it also has more toxic effects.

Regulatory Oversight of Nano-Silver

In 2015, EPA granted a petition filed by the Center for Food Safety seeking greater regulatory oversight of nano-silver products. In its response to the petition, EPA agreed that since nano-silver is used to kill microorganisms, nano-silver products qualify as pesticides. Further, EPA agreed that developers of such products must seek EPA review and registration before the products are allowed in the marketplace. Like many other nano-silver products, the companies selling these masks make unsubstantiated public health claims with regard to nano-silver and it's protection against COVID-19. These claims can only be made on products that have been properly tested and are registered with the EPA. With regard to nano-silver masks, EPA should order these untested and unregulated products off the market and fine the companies until they perform stringent safety assessments by independent experts and submit them to EPA for registration.

Nano-silver mask providers to avoid:

Boomer Naturals
Caregiver USA
PureSpa Direct
Veco Face Mask
Nano
Ghluv
ASRV
Tommy Bahama
Risk Reactor Inc.
Silver-Nano
Dr. Sturm
Jaanuu
Aero Tech Designs
Hammacher Schlemmer

Mask Recommendations

Due to the public health concerns regarding nano-silver exposure and the fact that nano-silver has not been approved for these uses by the FDA or the EPA, to protect against COVID-19 CFS advocates for the use of masks that do not contain nano-silver substances and is working to get EPA and FDA to pull unapproved masks from the market. CFS supports and recommends consumers follow CDC mask guidelines and purchase certified organic cotton masks that are either triple-layered or with a HEPA filter option for maximum protection. If you wear a gaiter, please be sure it is not single layered.

Triple-layer masks:

Jenmay
Eileen Fisher
The Woven Threads
Mary Ruth Organics
Ever Violet
Kishubaby
Avocado Green Mattress
Etee
MALUORGANIC
The Simple Folk
Graf-Lantz
Lakeshore Dry Goods
Filter Inserts:
Steve Madden
Vida
ZTIOOP
Ouba

Originally published at https://www.onegreenplanet.org on November 18, 2020.

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