THE ESSENTIAL
- Some nanoparticles present in food additives can cross the placenta.
- 6-8% of children suffer from food allergies
Food allergies affect between 2 and 5% of adults and 6 to 8% of children. Their prevalence has increased sharply in recent decades. Researchers from Paris-Saclay University may have found the cause: the nanoparticles present in certain food additives.
Nanoparticles cross the placenta and disrupt the microbiome
According to the work of the French team published in the journal Frontiers in Allergy, nanoparticles of certain food additives have the ability to cross the placenta and reach developing fetuses. They would then expose them to an increased risk of potentially fatal food allergies.
To understand how these elements may interact on development, the team focused on three additives containing nanoparticles that are regularly found in food:
- silicon dioxide (SiO2);
- titanium dioxide (TiO2);
- silver (Ag).
“Such agents can cross the placental barrier and then reach the developing fetus”explained the author of the study, Dr. Karine Adel-Patient
Food allergy: nanoparticles accumulate in babies’ intestines
“Due to the immunotoxic and biocidal properties of nanoparticles, exposure may disrupt beneficial exchanges between the host and gut microbiota and is likely to interfere with the gut barrier and gut-associated immune system development in humans. fetus and newborn”added the scientist. “Excretion in milk is also suggested, continuing to expose the neonate”she adds.
Nanoparticles contained in food additives are not absorbed in the baby’s intestine and accumulate there. This impacts the bacteria present in the gut microbiome by altering the number of species present and their proportions, and thus its protective effect.
“Given the evidence for the importance of the gut microbiome in the development of a well educated immune system, this is of concern for the development of allergies”concedes the study
For the expert, the action of nanoparticles in food additives on the microbiome of fetuses and babies could explain “the epidemic of immune system disorders in children, such as food allergies”observed in recent years.