Discussion of Toxicology Misinformation on Social Media

Many of the core concepts of basic toxicology are misunderstood by the general public and how this leads to misinformation that tends to explode on social media. Our society attempts to dichotomize everything into good or bad. We often fail to consider the nuance, the gray areas in which most of the world falls. I think this is evident in how society views the substances we interact with. People generally equate "natural" with safe, but as described in the reading, this is false-- something natural can harm you as easily as something manmade. I think that this comes down to the way our education system fails to arm people with the tools they need to properly evaluate scientific ideas and become informed consumers.

One example of misinformation related to toxicology I recently encountered was a discourse on TikTok about titanium dioxide in tampons. In a video, a young woman expressed her outrage that this common coloring agent is used in tampons because she claims research associates the substance with cancers. She also believes titanium dioxide is what caused her ovarian cysts. Many viewers responded in comments by sharing similar experiences associating tampon use and their reproductive issues/cancers. For some context, titanium dioxide is a chemical commonly used is many products including cosmetics, toothpaste, medications, food and candy. Research indicates that titanium dioxide use in sunscreen is safe, due to the limited amount that is absorbed through the skin. However, studies are increasingly calling into question its toxicity when ingested, but no conclusion has been made in the US (EU banned it in 2022). On the other hand, it is known through animal studies that inhalation of titanium dioxide definitely increases the risk of lung cancer.

While I think it is great that consumers are developing a greater consciousness over what they consume, this TikTok post has caused a lot of misinformation and people now label all titanium dioxide as “bad.” This post and its many comments demonstrated to me how the public often fails to take into account the dose and route of potential absorption of chemicals. They erroneously extrapolated the cancer risk associated with inhalation to make judgements about the cancer risk associated with transvaginal absorption. While I agree that there is definitely no evidence that disproves this, making these claims to millions of people on the internet creates unwarranted alarm. I agree that more studies are certainly needed to evaluate the safety of titanium dioxide in tampons specifically and that consumers have a right to question what they put in their bodies, but I do not think this reaction was warranted. I think this example shows how a general misunderstanding of basic toxicology leads to the internet latching onto and demonizing substances without considering route and dose.

Source: https://www.theskimm.com/news/what-to-know-about-titanium-dioxide-in-tampons-and-skittles