In this day and age, you can’t be too careful when it comes to monitoring what goes into your body. With that in mind, it helps to know what the chemicals used in your food do. Zinc oxide, or ZnO, appears in many foods and dietary supplements. But is also appears in ceramics, tires, and other inedible items. Is zinc oxide safe? The answer is yes. In fact, there are several benefits of zinc oxide usp in foods and supplements. Here’s a look at what zinc oxide is and why you don’t have to be afraid of it.
Industrial Grade and Food Grade Zinc Oxide
While you can find zinc oxide in ceramics and rubber, the chemical found in those products is not the same thing that you ingest in your food and dietary supplements. Companies like GH Chemicals zinc oxide suppliers create a special food grade zinc oxide for use in ingestible products. This zinc oxide differs from the chemical used in industrial material in terms of purity, storage, and distribution. Zinc oxide suppliers make sure to keep industrial grade and food grade zinc oxide separate, even if they produce the chemical for multiple purposes. This makes sure that no human accidentally ingests a chemical meant for plastic composition or ceramic products.
Why is Zinc Oxide in Our Food?
The primary reason that zinc oxide producers create food grade zinc oxide is that the white powder provides some essential nutrients that are difficult to find elsewhere. The body needs zinc in order for the immune system to work effectively, but modern life leaves this important nutrient out of many foods unless it is specifically added. Fortified breakfast cereals, for example, contain ingredients that are low on zinc but which aim to provide all essential vitamins and minerals. Thus, they rely on zinc oxide USP in order to provide the zinc a person needs throughout the day. Dietary supplements also use zinc oxide for this purposes, making sure that the body has enough of the mineral to boost the immune system.
What Happens if You Eat Non-Food Grade Zinc Oxide?
First of all, it is very difficult to eat zinc oxide that is not food grade. If somebody were to ingest paint, for example, the zinc oxide content would be insignificant compared to the other chemicals in the paint. In some cases, creams or ointments that contain non-food grade zinc oxide might accidentally end up in somebody’s mouth. Even in these cases, the chance of an overdose of zinc oxide is minimal. It is more important to find out what other chemicals might also have been ingested. If the person feels sick, call an emergency number or poison control. Again, in these cases, the damage is likely from other chemicals and not from zinc oxide alone.
You can find zinc oxide everywhere because it is a very useful compound. Just because the chemical appears in non-edible items doesn’t mean it poses a danger to you. The zinc oxide you find in your food is there for nutrition and is harmless except in very rare situations.
