12. Health Impacts of Nanomaterials

Applications of nanotechnology can now be found in many everyday products, from cosmetics to personal hygiene products, foods, clothing, and others. The consumer is exposed to nanomaterials without realising it, owing to lack of adequate regulations concerning labelling. It has therefore become essential to better assess the health impacts of nanoparticles. From the firsts experimental studies, we know that nanoparticles can cross the biological barriers in small amounts (less than 1 %) whenever they enter the organism, the lungs by the respiratory route or the digestive system by the oral route. They are then distributed throughout the organism by the blood system and can, depending on what kind of particles they are, accumulate in organs like the liver, the lungs, or the kidneys. Certain metal nanoparticles, if they persist in these organs, will engender an oxidative stress that may cause inflammation and lead eventually to more serious pathologies. Epidemiological studies are nevertheless necessary to establish whether these sometimes worrying consequences can be extrapolated to humans.