In today’s economy you might think you could never have enough gold. But, researchers out of Stony Brook University in New York are telling a different story – one you likely never heard before. It’s all about gold nanoparticles and how they can damage your health. This report recently came across my desk so I’d like to tell you about these interesting findings and what it means to you.
Your Health and Your Gold Levels
Ordinary items that we use in our daily lives can be full of gold nanoparticles. These are particles so small you can’t see them with the naked eye. These items include things like a multitude of electronics (computers, cell phones, etc), auto manufacturing, dentistry, medicine (arthritis injections/tablets) and personal care products – like facial creams, etc. Hair color researchers have even recently experimented with using gold nanoparticles to create their products. The gold gets absorbed in the hair shaft’s central cortex. It turns white hair first yellow than a deep brown without washing out after repeated washings.
Gold nanoparticles are also used in the medical field in radiologic imaging technology, such as an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) contrast agent, as well as cancer diagnosis and treatment. Gold nanoparticles have exceptional optical scattering and absorption properties which make the substance ideally suited for these technologies.
Previously, these tiny specks of gold were thought to be inactive and, therefore, deemed harmless. Yet, researchers at Stony Brook University in New York recently revisited the human toxicity issue of gold nanoparticles in a recent study.
In their study, the researchers found that gold nanoparticles could create systemic damage in humans by inhibiting the deposit of protective fat – adipose tissue – around internal organs. This kind of fat insulates you from heat and cold and provides a protective padding around your internal organs. Adipose tissue is also present in breast tissue and yellow bone marrow. It is full of nutrients that your body draws from.
The researchers also felt that an over-abundance of gold nanoparticles could lead to premature aging, skin wrinkling, poor wound healing and the development of diabetes. The researchers came to these conclusions by penetrating gold nanoparticles into stem cells of adipose tissue. It was seen that the particles built up within the cell without any means of natural elimination. The gold continued to accumulate. The presence of the gold within the cell was found to interfere with multiple cell functions like movement, cell division (replication) and collagen contraction – all processes necessary for wound healing.
More concerning though was the impact the gold nanoparticles had on genetic regulation, RNA expression, and the inability of the cell to become a mature adipocyte fat cell. Your body uses stem cells for ongoing organ and tissues (like skin, bone, nerve, hair, etc) regeneration.The good news reported by the researchers in their study was that when the gold was removed the cells resumed their normal functioning.
What Can You Do To Protect Your Health?
Several years ago, the EWG (Environmental Working Group), a nonprofit public health and environmental research/consumer advocacy organization conducted research on 25,000 personal care products. This is about one-quarter of the 100,000 personal care products estimated to be on the market. You may use many of these products on an everyday basis.
The EWG study found widespread use of “nano-scale materials” that had not been assessed for safety in 9,800 personal care products. Yet, all these products were regulated by the FDA. They found 250 sunscreen products alone that contained nanoparticles of gold, silver, titanium or zinc oxide, and iron oxide, none of which their labels gave any information as to particle size.
The EWG concluded that there is widespread use of products that have unknown human health safety risks. And, the FDA continues basic safety testing of these products on the basis that, because of their small size, nanotechnology materials have properties that are different from larger molecules. This includes increased chemical and biologic activity.
However, many cosmetic manufacturers of face creams that contain gold nanoparticles claim that these products have a beneficial effect – anti-aging, warm and tighten the skin, and preserve elasticity. At the same time, many dermatologists say that gold is an irritant to the skin that can cause inflammatory reactions like contact dermatitis.
Stay Well,
Mark Rosenberg, M.D.
Natural Health News
First synthesis of gold nanoparticles inside human hair for dyeing and much more, http://phys.org/news/2012-12-synthesis-gold-nanoparticles-human-hair.html#inlRlv
Gold Nanoparticles Accelerate Aging, http://planetsave.com/2013/04/19/gold-nanoparticles-accelerate-aging-commonly-used-material-causes-a-variety-of-significant-health-problems/
What is gold used for in everyday life, http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_gold_used_for_in_everyday_lif
http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/2007/08/25/hundreds-of-personal-care-products-contain-poorly-studied-nano-materials/
image credit: nanoall.blogspot.com
