Commercial dishwasher rinse aids often contain alcohol ethoxylates. This substance can damage the intestinal epithelium and lead to chronic disease.
According to researchers at the Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma, who are studying organoids, the residue from dish rinses after cleaning in a professional dishwasher can damage the natural protective layer in the gut, leading to the development of chronic diseases. may contribute to
Commercial dishwashers are a convenient way to quickly clean and dry plates, glasses and cutlery in a variety of settings such as restaurants, schools and barracks. However, a recent study conducted by researchers at the Swiss affiliate, the Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma (SIAF), found that University of Zurich (UZH) It became clear that these appliances came with risks. This study found that ingredients in over-the-counter rinses have toxic effects on the gastrointestinal tract.
Chemical residue on clean plate
A typical commercial dishwasher cycle circulates hot water and detergent at high pressure for approximately 60 seconds. Then there is his second wash and dry cycle for 60 seconds where water and rinse are applied. “What’s particularly alarming is that many appliances don’t have an additional wash cycle to remove residual rinse aids,” says UZH’s professor of experimental allergy and immunology, who has led the study. Cezmi Akdis, director of the SIAF that led the program, said, “This means that potentially toxic substances remain on the dishes where they dry out.” Substance residues are more likely to enter the gastrointestinal tract.
This allowed Akdis’s research team to explore how ingredients in commercial-grade detergents and rinses affect the intestinal epithelial barrier—the layer of cells that lines the intestinal tract and controls what enters the body. came to investigate. Defects in this barrier are associated with conditions such as food allergies, gastritis, diabetes, obesity, cirrhosis, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, autism spectrum disorders, and chronic depression.[{” attribute=””>Alzheimer’s disease.
Similar protective layers are also present on the skin and in the lungs. As numerous studies have shown, many additives and chemicals that we encounter in everyday life can damage these layers. “We assume that defective epithelial barriers play a role in triggering the onset of two billion chronic illnesses,” says Akdis. This connection is explained by the epithelial barrier hypothesis, which Akdis has helped develop during his more than 20 years of research in this field.
Toxic substances in rinse agents
The researchers used a newly developed technology for their study – human intestinal organoids and intestinal cells on microchips. The tissue forms a three-dimensional clump of cells that is very similar to the intestinal epithelium in humans. The team used various biomolecular methods to analyze the effect that commercial detergents and rinse aids have on these cells. They diluted these substances to reflect the amounts that would be present on dry dishes (1:10,000 to 1:40,000).
The result was that high doses of rinse agents killed the intestinal epithelial cells and lower doses made it more permeable. Researchers also observed the activation of several genes and cell signaling proteins that could trigger inflammatory responses. A more detailed analysis showed that one component of the rinse agent – alcohol ethoxylates – was responsible for this reaction.
According to Akdis, these findings have significant implications for public health. “The effect that we found could mark the beginning of the destruction of the gut’s epithelial layer and trigger the onset of many chronic diseases,” he says. Akdis calls for an immediate response: “It is important to inform the public about this risk since alcohol ethoxylates seem to be commonly used in commercial dishwashers.”
Reference: “Gut epithelial barrier damage caused by dishwasher detergents and rinse aids” by Ismail Ogulur, Yagiz Pat, Tamer Aydin, Duygu Yazici, Beate Rückert, Yaqi Peng, Juno Kim, Urszula Radzikowska, Patrick Westermann, Milena Sokolowska, Raja Dhir, Mubeccel Akdis, Kari Nadeau and Cezmi A. Akdis, 1 December 2022, Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
DOI: 10.1016/j.jaci.2022.10.020
