How safe is graphene when it’s used in face masks and other consumer and professional products? In this episode of Risk Bites, nanotechnology expert Professor Andrew Maynard looks at what’s known about the potential health risks associated with the engineered nanomaterial graphene, and how consumers can make smart choices when deciding whether to use graphene containing products or not. USEFUL LINKS What is graphene? https://www.nanowerk.com/what_is_graphene.php Manufacturers have been using nanotechnology-derived graphene in face masks — now there are safety concerns. Andrew Maynard, Medium https://medium.com/edge-of-innovation/how-safe-are-graphene-based-face-masks-b88740547e8c Health Canada advises against using graphene-containing face masks. https://healthycanadians.gc.ca/recall-alert-rappel-avis/hc-sc/2021/75309a-eng.php Safety Assessment of Graphene-Based Materials: Focus on Human Health and the Environment (Fadeel et al.) https://doi.org/10.1021/acsnano.8b04758 What is nanotechnology? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAOFpgocfrg Assessing Nanoparticle Risks to Human Health: https://therealandrewmaynard.com/2021/04/02/assessing-nanoparticle-risks-to-human-health/ Nanotechnology: The Next Big Thing, or Much Ado about Nothing? https://doi.org/10.1093/annhyg/mel071 RISK BITES Risk Bites videos are devised, created and produced by Andrew Maynard. They are produced under a Creative Commons License CC-BY-SA Backing track: Piano Flight, by Immersive Music. https://www.premiumbeat.com/royalty-free-tracks/piano-flight ANDREW MAYNARD Professor Andrew Maynard is a scientist, author, and leading expert on risk and the ethical and socially responsible development and use of new technologies. He is an elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, serves as co-chair of the Institute for the Advancement of Nutrition and Food Science (IAFNS) Board of Trustees, is a member of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research President’s Research Council, has served on a number of National Academies of Sciences committees, and has testified before congressional committees on several occasions. As well as producing Risk Bites, Andrew’s work has appeared in publications ranging from The Washington Post and Scientific American, to Slate, Salon, and OneZero. He co-hosts the podcasts Mission: Interplanetary and Future Rising, and is the author of the books Films from the Future: The Technology and Morality of Sci-Fi Movies, and Future Rising: A Journey from the Past to the Edge of Tomorrow. Andrew received his PhD in aerosol dynamics from the University of Cambridge in 1993, and is currently a professor in the Arizona State University School for the Future of Innovation in Society, and an Associate Dean in the ASU College of Global Futures. More at http://andrewmaynard.net/