Propylene glycol is considered relatively safe at low doses but too much may be associated with adverse effects.
Use as a food additive: solvent for flavoring; emulsifier.
Maximum amount per day: 25 mg per kg body weight per day
where:
• The intravenous limit is 40 times greater at 1 g/kg/day.
• There appears to be some uncertainty about what the threshold should be. The WHO report is most often cited but this was written almost 50 years ago.
Adverse effects:
(1) small amounts can trigger asthma
(2) large amounts result in propylene glycol poisoning with high osmolal gap metabolic acidosis
(3) propylene glycol is osmotically active, so could cause diarrhea in sufficient amounts, especially if there was poor absorption.
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