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Data: Limited

Avobenzone

  • Products with the EWG VERIFIED mark have met the program’s impurity and use restrictions based on EWG's review of the company's data.

IMAGE SOURCE: PubChem

SEARCH PRODUCTS

Other Concerns

Use restrictions (moderate), Endocrine disruption (low), and Contamination concerns (high)

SYNONYMS

● 1,3-PROPANEDIONE, 1-(4-(1,1-DIMETHYLETHYL)PHENYL)-3-(4-METHOXYPHENYL)-
● 1,3-PROPANEDIONE, 1-[4-(1,1-DIMETHYLETHYL)PHENYL]-3-(4-METHOXYPHENYL)-
● 1,3-PROPANEDIONE, 2-BUTYL-2-METHOXY-1,3-DIPHENYL-
● 1,3PROPANEDIONE, 1[4(1,1DIMETHYLETHYL)PHENYL]3(4METHOXYPHENYL)
● 1-(4-(1,1-DIMETHYLETHYL)PHENYL)-3-(4-METHOXYPHENYL)-1,3-PROPANEDI- ONE
● 1-(4-(1,1-DIMETHYLETHYL)PHENYL)-3-(4-METHOXYPHENYL)-1,3-PROPANEDIONE
● 1-(4-(1,1-DIMETHYLETHYL)PHENYL)-3-(4-METHOXYPHENYL)PROPANE-1,3-DIONE
● 1-(4-TERT-BUTYLPHENYL)-3-(4-METHOXYPHENYL)PROPANE-1,3-DIONE
● 1-(P-TERT-BUTYLPHENYL)-3-(P-METHOXYPHENYL)-1,3-PROPANEDIONE
● 1-[4-(1,1-DIMETHYLETHYL)PHENYL]-3-(4-METHOXYPHENYL)- 1,3-PROPANEDIONE
● 1-[4-(1,1-DIMETHYLETHYL)PHENYL]-3-(4-METHOXYPHENYL)-1,3-PROPANEDIONE
● 1-[4-(1,1-DIMETHYLETHYL)PHENYL]-3-(4-METHOXYPHENYL)PROPANE-1,3-DIONE
● 2-BUTYL-2-METHOXY-1,3-DIPHENYL- 1,3-PROPANEDIONE
● 4-TERT-BUTYL-4'-METHOXYDIBENZOYLMETHANE
● AVEBENZONE
● AVO
● AVOBENZONA
● AVOBENZONE
● AVOBENZONE (PARSOL 1789 | BUTYL METHOXYDIBENZOYLMETHANE)
● AVOBENZONUM
● BMDBM
● BUTYL METHOXYBENZOYLMETHANE
● BUTYL METHOXYDIBENZOYLMETHANE
● EINECS 274-581-6
● METHOXYDIBENZOYLMETHANE
● PARSOL 1789

Restricted

Restricted: EWG VERIFIED products cannot contain this ingredient without adequate substantiation


This common sunscreen ingredient offers protection from UVA rays. Sunlight can cause this ingredient to break down and lose its effectiveness for skin protection. Photodegredation is delayed by mixing avobenzone with stabilizing chemicals.

Common concerns

See how this product scores for common concerns.

  • LOW
    Cancer
  • LOW
    Allergies & Immunotoxicity
  • LOW
    Developmental and Reproductive Toxicity
  • MODERATE
    Use Restrictions

Ingredient concerns

  • CONCERNS
  • DATA SOURCES

Products with this Ingredient

Expand content Collapse content
recreational sunscreen481 products
daily use with SPF202 products
fragrance for women195 products
lip balm with SPF59 products
fragrance for men58 products
body spray54 products
baby sunscreen46 products
shampoo25 products
hair treatment/serum22 products
conditioner20 products
facial moisturizer/treatment19 products
body wash/cleanser19 products
lip balm17 products
blush14 products
moisturizer13 products
body oil11 products
eye shadow11 products
bronzer/highlighter10 products
lip gloss10 products
foundation9 products
hair styling aide9 products
tanning oil8 products
exfoliant/scrub5 products
serums & essences5 products
liquid hand soap5 products
facial cleanser5 products
makeup primer4 products
detangler4 products
setting powder/spray4 products
lipstick3 products
styling gel/lotion3 products
eye liner3 products
hair spray2 products
hand cream2 products
around-eye cream1 products
baby shampoo1 products
beard cleanser1 products
damaged skin treatment1 products
sunless tanning1 products
CC cream1 products
toners/astringents1 products
hand sanitizer1 products
body firming lotion1 products
1 products
styling mousse/foam1 products
mask1 products
BB cream1 products
after sun product1 products
facial powder1 products

Contamination concerns

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Enhanced skin absorption

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Absorbs into the skinOpen scientific literature

Decreased skin absorption

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Limited potential to absorb into the skin.Open scientific literature

Use restrictions

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Restricted in cosmetics (recommendations or requirements) - use, concentration, or manufacturing restrictions - Japan - restricted for use in cosmetics (concentration limit)Japan's Standards for Cosmetics

Cancer

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CONCERN REFERENCE
One or more in vitro tests on mammalian cells show positive mutation resultsOpen scientific literature

Endocrine disruption

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CONCERN REFERENCE
One or more studies show weak endocrine disruptionOpen scientific literature

Allergies/immunotoxicity

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CONCERN REFERENCE
any or allergies - weight of evidence unknown/unassessedOpen scientific literature
Associated with immunotoxicity or allergiesOpen scientific literature

Ecotoxicology

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Not suspected to be an environmental toxinEnvironment Canada Domestic Substance List

Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Classified as not expected to be potentially toxic or harmfulEnvironment Canada Domestic Substance List

Persistence and bioaccumulation

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Not suspected to be bioaccumulativeEnvironment Canada Domestic Substance List

Data gaps

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CONCERN REFERENCE
312 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemicalNLM PubMed
  • Open scientific/peer reviewed literature
  • Japan Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. 2006. Standards for Cosmetics. Evaluation and Licensing Division. Pharmaceutical and Food Safety Bureau.
  • EC (Environment Canada). 2008. Domestic Substances List Categorization. Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Environmental Registry.
  • NLM (National Library of Medicine). 2012. PubMed online scientific bibliography data. http://www.pubmed.gov.

Understanding scores

Cosmetics and personal care products are not required to be tested for safety before being allowed on the market. The Skin Deep® scoring system was designed to help the public understand whether a product is safe to use or whether it contains ingredients of concern.

Every product and ingredient in Skin Deep gets a two-part score – one for hazard and one for data availability. The safest products score well by both measures, with a low hazard rating and a fair or better data availability rating.

HOW WE DETERMINE SCORES

Hazard score

The Skin Deep ingredient hazard score, from 1 to 10, reflects known and suspected hazards linked to the ingredients. The EWG VERIFIED® mark means a product meets EWG’s strictest criteria for transparency and health.

Score legend

Data availability

The Skin Deep data availability rating reflects the number of scientific studies about the product or ingredient in the published scientific literature.

NONE LIMITED FAIR GOOD ROBUST
Low Availability
Moderate Availability
High Availability

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