Health Concerns of the Ingredient:
Overall Hazard
Developmental &
reproductive toxicity
Allergies & immunotoxicity
Other LOW concerns: Ecotoxicology
About LINOLEIC ACID: Linoleic acid is a naturally occurring unstaurated fatty acid.
This ingredient may be derived from animals. From PETA's Caring Consumer: An essential fatty acid. Used in cosmetics, vitamins. Alternatives: vegetable-derived acids, soy lecithin, safflower oil, bitter almond oil, sunflower oil, etc.
Function(s): Fragrance Ingredient; Hair Conditioning Agent; Skin-Conditioning Agent - Miscellaneous;Surfactant - Cleansing AgentSurfactant-Cleansing Agent is included as a function for the soap form of Linoleic Acid.; ANTISTATIC; EMOLLIENT; SKIN CONDITIONING
Synonym(s): (Z,Z) -9,12-OCTADECADIENOIC ACID; 9,12-OCTADECADIENOIC ACID; 9,12-OCTADECADIENOIC ACID (9Z,12Z) -; 9,12OCTADECADIENOIC ACID (Z,Z) ; 9,12-LINOLEIC ACID; 9,12-OCTADECADIENOIC ACID; CIS,CIS-9,12-OCTADECADIENOIC ACID; CIS-9,CIS-12-OCTADECADIENOIC ACID; EMERSOL 310; EMERSOL 315; LEINOLEIC ACID
Ecotoxicology
Concern |
Reference |
Suspected to be an environmental toxin | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Data gaps
Concern |
Reference |
13,585 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemical see search results -> | NLM PubMed |
Multiple, additive exposure sources
Concern |
Reference |
Designated as safe for general or specific, limited use in food | FDA Food Additive Status |
Designated as safe for general or specific, limited use in food | FDA Everything Added to Food |
Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)
Concern |
Reference |
Classified as not expected to be potentially toxic or harmful | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Classified as a low human health priority | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Persistence and bioaccumulation
Concern |
Reference |
Not suspected to be persistent | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Not suspected to be bioaccumulative | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Data Sources
EC (Environment Canada). 2008. Domestic Substances List Categorization. Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Environmental Registry. |
FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) 2006. Food Additive Status List. Downloaded from http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/%7Edms/opa-appa.html, Oct 16, 2006. |
FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration). 2008. EAFUS [Everything Added to Food]: A Food Additive Database. FDA Office of Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. |
IFRA (International Fragrance Assocication). 2010. IFRA Fragrance Ingredient List based on 2008 Use Survey. Accessed online 01/04/2010: http://www.ifraorg.org/Home/News/Latest-News/page.aspx/66?xf_itemId=43&xf_selectionDatapartId=25 |
NLM (National Library of Medicine). 2012. PubMed online scientific bibliography data. http://www.pubmed.gov. |
Products Containing the Ingredient
About the Skin Deep® ratings
EWG provides information on personal care product ingredients from the published scientific literature, to supplement incomplete data available from companies and the government. The ratings below indicate the relative level of concern posed by exposure to the ingredients in this product - not the product itself - compared to other product formulations. The ratings reflect potential health hazards but do not account for the level of exposure or individual susceptibility, factors which determine actual health risks, if any.
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