Other Concerns
Use restrictions (low), Non-reproductive organ system toxicity (moderate), and Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs) (low)SYNONYMS
This ingredient is not currently on EWG's Skin Deep Restricted or Unacceptable Lists.
Phosphoric Acid is a caustic inorganic acid.
Common concerns
See how this product scores for common concerns.
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LOWCancer
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LOWAllergies & Immunotoxicity
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LOWDevelopmental and Reproductive Toxicity
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LOWUse Restrictions
Ingredient concerns
- CONCERNS
- DATA SOURCES
Products with this Ingredient
nail polish | 220 products |
hair color and bleaching | 74 products |
mouthwash | 62 products |
toothpaste | 12 products |
nail treatment | 11 products |
hair treatment/serum | 7 products |
conditioner | 4 products |
hair spray | 3 products |
facial moisturizer/treatment | 3 products |
body wash/cleanser | 3 products |
toners/astringents | 3 products |
tooth whitening | 2 products |
liquid hand soap | 2 products |
around-eye cream | 2 products |
setting powder/spray | 1 products |
hair perm | 1 products |
daily use with SPF | 1 products |
facial cleanser | 1 products |
body spray | 1 products |
skin fading/lightener | 1 products |
makeup remover | 1 products |
concealer | 1 products |
moisturizer | 1 products |
mask | 1 products |
styling mousse/foam | 1 products |
mascara | 1 products |
shampoo | 1 products |
styling gel/lotion | 1 products |
Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Classified as expected to be toxic or harmful | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Classified as medium human health priority | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Limited evidence of respiratory toxicity | Scorecard.org Toxicity Information |
One or more animal studies show classified as toxic effects at moderate doses (low dose studies may be unavailable for this ingredient) | EPA Toxic Release Inventory PBTs |
Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs)
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Limited evidence of skin irritation | National Library of Medicine HazMap |
Use restrictions
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Determined safe for use in cosmetics, subject to concentration or use limitations - Safe for use in cosmetics with some qualifications | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
Miscellaneous
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Occupational hazards related to handling | CPS&Q - Classification & Labelling |
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 |
Ecotoxicology
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Not suspected to be an environmental toxin | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Persistence and bioaccumulation
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Not suspected to be bioaccumulative | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Data gaps
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
6899 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemical | NLM PubMed |
- EC (Environment Canada). 2008. Domestic Substances List Categorization. Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Environmental Registry.
- ED (Environmental Defense). 2006. Scorecard _ The Pollution Information Site. http://www.scorecard.org.
- EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency). 1999. Toxics Release Inventory Program. PBT Chemical Rule.
- NLM (National Library of Medicine). 2006. HazMap — Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Agents.
- CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review). 2006. CIR Compendium, containing abstracts, discussions, and conclusions of CIR cosmetic ingredient safety assessments. Washington DC.
- CPS&Q (Consumer Products Safety & Quality) formely known as ECB (European Chemicals Bureau). 2008. Classification and Labelling: Chemicals: Annex VI of Directive 67/548/EEC through the 31st ATP.
- 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.
- 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 SCORESHazard 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.
Data availability
The Skin Deep data availability rating reflects the number of scientific studies about the product or ingredient in the published scientific literature.