Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate
- This ingredient’s score is higher if used in products that are inhalable (e.g., sprays, powders) because of respiratory concerns.
- 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.
Other Concerns
Enhanced skin absorption, Use restrictions (moderate), Non-reproductive organ system toxicity (moderate), Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs) (low), and Contamination concerns (high)SYNONYMS
Restricted
Restricted: EWG VERIFIED products cannot contain this ingredient without adequate substantiation
Synthetic skin conditioning agent.
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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MODERATEUse Restrictions
Ingredient concerns
- CONCERNS
- DATA SOURCES
Products with this Ingredient
shampoo | 305 products |
body wash/cleanser | 86 products |
facial cleanser | 81 products |
liquid hand soap | 32 products |
toothpaste | 29 products |
conditioner | 22 products |
exfoliant/scrub | 11 products |
baby shampoo | 11 products |
baby soap | 10 products |
mask | 7 products |
makeup remover | 7 products |
sunless tanning | 6 products |
beard cleanser | 5 products |
eye liner | 4 products |
tooth whitening | 4 products |
shaving cream | 3 products |
hair styling aide | 2 products |
bath oil/salts/soak | 2 products |
baby bubble bath | 2 products |
lip balm | 2 products |
moisturizer | 2 products |
hair treatment/serum | 2 products |
styling mousse/foam | 2 products |
beard care | 1 products |
antiperspirant/deodorant | 1 products |
bar soap | 1 products |
shaving cream (men's) | 1 products |
detangler | 1 products |
baby lotion | 1 products |
hand cream | 1 products |
mouthwash | 1 products |
Contamination concerns
Chemical |
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NITROSAMINES |
Enhanced skin absorption
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Penetration enhancer | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
Use restrictions
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Restricted in cosmetics (recommendations or requirements) - use, concentration, or manufacturing restrictions - Japan - restricted for use in some types of cosmetics (concentration limit) | Japan's Standards for Cosmetics |
Determined safe for use in cosmetics, subject to concentration or use limitations - Safe for use in cosmetics with some qualifications | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Classified as very toxic or harmful | Open scientific literature |
Classified as toxic or harmful. | Open scientific literature |
Classified as a low human health priority | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Classified as not expected to be potentially toxic or harmful | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs)
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Limited evidence of any irritation | Open scientific literature |
Limited evidence of any irritation | Open scientific literature |
One or more animal studies show any irritation at moderate doses | Open scientific literature |
any irritation - weight of evidence unknown/unassessed | Open scientific literature |
One or more animal studies show any irritation at high doses | Open scientific literature |
Developmental/reproductive toxicity
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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One or more animal studies show any effects at moderate doses | Open scientific literature |
Ecotoxicology
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Suspected to be an environmental toxin | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Data gaps
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Risk assessment method deficiencies and data gaps - Maximum reported "as used" concentration is basis of safety assessment by industry safety panel (Cosmetic Ingredient Review, CIR) - implicit safe concentration limit in product | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
Safety unknown for products that may be inhaled | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
55 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemical | NLM PubMed |
Cancer
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Not likely to be mutagenic in humans | Open scientific literature |
Persistence and bioaccumulation
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Not suspected to be bioaccumulative | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Not suspected to be persistent | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
- CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review). 2006. CIR Compendium, containing abstracts, discussions, and conclusions of CIR cosmetic ingredient safety assessments. Washington DC.
- Japan Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. 2006. Standards for Cosmetics. Evaluation and Licensing Division. Pharmaceutical and Food Safety Bureau.
- Open scientific/peer reviewed literature
- 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 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.