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HOW WE DETERMINE SCORES Learn more About EWG VERIFIED™

Data: Limited

Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe Vera) Leaf

  • This ingredient’s score is higher if a product likely contains the non-decolorized whole leaf aloe vera, which is known to cause cancer. The score will be lower if the decolorized version of the ingredient is used.
  • Products with the EWG VERIFIED mark have met use restrictions and warnings based on EWG review of company data.

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Other Concerns

Use restrictions (low)

SYNONYMS

ALOE, ALOE BARBADENSIS, ALOE BARBADENSIS (ALOE VERA), ALOE BARBADENSIS (ALOE VERA) LEAF, ALOE BARBADENSIS LEAF, ALOE EXTRACT (ALOE SPP.), ALOE LEAF POWDER, and ALOE VERA

Restricted

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

Aloe vera is extracted from the succulent leaves of the aloe plant, Aloe barbadensis

Common concerns

See how this product scores for common concerns.

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

Ingredient concerns

  • CONCERNS
  • DATA SOURCES

Products with this Ingredient

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facial moisturizer/treatment38 products
moisturizer36 products
liquid hand soap35 products
hand sanitizer33 products
body wash/cleanser32 products
shampoo28 products
facial cleanser25 products
conditioner22 products
eye liner20 products
exfoliant/scrub18 products
serums & essences18 products
mask17 products
eye shadow17 products
lip gloss15 products
bar soap13 products
shaving cream10 products
lipstick10 products
bubble bath9 products
around-eye cream9 products
foundation9 products
toners/astringents8 products
shaving cream (men's)7 products
hair color and bleaching7 products
daily use with SPF7 products
baby wipes5 products
concealer5 products
hair styling aide5 products
recreational sunscreen5 products
makeup primer5 products
baby soap4 products
baby shampoo4 products
lip balm with SPF4 products
body spray3 products
hand cream3 products
mouthwash3 products
antiperspirant/deodorant3 products
after sun product3 products
hair treatment/serum3 products
foot moisturizer3 products
polish remover2 products
damaged skin treatment2 products
beard cleanser2 products
beard oil2 products
styling mousse/foam1 products
baby powder1 products
after shave1 products
tooth whitening1 products
toothpaste1 products
detangler1 products
anti-aging1 products
lip balm1 products
bath oil/salts/soak1 products
nail treatment1 products
muscle/joint soreness1 products
sunless tanning1 products
makeup remover1 products
facial powder1 products
blush1 products
bronzer/highlighter1 products
setting powder/spray1 products
1 products
body powder1 products

Cancer

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Possible human carcinogenOpen scientific literature
Cancer - strong evidenceOpen scientific literature
Limited or incomplete evidence of cancer according to safety/hazard data – scientific review cannot classify as human carcinogen due to data gapsOpen scientific literature

Use restrictions

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Determined safe for use in cosmetics, subject to concentration or use limitations - Safe for use in cosmetics with some qualificationsCosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments

Developmental/reproductive toxicity

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CONCERN REFERENCE
One or more animal studies show reproductive effects at moderate dosesOpen scientific literature

Data gaps

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CONCERN REFERENCE
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 productCosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments
Missing safety data noted by cosmetic industry reviewCosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments
877 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemicalNLM PubMed

Informational

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Industry or government recommendations for safe use: restrictions on concentration, impurities, product types, or manufacturing methods - Determined safe for use in cosmetics up to a specified concentration limitCosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments

Multiple, additive exposure sources

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Designated as safe for general or specific, limited use in foodFDA Everything Added to Food
Designated as safe for general or specific, limited use in foodFDA Food Additive Status

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
  • Open scientific/peer reviewed literature
  • CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review). 2006. CIR Compendium, containing abstracts, discussions, and conclusions of CIR cosmetic ingredient safety assessments. Washington DC.
  • NLM (National Library of Medicine). 2012. PubMed online scientific bibliography data. http://www.pubmed.gov.
  • 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.
  • 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.
  • EC (Environment Canada). 2008. Domestic Substances List Categorization. Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Environmental Registry.

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
WEIGHT-OF-EVIDENCE APPROACH

A product’s hazard score is not an average of the ingredients’ hazard scores. It is calculated using a weight-of-evidence approach that factors in all of the hazards or health impacts associated with the ingredients.

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
NONE

Ingredients have not been assessed.

LIMITED-FAIR

There is only a modest volume of research.

GOOD-ROBUST

Ingredients have been studied extensively.

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