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HOW WE DETERMINE SCORES Learn more About EWG VERIFIED®

Data: Limited

Ammonium Laureth Sulfate

  • This ingredient’s score is higher if used in products intended for use around the eyes due to increased risk of absorption.
  • Products with this ingredient are allowed for use in EWG VERIFIED but must meet use restrictions and warnings based on EWG review of company data.
  • 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 restrictions based on EWG review of company data.

IMAGE SOURCE: PubChem

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Other Concerns

Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs) (moderate) and Contamination concerns (high)

SYNONYMS

● ALPHA-SULFO-OMEGA-(DODECYLOXY)-POLY(OXY-1,2-ETHANEDIYL), AMMONIUM SALT
● AMMONIUM LAURETH SULFATE
● AMMONIUM LAURYL ETHER SULFATE
● AMMONIUM POLYOXYETHYLENE ALKYL ETHER SULFATE (3E.O.) SOLUTION
● AMMONIUM POLYOXYETHYLENE LAURYL ETHER SULFATE SOLUTION
● AMMONIUM SALT PEG-(1-4) LAURYL ETHER SULFATE
● AMMONIUM SALT POLY(OXY-1,2-ETHANEDIYL),A -SULFO-W -(DODECYLOXY)-
● AMMONIUM SALT POLYETHYLENE GLYCOL (1-4) LAURYL ETHER SULFATE
● AMMONIUM SALT POLYOXYETHYLENE (1-4) LAURYL ETHER SULFATE
● PEG-(1-4) LAURYL ETHER SULFATE, AMMONIUM SALT
● POLY(OXY-1,2-ETHANEDIYL), .ALPHA.-SULFO-.OMEGA.-(DODECYLOXY)-, AMMONIUM SALT
● POLY(OXY-1,2-ETHANEDIYL),A -SULFO-W -(DODECYLOXY)-, AMMONIUM SALT
● POLY(OXY1,2ETHANEDIYL), αSULFOω(DODECYLOXY), AMMONIUMSALT
● POLYETHYLENE GLYCOL (1-4) LAURYL ETHER SULFATE, AMMONIUM SALT
● POLYOXYETHYLENE (1-4) LAURYL ETHER SULFATE, AMMONIUM SALT

Restricted

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

This ingredient is an ammonium salt of ethoxylated lauryl sulfate, a surfactant that contains PEG (polyethylene glycol) in its structure. May be contaminated with potentially toxic manufacturing impurities such as 1,4-dioxane.

Common concerns

See how this product scores for common concerns.

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

Ingredient concerns

  • CONCERNS
  • DATA SOURCES

Products with this Ingredient

Expand content Collapse content
shampoo45 products
liquid hand soap12 products
conditioner10 products
body wash/cleanser5 products
facial cleanser4 products
toners/astringents1 products
mask1 products
hair treatment/serum1 products
hair spray1 products
hair relaxer1 products

Contamination concerns

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Chemical
ETHYLENE OXIDE
1,4-DIOXANE

Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs)

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Human any irritant - strong evidenceCosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments

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
8 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 - anyCosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments

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 persistentEnvironment Canada Domestic Substance List
Not suspected to be bioaccumulativeEnvironment Canada Domestic Substance List
  • 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.
  • 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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