Benzoic Acid
- Products with the EWG VERIFIED mark have met use restrictions and warnings based on EWG review of company data.
Other Concerns
Use restrictions (moderate) and Non-reproductive organ system toxicity (low)SYNONYMS
Restricted
Restricted: EWG VERIFIED products cannot contain this ingredient without adequate substantiation
Benzoic acid is a naturally occurring and synthetically produced substance; it is used in food and cosmetics as a preservative.
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 | 213 products |
conditioner | 153 products |
moisturizer | 117 products |
mouthwash | 88 products |
facial cleanser | 83 products |
lipstick | 80 products |
hair treatment/serum | 79 products |
body wash/cleanser | 78 products |
facial moisturizer/treatment | 75 products |
foundation | 59 products |
styling gel/lotion | 47 products |
hair styling aide | 47 products |
hand cream | 44 products |
mask | 42 products |
makeup remover | 41 products |
concealer | 40 products |
serums & essences | 40 products |
toners/astringents | 39 products |
exfoliant/scrub | 35 products |
daily use with SPF | 33 products |
mascara | 27 products |
brow liner | 26 products |
liquid hand soap | 25 products |
sunless tanning | 24 products |
antiperspirant/deodorant | 21 products |
lip gloss | 21 products |
baby wipes | 21 products |
toothpaste | 18 products |
around-eye cream | 17 products |
recreational sunscreen | 14 products |
makeup primer | 14 products |
hair spray | 13 products |
detangler | 11 products |
body firming lotion | 10 products |
setting powder/spray | 10 products |
styling mousse/foam | 8 products |
eye liner | 8 products |
baby shampoo | 7 products |
bar soap | 7 products |
eye shadow | 7 products |
baby lotion | 6 products |
facial powder | 6 products |
body spray | 6 products |
CC cream | 6 products |
diaper cream | 5 products |
hair color and bleaching | 5 products |
baby soap | 5 products |
blush | 5 products |
after shave | 4 products |
bronzer/highlighter | 4 products |
after sun product | 4 products |
makeup removing wipes | 4 products |
facial cleansing wipes | 4 products |
anti-aging | 3 products |
lip balm with SPF | 3 products |
bath oil/salts/soak | 3 products |
shaving cream (men's) | 3 products |
fragrance for women | 3 products |
eye makeup remover | 3 products |
shaving cream | 3 products |
other eye makeup | 3 products |
bubble bath | 3 products |
cuticle treatment | 2 products |
2 products | |
nail treatment | 1 products |
hand sanitizer | 1 products |
oil controller | 1 products |
skin fading/lightener | 1 products |
baby sunscreen | 1 products |
tanning oil | 1 products |
beard care | 1 products |
baby bubble bath | 1 products |
polish remover | 1 products |
beard cleanser | 1 products |
muscle/joint soreness | 1 products |
nail polish | 1 products |
baby toothpaste | 1 products |
vapor rubs | 1 products |
other men's products | 1 products |
hair removal waxes | 1 products |
Use restrictions
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Restricted in cosmetics (recommendations or requirements) - use, concentration, or manufacturing restrictions - Japan - restricted for use in 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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Limited evidence of sense organ toxicity | Scorecard.org Toxicity Information |
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 |
Data gaps
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Insufficient data to determine safety | EPA Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) |
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 |
16719 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemical | NLM PubMed |
Multiple, additive exposure sources
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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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 |
Informational
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Industry or government recommendations for safe use: restrictions on concentration, impurities, product types, or manufacturing methods - any | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
Cancer
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Not likely to be carcinogenic in humans | EPA Water Disinfection By-Products Carcinogenicity |
Limited or incomplete evidence of cancer according to safety/hazard data – government assessment cannot classify as human carcinogen due to data gaps | EPA Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) |
Ecotoxicology
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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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 persistent | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Not suspected to be bioaccumulative | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
- Japan Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. 2006. Standards for Cosmetics. Evaluation and Licensing Division. Pharmaceutical and Food Safety Bureau.
- CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review). 2006. CIR Compendium, containing abstracts, discussions, and conclusions of CIR cosmetic ingredient safety assessments. Washington DC.
- ED (Environmental Defense). 2006. Scorecard _ The Pollution Information Site. http://www.scorecard.org.
- EC (Environment Canada). 2008. Domestic Substances List Categorization. Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Environmental Registry.
- EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency). 2008. Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS). Evidence for human carcinogenicity based on 1986-2005 guidelines.
- NLM (National Library of Medicine). 2012. PubMed online scientific bibliography data. http://www.pubmed.gov.
- 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.
- EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency). 2006. EPA Water Disinfection By-Products with Carcinogenicity Estimates. Last updated: 10 April 2006.
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.