Other Concerns
Endocrine disruption (low), Non-reproductive organ system toxicity (moderate), and Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs) (moderate)SYNONYMS
Unacceptable
Unacceptable: EWG VERIFIED products cannot contain this ingredient
Butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) is a toluene-based ingredient used as a preservative in food and personal care products.
Common concerns
See how this product scores for common concerns.
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MODERATECancer
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HIGHAllergies & Immunotoxicity
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LOWDevelopmental and Reproductive Toxicity
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LOWUse Restrictions
Ingredient concerns
- CONCERNS
- DATA SOURCES
Products with this Ingredient
foundation | 337 products |
lipstick | 300 products |
lip gloss | 166 products |
eye shadow | 151 products |
antiperspirant/deodorant | 149 products |
facial moisturizer/treatment | 130 products |
concealer | 130 products |
moisturizer | 129 products |
lip balm | 110 products |
eye liner | 108 products |
body wash/cleanser | 99 products |
fragrance for women | 86 products |
hair treatment/serum | 85 products |
shampoo | 76 products |
daily use with SPF | 76 products |
conditioner | 76 products |
lip liner | 68 products |
liquid hand soap | 66 products |
mascara | 65 products |
hair styling aide | 65 products |
antiperspirant/deodorant (men's) | 63 products |
blush | 57 products |
serums & essences | 55 products |
recreational sunscreen | 54 products |
brow liner | 53 products |
fragrance for men | 45 products |
around-eye cream | 42 products |
mask | 40 products |
hair spray | 37 products |
lip balm with SPF | 33 products |
hair color and bleaching | 33 products |
bronzer/highlighter | 31 products |
facial cleanser | 31 products |
hand cream | 28 products |
lip plumper | 28 products |
makeup primer | 28 products |
exfoliant/scrub | 23 products |
setting powder/spray | 23 products |
shaving cream | 21 products |
toothpaste | 21 products |
nail glue | 21 products |
anti-aging | 20 products |
hair-loss treatment | 19 products |
body spray | 17 products |
shaving cream (men's) | 15 products |
styling gel/lotion | 14 products |
bar soap | 13 products |
facial powder | 12 products |
body oil | 12 products |
sunless tanning | 11 products |
BB cream | 10 products |
body firming lotion | 8 products |
bath oil/salts/soak | 8 products |
8 products | |
styling mousse/foam | 7 products |
beard care | 7 products |
after shave | 6 products |
makeup remover | 6 products |
polish remover | 6 products |
toners/astringents | 5 products |
nail treatment | 5 products |
detangler | 5 products |
skin fading/lightener | 4 products |
cuticle treatment | 4 products |
beard oil | 4 products |
depilatory | 3 products |
nail polish | 3 products |
baby shampoo | 3 products |
baby lotion | 2 products |
hair removal waxes | 2 products |
foot odor control | 1 products |
tooth whitening | 1 products |
diaper cream | 1 products |
bubble bath | 1 products |
hand sanitizer | 1 products |
glitter | 1 products |
beard cleanser | 1 products |
eyelash glue | 1 products |
facial cleansing wipes | 1 products |
body cleansing wipes | 1 products |
Allergies/immunotoxicity
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Known human any toxicant or allergen | Open scientific literature |
Human any toxicant or allergen - strong evidence | Open scientific literature |
One or more human case studies show significant any or allergenic effects | National Library of Medicine HazMap |
Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Classified as medium human health priority | Open scientific literature |
Classified as expected to be toxic or harmful | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Cancer
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Limited evidence of carcinogenicity | Open scientific literature |
One or more in vitro tests on mammalian cells show positive mutation results | Open scientific literature |
One or more animal studies show tumor formation at high doses | Open scientific literature |
Not likely to be carcinogenic in humans | Open scientific literature |
Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs)
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Human respiratory irritant - moderate evidence | Open scientific literature |
Endocrine disruption
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
One or more studies show weak endocrine disruption | Open scientific literature |
Developmental/reproductive toxicity
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
One or more animal studies show developemental effects at high doses | Open scientific literature |
Data gaps
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 product | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
5406 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemical | NLM PubMed |
Persistence and bioaccumulation
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Not suspected to be bioaccumulative | Open scientific literature |
Not suspected to be persistent | Open scientific literature |
Ecotoxicology
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Not suspected to be an environmental toxin | Open scientific literature |
Informational
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Industry or government recommendations for safe use: restrictions on concentration, impurities, product types, or manufacturing methods - any | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
Multiple, additive exposure sources
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Designated as safe for general or specific, limited use in food | FDA Everything Added to Food |
Designated as safe for general or specific, limited use in food | FDA Food Additive Status |
- Open scientific/peer reviewed literature
- NLM (National Library of Medicine). 2006. HazMap — Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Agents.
- EC (Environment Canada). 2008. Domestic Substances List Categorization. Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Environmental Registry.
- 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.
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.