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
lipstick | 356 products |
foundation | 342 products |
lip gloss | 224 products |
eye shadow | 180 products |
antiperspirant/deodorant | 160 products |
eye liner | 142 products |
facial moisturizer/treatment | 139 products |
moisturizer | 136 products |
concealer | 133 products |
lip balm | 111 products |
body wash/cleanser | 105 products |
mascara | 88 products |
fragrance for women | 84 products |
hair treatment/serum | 84 products |
daily use with SPF | 79 products |
lip liner | 71 products |
shampoo | 70 products |
conditioner | 70 products |
antiperspirant/deodorant (men's) | 64 products |
blush | 58 products |
serums & essences | 58 products |
hair styling aide | 57 products |
recreational sunscreen | 55 products |
brow liner | 52 products |
mask | 48 products |
fragrance for men | 46 products |
around-eye cream | 43 products |
lip balm with SPF | 36 products |
liquid hand soap | 36 products |
bronzer/highlighter | 35 products |
hand cream | 31 products |
facial cleanser | 31 products |
hair color and bleaching | 30 products |
anti-aging | 29 products |
makeup primer | 29 products |
hair spray | 28 products |
lip plumper | 28 products |
exfoliant/scrub | 26 products |
setting powder/spray | 22 products |
shaving cream | 18 products |
toothpaste | 18 products |
hair-loss treatment | 18 products |
sunless tanning | 17 products |
styling gel/lotion | 15 products |
nail glue | 15 products |
shaving cream (men's) | 14 products |
BB cream | 13 products |
after shave | 12 products |
bar soap | 12 products |
body spray | 12 products |
body oil | 12 products |
12 products | |
facial powder | 11 products |
bath oil/salts/soak | 8 products |
body firming lotion | 6 products |
makeup remover | 6 products |
polish remover | 6 products |
beard care | 6 products |
nail treatment | 5 products |
detangler | 5 products |
bubble bath | 5 products |
styling mousse/foam | 5 products |
beard oil | 5 products |
skin fading/lightener | 4 products |
cuticle treatment | 4 products |
toners/astringents | 4 products |
baby lotion | 2 products |
nail polish | 2 products |
baby shampoo | 2 products |
beard cleanser | 2 products |
foot odor control | 1 products |
foot moisturizer | 1 products |
tooth whitening | 1 products |
oil controller | 1 products |
hand sanitizer | 1 products |
glitter | 1 products |
facial 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 |
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 |
Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Classified as expected to be toxic or harmful | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Classified as medium human health priority | 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 |
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 Food Additive Status |
Designated as safe for general or specific, limited use in food | FDA Everything Added to Food |
Persistence and bioaccumulation
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Not suspected to be persistent | Open scientific literature |
Not suspected to be bioaccumulative | Open scientific literature |
Ecotoxicology
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Not suspected to be an environmental toxin | Open scientific literature |
- 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) 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.
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.