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Data: Limited

Butylene Glycol

IMAGE SOURCE: PubChem

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Other Concerns

Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs) (moderate)

SYNONYMS

● 1,3-BUTANEDIOL
● 1,3-BUTYLENE GLYCOL
● 1,3-DIHYDROXYBUTANE
● 1,3BUTANEDIOL
● 3-HYDROXY-1-BUTANOL
● ACEROLA EXTRACT BG-25
● BUTANE-1,3-DIOL
● BUTYLENE GLYCOL
● DIOSCOREA COMPOSITA EXTRACT BG
● PHYTO COLLAGE BD-II
● QUILLAJA EXTRACT BG
● ROSE APPLE LEAF EXTRACT BG-30

This ingredient is not currently on EWG's Skin Deep Restricted or Unacceptable Lists.

Butylene glycol (1.3-Butanediol) is a small organic alcohol used as solvent and conditioning agent.

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

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foundation1134 products
concealer725 products
mask674 products
facial moisturizer/treatment598 products
serums & essences374 products
moisturizer325 products
daily use with SPF242 products
eye liner239 products
mascara237 products
around-eye cream223 products
facial cleanser215 products
conditioner183 products
shampoo165 products
CC cream160 products
hair treatment/serum159 products
brow liner148 products
toners/astringents147 products
makeup primer144 products
lipstick133 products
exfoliant/scrub112 products
eye shadow112 products
blush92 products
recreational sunscreen81 products
hair styling aide77 products
lip gloss76 products
hand cream75 products
BB cream75 products
bronzer/highlighter73 products
setting powder/spray68 products
makeup remover58 products
hand sanitizer50 products
body firming lotion49 products
48 products
anti-aging47 products
lip plumper44 products
nail polish42 products
hair color and bleaching42 products
body wash/cleanser40 products
body spray37 products
lip balm36 products
sunless tanning33 products
hair spray30 products
styling gel/lotion30 products
lip liner20 products
bar soap19 products
pore strips17 products
after shave16 products
eyelash glue16 products
foot moisturizer15 products
skin fading/lightener15 products
nail treatment12 products
other eye makeup12 products
facial powder11 products
glitter11 products
foot cleansing10 products
styling mousse/foam9 products
liquid hand soap8 products
cuticle treatment6 products
detangler6 products
beard care6 products
shaving cream (men's)5 products
antiperspirant/deodorant5 products
baby shampoo4 products
eye makeup remover4 products
baby lotion4 products
fragrance for women4 products
baby sunscreen4 products
damaged skin treatment4 products
fragrance for men4 products
bath oil/salts/soak3 products
shaving cream3 products
baby soap3 products
after sun product3 products
tanning oil3 products
polish remover3 products
baby wipes3 products
makeup removing wipes3 products
antiperspirant/deodorant (men's)2 products
hair-loss treatment2 products
muscle/joint soreness2 products
body oil2 products
beard cleanser2 products
foot odor control2 products
oil controller1 products
depilatory1 products
hair removal waxes1 products
bubble bath1 products
mouthwash1 products
lip balm with SPF1 products
beard oil1 products
body cleansing wipes1 products

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
312 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemicalNLM PubMed

Multiple, additive exposure sources

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

Ecotoxicology

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Not suspected to be an environmental toxinEnvironment Canada Domestic Substance List

Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)

Expand content Collapse content
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

Informational

Expand content Collapse content
CONCERN REFERENCE
Industry or government recommendations for safe use: restrictions on concentration, impurities, product types, or manufacturing methods - anyCosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments
  • 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.
  • 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.

Can’t find your product?

Enter the ingredients in EWG’s Build Your Own Report tool to get an approximate score for that product.

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