EWG Skin Deep® | What is CETYL ESTERS

HOW WE DETERMINE SCORES Learn more About EWG VERIFIED®

Data: Limited

Cetyl Esters

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Other Concerns

Use restrictions (low)

SYNONYMS

● CETYL ESTERS

● SPERMACETI WAX; SPERMACETI WAX, REFINED

● SYNTHETIC SPERMACETI WAX

Restricted

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

This ingredient is a synthetic wax.

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

conditioner	164 products
hair treatment/serum	56 products
moisturizer	53 products
mask	36 products
facial moisturizer/treatment	22 products
around-eye cream	14 products
foundation	14 products
lip balm with SPF	10 products
hair styling aide	8 products
lip balm	7 products
hair color and bleaching	6 products
exfoliant/scrub	6 products
recreational sunscreen	5 products
daily use with SPF	4 products
body wash/cleanser	4 products
bronzer/highlighter	4 products
styling gel/lotion	3 products
serums & essences	3 products
detangler	2 products
antiperspirant/deodorant	2 products
facial cleanser	2 products
beard care	2 products
	2 products
shampoo	2 products
body firming lotion	2 products
hand cream	2 products
anti-aging	2 products
baby sunscreen	1 products
damaged skin treatment	1 products
glitter	1 products
BB cream	1 products
foot moisturizer	1 products
mascara	1 products
concealer	1 products

Use restrictions

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Determined safe for use in cosmetics, subject to concentration or use limitations - Safe for use in cosmetics with some qualifications	Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments

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
8 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemical	NLM PubMed

Ecotoxicology

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

Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Classified as not expected to be potentially toxic or harmful	Environment 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.

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