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HOW WE DETERMINE SCORES Learn more About EWG VERIFIED™

Data: Fair

Cholesterol

IMAGE SOURCE: PubChem

SEARCH PRODUCTS

Other Concerns

Persistence and bioaccumulation (moderate)

SYNONYMS

● CHOLEST-5-EN-3-OL (3.BETA.)-
● CHOLEST-5-EN-3-OL (3B)-
● CHOLEST5EN3OL (3 )
● CHOLESTERIN
● CHOLESTEROL
● CHOLESTERYL ALCOHOL
● PROVITAMIN D

Restricted

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

Cholesterol is a mono-unsaturated, secondary alcohol of the cyclopentanophenanthrenesystem.

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

Expand content Collapse content
facial moisturizer/treatment76 products
lipstick64 products
moisturizer60 products
facial cleanser39 products
serums & essences39 products
around-eye cream29 products
daily use with SPF18 products
mask15 products
recreational sunscreen14 products
lip balm13 products
body firming lotion12 products
body wash/cleanser8 products
makeup remover7 products
foundation7 products
baby lotion6 products
toners/astringents6 products
concealer6 products
anti-aging6 products
bar soap5 products
mascara5 products
hand cream5 products
bronzer/highlighter4 products
nail polish4 products
makeup primer4 products
lip plumper4 products
conditioner4 products
hair treatment/serum3 products
BB cream2 products
foot moisturizer2 products
shaving cream2 products
damaged skin treatment2 products
blush2 products
styling gel/lotion2 products
diaper cream2 products
setting powder/spray1 products
after shave1 products
foot cleansing1 products
detangler1 products
baby soap1 products
sunless tanning1 products
baby shampoo1 products
skin fading/lightener1 products
1 products
eye makeup remover1 products
lip gloss1 products
shampoo1 products
baby sunscreen1 products

Persistence and bioaccumulation

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Persistent, bioaccumulative in wildlifeEmerging PBTs from peer-reviewed literature
Not suspected to be persistentEnvironment Canada Domestic Substance List

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
208831 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemicalNLM PubMed

Cancer

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Limited or incomplete evidence of cancer according to safety/hazard data – government assessment cannot classify as human carcinogen due to data gapsInt'l Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) - Carcinogens

Ecotoxicology

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

Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Classified as not expected to be potentially toxic or harmfulEnvironment Canada Domestic Substance List

Informational

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Industry or government recommendations for safe use: restrictions on concentration, impurities, product types, or manufacturing methods - anyCosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments
  • Emerging PBTs from peer-reviewed literature
  • 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.
  • IARC (International Agency for Research on Cancer). 2008. Overall Evaluations of Carcinogenicity to Humans, as evaluated in IARC Monographs Volumes 1-99 (a total of 935 agents, mixtures and exposures).

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.

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