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HOW WE DETERMINE SCORES Learn more About EWG VERIFIED™

Data: Good

Glycerin

  • †Products with the EWG VERIFIED mark have met use restrictions and warnings based on EWG review of company data.

IMAGE SOURCE: PubChem

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Other Concerns

Use restrictions (moderate)

SYNONYMS

1,2,3-PROPANETRIOL, 1,2,3-TRIHYDROXYPROPANE, 1,2,3PROPANETRIOL, CONCENTRATED GLYCERIN, GLYCERIN, GLYCERINE, GLYCEROL, GLYCYL ALCOHOL, and VEGETABLE GLYCERIN

Glycerin (also called glycerol) is a naturally occurring alcohol compound and a component of many lipids. Glycerin may be of animal or vegetable origin. This ingredient is listed in the PETA's Caring Consumer guide as a byproduct of soap manufacture which typically uses animal fat.

Common concerns

See how this product scores for common concerns.

  • LOW
    Cancer
  • LOW
    Allergies & Immunotoxicity
  • LOW
    Developmental and Reingredientive Toxicity
  • MODERATE
    Use Restrictions

Ingredient concerns

  • CONCERNS
  • DATA SOURCES

Products with this Ingredient

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moisturizer1826 products
facial moisturizer/treatment1632 products
foundation1627 products
mask1459 products
body wash/cleanser1289 products
conditioner1279 products
shampoo1273 products
facial cleanser1117 products
serums & essences907 products
concealer790 products
liquid hand soap786 products
bar soap639 products
exfoliant/scrub624 products
daily use with SPF612 products
hair treatment/serum573 products
recreational sunscreen552 products
hand sanitizer499 products
hand cream427 products
toothpaste416 products
hair styling aide416 products
around-eye cream398 products
toners/astringents397 products
mascara290 products
hair color and bleaching260 products
antiperspirant/deodorant249 products
styling gel/lotion248 products
eye shadow239 products
makeup remover230 products
makeup primer228 products
lipstick203 products
body firming lotion186 products
brow liner180 products
bronzer/highlighter172 products
baby lotion170 products
BB cream160 products
CC cream155 products
baby shampoo146 products
baby soap137 products
bath oil/salts/soak132 products
130 products
anti-aging128 products
sunless tanning125 products
mouthwash124 products
baby wipes121 products
shaving cream120 products
hair spray117 products
lip gloss117 products
setting powder/spray114 products
bubble bath107 products
body spray104 products
eye liner98 products
baby sunscreen98 products
blush92 products
detangler89 products
lip balm88 products
foot moisturizer86 products
after sun product82 products
after shave65 products
tooth whitening62 products
shaving cream (men's)61 products
baby bubble bath51 products
antiperspirant/deodorant (men's)48 products
nail polish45 products
glitter45 products
beard care45 products
styling mousse/foam43 products
polish remover43 products
diaper cream34 products
baby toothpaste31 products
foot cleansing31 products
body oil30 products
damaged skin treatment30 products
muscle/joint soreness29 products
eye makeup remover28 products
lip plumper28 products
beard cleanser25 products
fragrance for women23 products
facial powder22 products
skin fading/lightener20 products
pore strips18 products
nail treatment17 products
fragrance for men15 products
lip balm with SPF14 products
foot odor control11 products
hair-loss treatment10 products
tanning oil10 products
cuticle treatment9 products
oil controller9 products
other eye makeup9 products
eyelash glue8 products
baby oil6 products
lip liner6 products
beard oil6 products
depilatory5 products
hair removal waxes3 products
body art2 products
vapor rubs1 products
hair relaxer1 products
body powder1 products
nail glue1 products

Use restrictions

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Restricted in cosmetics (recommendations or requirements) - use, concentration, or manufacturing restrictions - Use is restricted in Canadian cosmeticsCanada - Prohibited and Restricted Cosmetics Ingredients

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)

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Classified as not expected to be potentially toxic or harmfulEnvironment Canada Domestic Substance List
Classified as a low human health priorityEnvironment 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

Data gaps

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CONCERN REFERENCE
70707 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemicalNLM PubMed
  • Health Canada. 2007. List of Prohibited and Restricted Cosmetic Ingredients. Canada's Cosmetic Ingredient Hotlist. March 2007.
  • 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.
  • NLM (National Library of Medicine). 2012. PubMed online scientific bibliography data. http://www.pubmed.gov.

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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