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Data: Fair

Glycolic Acid

  • 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 (high) and Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs) (high)

SYNONYMS

● ACETIC ACID, HYDROXY
● ACETIC ACID, HYDROXY-
● GLYCOLIC ACID
● GLYCOLIC ALPHA-HYDROXY ACID
● GLYCOLLIC ACID
● HYDROXY- ACETIC ACID
● HYDROXYACETIC ACID
● HYDROXYETHANOIC ACID

Restricted

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

Gylcolic acid is an alpha hydroxy acid; used in chemical peels and anti-aging skin products; can irritate skin.

Common concerns

See how this product scores for common concerns.

  • LOW
    Cancer
  • LOW
    Allergies & Immunotoxicity
  • LOW
    Developmental and Reproductive Toxicity
  • HIGH
    Use Restrictions

Ingredient concerns

  • CONCERNS
  • DATA SOURCES

Products with this Ingredient

Expand content Collapse content
exfoliant/scrub96 products
facial moisturizer/treatment87 products
mask86 products
serums & essences78 products
facial cleanser69 products
toners/astringents62 products
body wash/cleanser20 products
moisturizer20 products
shampoo14 products
hair treatment/serum13 products
foot cleansing12 products
around-eye cream8 products
bar soap7 products
conditioner7 products
daily use with SPF6 products
after shave5 products
nail treatment4 products
sunless tanning4 products
skin fading/lightener4 products
recreational sunscreen3 products
foot moisturizer3 products
body oil3 products
facial cleansing wipes3 products
nail polish2 products
anti-aging2 products
hair styling aide2 products
detangler2 products
hand sanitizer2 products
hand cream2 products
liquid hand soap1 products
concealer1 products
makeup remover1 products
baby oil1 products
1 products
brow liner1 products
setting powder/spray1 products
depilatory1 products
eye liner1 products
antiperspirant/deodorant1 products
bronzer/highlighter1 products
cuticle treatment1 products
hair color and bleaching1 products
styling gel/lotion1 products
shaving cream (men's)1 products
hair spray1 products
body firming lotion1 products
oil controller1 products

Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs)

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Classified as skin irritantOpen scientific literature

Use restrictions

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Violation of industry recommendations - Restricted in cosmetics; use, concentration, or manufacturing restrictions - Allowable pH limitsCosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments
Restricted in cosmetics (recommendations or requirements) - use, concentration, or manufacturing restrictions - Use is restricted in Canadian cosmeticsCanada - Prohibited and Restricted Cosmetics Ingredients
Determined safe for use in cosmetics, subject to concentration or use limitations - Safe for use in cosmetics with some qualificationsCosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments

Occupational hazards

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Single case study detailing occupational hazardsNational Library of Medicine HazMap

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
3765 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemicalNLM PubMed

Cancer

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Not likely to be carcinogenic in humansOpen scientific literature

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

Informational

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Industry or government recommendations for safe use: restrictions on concentration, impurities, product types, or manufacturing methods - Allowable pH limitsCosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments
  • Open scientific/peer reviewed literature
  • CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review). 2006. CIR Compendium, containing abstracts, discussions, and conclusions of CIR cosmetic ingredient safety assessments. Washington DC.
  • Health Canada. 2007. List of Prohibited and Restricted Cosmetic Ingredients. Canada's Cosmetic Ingredient Hotlist. March 2007.
  • NLM (National Library of Medicine). 2006. HazMap — Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Agents.
  • 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.

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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