Lactic Acid
- Products with the EWG VERIFIED mark have met use restrictions and warnings based on EWG review of company data.
Other Concerns
Enhanced skin absorption, Use restrictions (high), and Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs) (low)SYNONYMS
Restricted
Restricted: EWG VERIFIED products cannot contain this ingredient without adequate substantiation
Lactic acid is an alpha hydroxy acid; naturally produced in the process of bacterial fermentation, for example milk fermentation. Lactic acid is frequently used as an exfoliant and in anti-wrinkle products.
Common concerns
See how this product scores for common concerns.
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LOWCancer
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LOWAllergies & Immunotoxicity
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LOWDevelopmental and Reproductive Toxicity
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HIGHUse Restrictions
Ingredient concerns
- CONCERNS
- DATA SOURCES
Products with this Ingredient
conditioner | 289 products |
facial moisturizer/treatment | 183 products |
mask | 156 products |
serums & essences | 126 products |
shampoo | 118 products |
hair treatment/serum | 110 products |
facial cleanser | 106 products |
exfoliant/scrub | 106 products |
moisturizer | 94 products |
body wash/cleanser | 90 products |
lip gloss | 60 products |
toners/astringents | 54 products |
lipstick | 53 products |
lip plumper | 46 products |
around-eye cream | 32 products |
hair styling aide | 30 products |
makeup primer | 21 products |
hand cream | 20 products |
hair color and bleaching | 18 products |
antiperspirant/deodorant | 17 products |
hair-loss treatment | 17 products |
styling gel/lotion | 16 products |
makeup remover | 16 products |
daily use with SPF | 14 products |
foot cleansing | 14 products |
liquid hand soap | 12 products |
bar soap | 11 products |
lip liner | 11 products |
foot moisturizer | 10 products |
sunless tanning | 10 products |
styling mousse/foam | 10 products |
detangler | 10 products |
lip balm | 10 products |
nail polish | 10 products |
anti-aging | 9 products |
foundation | 9 products |
facial cleansing wipes | 7 products |
after shave | 6 products |
body spray | 6 products |
recreational sunscreen | 6 products |
blush | 6 products |
skin fading/lightener | 5 products |
concealer | 5 products |
baby wipes | 5 products |
nail treatment | 4 products |
hair spray | 4 products |
4 products | |
fragrance for men | 4 products |
body firming lotion | 3 products |
baby shampoo | 3 products |
brow liner | 3 products |
eye shadow | 3 products |
facial powder | 3 products |
bath oil/salts/soak | 3 products |
bubble bath | 3 products |
body cleansing wipes | 3 products |
baby soap | 2 products |
shaving cream (men's) | 2 products |
baby lotion | 2 products |
damaged skin treatment | 2 products |
cuticle treatment | 2 products |
setting powder/spray | 2 products |
beard cleanser | 2 products |
eye makeup remover | 1 products |
after sun product | 1 products |
baby bubble bath | 1 products |
mouthwash | 1 products |
shaving cream | 1 products |
bronzer/highlighter | 1 products |
body oil | 1 products |
eye liner | 1 products |
hand sanitizer | 1 products |
toothpaste | 1 products |
baby toothpaste | 1 products |
makeup removing wipes | 1 products |
antiperspirant/deodorant (men's) | 1 products |
glitter | 1 products |
exfoliant/scrub - large particle | 1 products |
Enhanced skin absorption
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Penetration enhancer | Open scientific literature |
Use restrictions
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Violation of government restrictions - Restricted in cosmetics; use, concentration, or manufacturing restrictions - any | Open scientific literature |
Violation of industry recommendations - Restricted in cosmetics; use, concentration, or manufacturing restrictions - Allowable pH limits | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
Restricted in cosmetics (recommendations or requirements) - use, concentration, or manufacturing restrictions - Use is restricted in Canadian cosmetics | Canada - Prohibited and Restricted Cosmetics Ingredients |
Determined safe for use in cosmetics, subject to concentration or use limitations - Safe for use in cosmetics with some qualifications | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs)
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Limited evidence of any irritation | Open scientific literature |
Cancer
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Limited or incomplete evidence of cancer according to safety/hazard data – scientific review cannot classify as human carcinogen due to data gaps | Open scientific literature |
Occupational hazards
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Single case study detailing occupational hazards | National Library of Medicine HazMap |
Miscellaneous
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Prohibited for use in food | Open scientific literature |
Data gaps
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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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 |
143272 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemical | NLM PubMed |
Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Classified as not expected to be potentially toxic or harmful | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Classified as a low human health priority | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Persistence and bioaccumulation
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Not suspected to be persistent | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Not suspected to be bioaccumulative | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Informational
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Industry or government recommendations for safe use: restrictions on concentration, impurities, product types, or manufacturing methods - Allowable pH limits | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
Ecotoxicology
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Not suspected to be an environmental toxin | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Multiple, additive exposure sources
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Designated as safe for general or specific, limited use in food | FDA Everything Added to Food |
Designated as safe for general or specific, limited use in food | FDA Food Additive Status |
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
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 SCORESHazard 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.