EWG Skin Deep® | What is LINOLEIC ACID

HOW WE DETERMINE SCORES Learn more About EWG VERIFIED®

Data: Fair

Linoleic Acid

IMAGE SOURCE: PubChem

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Other Concerns

Use restrictions (low), Multiple, additive exposure sources (low), and Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs) (low)

SYNONYMS

● (Z,Z)-9,12-OCTADECADIENOIC ACID

● 9,12-OCTADECADIENOIC ACID

● 9,12-OCTADECADIENOIC ACID (9Z,12Z)-

● 9,12OCTADECADIENOIC ACID (Z,Z)

● LINOLEIC ACID

Restricted

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

Linoleic acid is a naturally occurring unstaurated fatty acid.

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

facial moisturizer/treatment	62 products
lipstick	58 products
around-eye cream	29 products
moisturizer	28 products
serums & essences	20 products
hair treatment/serum	16 products
mask	15 products
conditioner	13 products
facial cleanser	11 products
shampoo	10 products
lip balm	9 products
daily use with SPF	8 products
blush	8 products
exfoliant/scrub	7 products
hand cream	7 products
bronzer/highlighter	6 products
toners/astringents	6 products
recreational sunscreen	5 products
anti-aging	5 products
lip gloss	5 products
body wash/cleanser	5 products
makeup remover	5 products
	4 products
body firming lotion	3 products
makeup primer	3 products
hair styling aide	3 products
baby lotion	2 products
BB cream	2 products
oil controller	2 products
hair-loss treatment	2 products
facial cleansing wipes	1 products
lip balm with SPF	1 products
after shave	1 products
baby oil	1 products
hair spray	1 products
antiperspirant/deodorant	1 products
foundation	1 products
bar soap	1 products
concealer	1 products

Multiple, additive exposure sources

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Used in food or as an additive with limited or no toxicity information available	Open scientific literature
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

Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs)

CONCERN	REFERENCE
any irritation - weight of evidence unknown/unassessed	Open scientific literature

Use restrictions

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Determined safe for use in cosmetics, subject to concentration or use limitations - any	Open scientific literature

Allergies/immunotoxicity

CONCERN	REFERENCE
any or allergies - weight of evidence unknown/unassessed	Open scientific literature

Ecotoxicology

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Suspected to be an environmental toxin	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List

Data gaps

CONCERN	REFERENCE
13585 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemical	NLM PubMed

Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)

CONCERN	REFERENCE
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
Not suspected to be persistent	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List
Not suspected to be bioaccumulative	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List

Open scientific/peer reviewed literature
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.
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.

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