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HOW WE DETERMINE SCORES Learn more About EWG VERIFIED®

Data: Fair

Linolenic 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 (low), Non-reproductive organ system toxicity (moderate), and Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs) (low)

SYNONYMS

● 9,12,15-OCTADECATRIENOIC ACID
● 9,12,15-OCTADECATRIENOIC ACID, (9Z,12Z,15Z)-
● 9,12,15OCTADECATRIENOIC ACID, (Z,Z,Z)
● LINOLENIC ACID

Restricted

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

Linolenic Acid is an unsaturated 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

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foundation18 products
moisturizer17 products
facial moisturizer/treatment16 products
lipstick10 products
lip balm9 products
hair treatment/serum9 products
mask7 products
blush7 products
serums & essences7 products
facial cleanser5 products
around-eye cream4 products
conditioner4 products
shampoo3 products
bronzer/highlighter3 products
body wash/cleanser2 products
body firming lotion2 products
anti-aging2 products
toners/astringents2 products
hair-loss treatment1 products
baby oil1 products
bar soap1 products
exfoliant/scrub1 products
body oil1 products
lip gloss1 products
antiperspirant/deodorant1 products
daily use with SPF1 products
recreational sunscreen1 products
baby lotion1 products
hand cream1 products

Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Classified as expected to be toxic or harmfulEnvironment Canada Domestic Substance List
Classified as medium human health priorityEnvironment Canada Domestic Substance List

Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs)

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

Use restrictions

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

Allergies/immunotoxicity

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

Ecotoxicology

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Suspected to be an environmental toxinEnvironment 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
6378 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemicalNLM PubMed
  • EC (Environment Canada). 2008. Domestic Substances List Categorization. Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Environmental Registry.
  • Open scientific/peer reviewed literature
  • 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?

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