EWG Skin Deep® | What is METHYL SALICYLATE

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Data: Fair

Methyl Salicylate

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

Enhanced skin absorption and Use restrictions (high)

SYNONYMS

● 2-CARBOMETHOXYPHENOL

● 2-HYDROXY- METHYL ESTER BENZOIC ACID

● 2-HYDROXYBENZOIC ACID, METHYL ESTER

● BENZOIC ACID, 2-HYDROXY-, METHYL ESTER

● BENZOIC ACID, 2HYDROXY, METHYL ESTER

● BIRCH OIL, SWEET

● METHYL 2-HYDROXYBENZOATE

● METHYL ESTER 2-HYDROXYBENZOIC ACID

● METHYL ESTER BENZOIC ACID, 2-HYDROXY-

● METHYL ESTER SALICY LIC ACID

● METHYL SALICYLATE

● OIL (BETULA LENTA L.) BIRCH, SWEET

● OIL OF WINTERGREEN

● SALICY LIC ACID, METHYL ESTER

● SWEET BIRCH OIL

● SWEET OIL (BETULA LENTA L.) BIRCH

Restricted - Unaccpetable

The score of this ingredient can vary from Restricted to Unacceptable based on the method of product consumption. For instance, when used in aerosol-based products, this ingredient may pose a risk to respiratory health, leading to a higher score

Click here for more information about ingredient scores

Methyl salicylate is an anti-inflammatory ingredient common in pain relief creams for muscles and joints. Although the U.S. cosmetic industry's safety panel (Cosmetic Ingredient Review) considers this ingredient safe in products formulated to avoid irritation, a consumer's death in 2007 was linked to excessive exposure to a sports cream containing this chemical. In response, the manufacturer urged consumers to follow the directions for this over-the-counter drug.

Common concerns

See how this product scores for common concerns.

LOW

Cancer
HIGH

Allergies & Immunotoxicity
LOW

Developmental and Reproductive Toxicity
HIGH

Use Restrictions

Ingredient concerns

CONCERNS
DATA SOURCES

Products with this Ingredient

mouthwash	83 products
body powder	6 products
foot odor control	4 products
mask	2 products
moisturizer	2 products
muscle/joint soreness	2 products
shampoo	1 products
after shave	1 products
facial moisturizer/treatment	1 products
bath oil/salts/soak	1 products

Enhanced skin absorption

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Penetration enhancer	Open scientific literature

Allergies/immunotoxicity

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Known human any toxicant or allergen	Open scientific literature

Use restrictions

CONCERN	REFERENCE
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 - any	Open scientific literature
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

Developmental/reproductive toxicity

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Limited evidence of reproductive toxicity	Scorecard.org Toxicity Information

Cancer

CONCERN	REFERENCE
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

Data gaps

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Risk assessment method deficiencies and data gaps - any	Open scientific literature
2466 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemical	NLM PubMed

Ecotoxicology

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Not suspected to be an environmental toxin	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List

Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Classified as not expected to be potentially toxic or harmful	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

Informational

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Industry or government recommendations for safe use: restrictions on concentration, impurities, product types, or manufacturing methods - any	Open scientific literature

Multiple, additive exposure sources

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Designated as safe for general or specific, limited use in food	FDA Everything Added to Food

Open scientific/peer reviewed literature
Health Canada. 2007. List of Prohibited and Restricted Cosmetic Ingredients. Canada's Cosmetic Ingredient Hotlist. March 2007.
CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review). 2006. CIR Compendium, containing abstracts, discussions, and conclusions of CIR cosmetic ingredient safety assessments. Washington DC.
ED (Environmental Defense). 2006. Scorecard _ The Pollution Information Site. http://www.scorecard.org.
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.

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.

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Low Availability

Moderate Availability

High Availability