EWG Skin Deep® | What is OCTINOXATE

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Data: Fair

Octinoxate

IMAGE SOURCE: PubChem

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Other Concerns

Enhanced skin absorption, Endocrine disruption (moderate), Persistence and bioaccumulation (low), Non-reproductive organ system toxicity (low), and Biochemical or cellular level changes (high)

SYNONYMS

2-ETHYLHEXYL P-METHOXYCINNAMATE, 2-ETHYLHEXYL 4-METHOXYCINNAMATE, 2-ETHYLHEXYL ESTER 2-PROPENOIC ACID, 3-(4-METHOXYPHENY L)-, 2-ETHYLHEXYL ESTER 3-(4-METHOXYPHENYL)-2-PROPENOIC ACID, 2-ETHYLHEXYL ESTER P-METHOXYCINNAMIC ACID, 2-ETHYLHEXYL METHOXYCINNAMATE, 2-ETHYLHEXYL P-METHOXYCINNAMATE, 2-ETHYLHEXYL-4-METHOXYCINNAMATE, 2-PROPENOIC ACID, 3-(4-METHOXYPHENY L)-, 2-ETHYLHEXYL ESTER, 2-PROPENOIC ACID, 3-(4-METHOXYPHENYL)-, 2-ETHYLHEXYL ESTER, 2-PROPENOIC ACID, 3-(4-METHOXYPHENYL)-, 2-ETHYLHEXYL ESTER;2-ETHYLHEXYL-P-METHOXYCINNAMATE, 2PROPENOIC ACID, 3(4METHOXYPHENYL), 2ETHYLHEXYL ESTER, 3-(4-METHOXYPHENY L)- 2-ETHYLHEXYL ESTER 2-PROPENOIC ACID, 3-(4-METHOXYPHENYL)-2-PROPENOIC ACID, 2-ETHYLHEXYL ESTER, AI3-05710, CCRIS 6200, EINECS 226-775-7, ESCALOL, ETHYLHEXYL METHOXYCINNAMATE, NEO HELIOPAN, NSC 26466, OCTINOXATE, OCTINOXATE (OCTYL METHOXYCINNAMATE), OCTYL METHOXYCINNAMATE, OMC, P-METHOXYCINNAMIC ACID, 2-ETHYLHEXYL ESTER, and PARSOL MOX

Restricted

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

This common sunscreen ingredient is shown to have hormone-mimicking effects on laboratory animals. This chemical is found in humans, including mothers' milk samples.

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

foundation	386 products
daily use with SPF	236 products
fragrance for women	170 products
lip balm with SPF	119 products
fragrance for men	85 products
lipstick	65 products
hair treatment/serum	57 products
hair spray	56 products
recreational sunscreen	52 products
body spray	47 products
conditioner	45 products
BB cream	38 products
	35 products
hair styling aide	34 products
CC cream	34 products
shampoo	34 products
facial moisturizer/treatment	28 products
moisturizer	23 products
makeup primer	18 products
concealer	17 products
body wash/cleanser	14 products
lip gloss	13 products
lip balm	11 products
anti-aging	10 products
serums & essences	9 products
after shave	7 products
blush	7 products
styling mousse/foam	7 products
baby sunscreen	7 products
eye shadow	5 products
detangler	5 products
styling gel/lotion	5 products
body oil	5 products
lip plumper	4 products
facial cleanser	4 products
hand sanitizer	4 products
setting powder/spray	3 products
hair color and bleaching	3 products
liquid hand soap	3 products
bronzer/highlighter	3 products
mask	3 products
facial powder	2 products
exfoliant/scrub	2 products
around-eye cream	2 products
glitter	2 products
tanning oil	1 products
eye liner	1 products
after sun product	1 products
toners/astringents	1 products
skin fading/lightener	1 products
sunless tanning	1 products

Enhanced skin absorption

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Penetration enhancer	Open scientific literature
Absorbs into the skin	Open scientific literature

Biochemical or cellular level changes

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Produces excess reactive oxygen species that can interfere with cellular signaling, cause mutations, lead to cell death and may be implicated in cardiovascular disease.	Open scientific literature

Endocrine disruption

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Human endocrine disruptor - strong evidence	European Commission on Endocrine Disruption
One or more studies show significant wildlife and the environment disruption	European Commission on Endocrine Disruption
One or more studies show moderate endocrine disruption	Open scientific literature
One or more studies show weak endocrine disruption	Open scientific literature
Associated with endocrine disruption	Open scientific literature

Allergies/immunotoxicity

CONCERN	REFERENCE
One or more human case studies show possible photoallergic or allergenic effects	Open scientific literature

Persistence and bioaccumulation

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Ingredient is suspected or measured to accumulate in people	Open scientific literature
Not suspected to be bioaccumulative	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List
Not suspected to be persistent	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List

Developmental/reproductive toxicity

CONCERN	REFERENCE
One or more animal studies show reproductive effects at moderate doses	Open scientific literature
One or more animal studies show reproductive effects at high doses	Open scientific literature

Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)

CONCERN	REFERENCE
One or more animal studies show liver effects at high doses (low dose studies may be unavailable for this ingredient)	Open scientific literature
Classified as not expected to be potentially toxic or harmful	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List

Ecotoxicology

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Wildlife and environmental toxicity	Open scientific literature
Not suspected to be an environmental toxin	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List

Data gaps

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

Open scientific/peer reviewed literature
EU (European Union)- Strategy for Endocrine Disrupters 2007. Commision on endocrin disruption requested by the European Parliament in 1998.
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.

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Moderate Availability

High Availability