Polysorbate 20
- Products with the EWG VERIFIED mark have met the program’s impurity and use restrictions based on EWG's review of the company's data.
Other Concerns
Use restrictions (low), Non-reproductive organ system toxicity (low), Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs) (low), and Contamination concerns (high)SYNONYMS
Restricted
Restricted: EWG VERIFIED products cannot contain this ingredient without adequate substantiation
Polysorbate 20 (Tween 20) is a surfactant and emulsifier used in cleaners and personal care 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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LOWUse Restrictions
Ingredient concerns
- CONCERNS
- DATA SOURCES
Products with this Ingredient
shampoo | 248 products |
facial moisturizer/treatment | 222 products |
serums & essences | 215 products |
body wash/cleanser | 171 products |
hair styling aide | 157 products |
foundation | 133 products |
mask | 130 products |
exfoliant/scrub | 126 products |
hair treatment/serum | 126 products |
facial cleanser | 125 products |
conditioner | 124 products |
moisturizer | 123 products |
toners/astringents | 110 products |
styling gel/lotion | 98 products |
liquid hand soap | 94 products |
around-eye cream | 86 products |
baby wipes | 70 products |
eye liner | 67 products |
daily use with SPF | 65 products |
styling mousse/foam | 57 products |
bronzer/highlighter | 46 products |
makeup remover | 46 products |
body spray | 45 products |
sunless tanning | 44 products |
hair spray | 43 products |
recreational sunscreen | 41 products |
CC cream | 40 products |
anti-aging | 29 products |
makeup primer | 27 products |
antiperspirant/deodorant | 26 products |
bath oil/salts/soak | 24 products |
after sun product | 24 products |
hand sanitizer | 24 products |
mouthwash | 23 products |
eye shadow | 23 products |
setting powder/spray | 22 products |
mascara | 21 products |
blush | 19 products |
hand cream | 18 products |
body cleansing wipes | 18 products |
detangler | 17 products |
brow liner | 17 products |
lipstick | 16 products |
hair color and bleaching | 14 products |
shaving cream | 13 products |
body firming lotion | 13 products |
bubble bath | 13 products |
facial cleansing wipes | 12 products |
after shave | 11 products |
BB cream | 11 products |
facial powder | 10 products |
10 products | |
antiperspirant/deodorant (men's) | 9 products |
concealer | 8 products |
foot moisturizer | 7 products |
hair-loss treatment | 7 products |
baby lotion | 7 products |
shaving cream (men's) | 6 products |
body oil | 6 products |
makeup removing wipes | 6 products |
polish remover | 5 products |
other eye makeup | 5 products |
baby sunscreen | 5 products |
lip liner | 5 products |
nail treatment | 4 products |
baby shampoo | 4 products |
skin fading/lightener | 4 products |
muscle/joint soreness | 4 products |
beard care | 4 products |
eye makeup remover | 3 products |
foot cleansing | 3 products |
baby soap | 3 products |
cuticle treatment | 3 products |
foot odor control | 3 products |
lip balm | 3 products |
beard cleanser | 3 products |
eyelash glue | 3 products |
tanning oil | 2 products |
baby bubble bath | 2 products |
lip gloss | 2 products |
glitter | 2 products |
baby oil | 2 products |
tooth whitening | 1 products |
fragrance for men | 1 products |
fragrance for women | 1 products |
depilatory | 1 products |
beard oil | 1 products |
diaper cream | 1 products |
nail polish | 1 products |
lip plumper | 1 products |
baby powder | 1 products |
nail glue | 1 products |
body art | 1 products |
Contamination concerns
Chemical |
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ETHYLENE OXIDE |
1,4-DIOXANE |
Allergies/immunotoxicity
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Limited evidence of any toxicity or allergies | Open scientific literature |
Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Limited evidence of sense organ toxicity | Scorecard.org Toxicity Information |
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 |
Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs)
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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any irritation - weight of evidence unknown/unassessed | Open scientific literature |
Use restrictions
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Determined safe for use in cosmetics, subject to concentration or use limitations - any | Open scientific literature |
Data gaps
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
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 |
2265 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemical | NLM PubMed |
Multiple, additive exposure sources
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Designated as safe for general or specific, limited use in food | FDA Food Additive Status |
Designated as safe for general or specific, limited use in food | FDA Everything Added to Food |
Informational
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Industry or government recommendations for safe use: restrictions on concentration, impurities, product types, or manufacturing methods - any | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
Ecotoxicology
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Not suspected to be an environmental toxin | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
- Open scientific/peer reviewed literature
- ED (Environmental Defense). 2006. Scorecard _ The Pollution Information Site. http://www.scorecard.org.
- EC (Environment Canada). 2008. Domestic Substances List Categorization. Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Environmental Registry.
- CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review). 2006. CIR Compendium, containing abstracts, discussions, and conclusions of CIR cosmetic ingredient safety assessments. Washington DC.
- NLM (National Library of Medicine). 2012. PubMed online scientific bibliography data. http://www.pubmed.gov.
- 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.
- 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 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.