Sodium Hydroxide
- Products with this ingredient are allowed for use in EWG VERIFIED but must meet use restrictions and warnings based on EWG review of company data.
- Products with the EWG VERIFIED mark have met use restrictions and warnings based on EWG review of company data.
- This ingredient’s score is lower when used as a saponification agent (e.g., soaps and cleansers)
Other Concerns
Use restrictions (high), Non-reproductive organ system toxicity (moderate), and Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs) (low)SYNONYMS
CAUSTIC SODA, CAUSTIC SODA; SODIUM HYDROXIDE; SODIUM HYDROXIDE, SODIUM HYDRATE, SODIUM HYDROXIDE, SODIUM HYDROXIDE (NA(OH)), and SODIUM HYDROXIDE SOLUTIONRestricted
Restricted: EWG VERIFIED products cannot contain this ingredient without adequate substantiation
Sodium Hydroxide is a highly caustic and reactive inorganic base.
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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HIGHUse Restrictions
Ingredient concerns
- CONCERNS
- DATA SOURCES
Products with this Ingredient
moisturizer | 476 products |
facial moisturizer/treatment | 437 products |
shampoo | 390 products |
bar soap | 356 products |
body wash/cleanser | 295 products |
facial cleanser | 263 products |
conditioner | 219 products |
serums & essences | 218 products |
mask | 193 products |
exfoliant/scrub | 164 products |
hand cream | 130 products |
toothpaste | 126 products |
foundation | 109 products |
daily use with SPF | 102 products |
recreational sunscreen | 96 products |
around-eye cream | 94 products |
liquid hand soap | 94 products |
hair treatment/serum | 90 products |
toners/astringents | 85 products |
hair color and bleaching | 78 products |
mascara | 61 products |
eye shadow | 55 products |
body firming lotion | 54 products |
baby lotion | 47 products |
tooth whitening | 46 products |
makeup remover | 46 products |
eye liner | 44 products |
hair styling aide | 44 products |
styling gel/lotion | 42 products |
makeup primer | 41 products |
shaving cream | 36 products |
after shave | 28 products |
shaving cream (men's) | 25 products |
foot moisturizer | 24 products |
baby shampoo | 23 products |
bubble bath | 22 products |
after sun product | 22 products |
hand sanitizer | 22 products |
BB cream | 20 products |
anti-aging | 19 products |
brow liner | 19 products |
bronzer/highlighter | 17 products |
antiperspirant/deodorant (men's) | 16 products |
antiperspirant/deodorant | 16 products |
baby soap | 15 products |
concealer | 14 products |
setting powder/spray | 14 products |
hair spray | 13 products |
body spray | 13 products |
bath oil/salts/soak | 12 products |
blush | 11 products |
11 products | |
depilatory | 10 products |
skin fading/lightener | 10 products |
sunless tanning | 10 products |
styling mousse/foam | 9 products |
mouthwash | 8 products |
detangler | 8 products |
damaged skin treatment | 8 products |
lipstick | 7 products |
beard care | 7 products |
baby wipes | 6 products |
hair-loss treatment | 6 products |
baby sunscreen | 6 products |
foot cleansing | 5 products |
oil controller | 5 products |
eye makeup remover | 5 products |
foot odor control | 5 products |
baby oil | 4 products |
body oil | 4 products |
nail treatment | 3 products |
muscle/joint soreness | 3 products |
hair relaxer | 3 products |
other eye makeup | 3 products |
cuticle treatment | 2 products |
glitter | 2 products |
fragrance for women | 1 products |
depilatory (men's) | 1 products |
baby bubble bath | 1 products |
lip balm | 1 products |
lip plumper | 1 products |
hair removal waxes | 1 products |
lip gloss | 1 products |
fragrance for men | 1 products |
beard cleanser | 1 products |
body art | 1 products |
baby toothpaste | 1 products |
pore strips | 1 products |
Use restrictions
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Violation of industry recommendations - Restricted in cosmetics; use, concentration, or manufacturing restrictions - Avoid or minimize skin exposure: recommendation from industry safety panel (Cosmetic Ingredient Review, CIR) | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
Restricted in cosmetics (recommendations or requirements) - use, concentration, or manufacturing restrictions - any | CosIng |
Determined safe for use in cosmetics, subject to concentration or use limitations - Safe for use in cosmetics with some qualifications | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Classified as expected to be toxic or harmful | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Classified as medium human health priority | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Occupational hazards
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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Single case study detailing occupational hazards | National Library of Medicine HazMap |
Miscellaneous
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Occupational hazards related to handling | CPS&Q - Classification & Labelling |
Ecotoxicology
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
Not suspected to be an environmental toxin | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Persistence and bioaccumulation
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
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 - Avoid or minimize skin exposure: recommendation from industry safety panel (Cosmetic Ingredient Review, CIR) | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
Multiple, additive exposure sources
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
---|---|
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 |
Data gaps
CONCERN | REFERENCE |
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7043 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemical | NLM PubMed |
- CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review). 2006. CIR Compendium, containing abstracts, discussions, and conclusions of CIR cosmetic ingredient safety assessments. Washington DC.
- European Commission. 2013. Cosing, the European Commission database with information on cosmetic substances and ingredients. Accessed on March 1, 2013 at http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/cosmetics/cosing/ .
- EC (Environment Canada). 2008. Domestic Substances List Categorization. Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Environmental Registry.
- NLM (National Library of Medicine). 2006. HazMap — Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Agents.
- CPS&Q (Consumer Products Safety & Quality) formely known as ECB (European Chemicals Bureau). 2008. Classification and Labelling: Chemicals: Annex VI of Directive 67/548/EEC through the 31st ATP.
- 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.
- 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 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.