EWG Skin Deep® | What is SODIUM HYDROXIDE

HOW WE DETERMINE SCORES Learn more About EWG VERIFIED™

Data: Fair

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)

IMAGE SOURCE: PubChem

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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 SOLUTION

Restricted

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.

LOW

Cancer
LOW

Allergies & Immunotoxicity
LOW

Developmental and Reproductive Toxicity
HIGH

Use 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
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
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
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 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.

NONE LIMITED FAIR GOOD ROBUST

Low Availability

Moderate Availability

High Availability