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Data: Fair

Sulisobenzone

IMAGE SOURCE: PubChem

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Other Concerns

Enhanced skin absorption, Endocrine disruption (low), Non-reproductive organ system toxicity (low), and Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs) (moderate)

SYNONYMS

1-PHENOL-4-SULFONIC ACID, 2-BENZOYL-5-METHOXY-, 1-PHENOL-4-SULFONIC ACID, 2-BENZOYL-5-METHOXY- (6CI), 2-BENZOYL-5-METHOXY- 1-PHENOL-4-SULFONIC ACID, 2-HYDROXY-4-METHOXYBENZOPHENONE- 5-SULFONIC ACID, 2-HYDROXY-4-METHOXYBENZOPHENONE-5-SULFONIC ACID, 5-BENZOYL-4-HYDROXY-2-METHOXY- BENZENESULFONIC ACID, 5-BENZOYL-4-HYDROXY-2-METHOXYBENESULFONIC ACID, 5-BENZOYL-4-HYDROXY-2-METHOXYBENZENE SULFONIC ACID, 5-BENZOYL-4-HYDROXY-2-METHOXYBENZENESULFONIC ACID, 5-BENZOYL-4-HYDROXY-2-METHOXYBENZOLSULFONSAEURE, B4, BENZENESULFONIC ACID, 5-BENZOYL-4-HYDROXY-2-METHOXY-, BENZENESULFONIC ACID, 5BENZOYL4HYDROXY2METHOXY, BENZOPHENONE 4, BENZOPHENONE-4, BRN 2889165, EINECS 223-772-2, MS 40, NSC 60548, NSC 60584, SEESORB 101S, SPECTRA-SORB UV 284, SULISOBENZONA, SULISOBENZONE, SULISOBENZONE (BENZOPHENONE-4), SULISOBENZONUM, SUNGARD, SYNTASE 230, UVAL, UVINUC MS 40, UVINUL, UVINUL MS 40, and UVINUL MS-40 SUBSTANZ

Unacceptable

Unacceptable: EWG VERIFIED products cannot contain this ingredient

Sulisobenzone (benzophenone-4) is a sunscreen ingredient; can cause skin and eye irritation. Does not penetrate the skin to a large degree, but enhances the ability of other chemicals to penetrate.

Common concerns

See how this product scores for common concerns.

  • LOW
    Cancer
  • MODERATE
    Allergies & Immunotoxicity
  • LOW
    Developmental and Reproductive Toxicity
  • LOW
    Use Restrictions

Ingredient concerns

  • CONCERNS
  • DATA SOURCES

Products with this Ingredient

Expand content Collapse content
liquid hand soap97 products
shampoo70 products
body wash/cleanser43 products
hair styling aide34 products
conditioner29 products
moisturizer28 products
hand sanitizer22 products
styling gel/lotion17 products
facial cleanser16 products
hair treatment/serum16 products
styling mousse/foam14 products
after sun product13 products
mask13 products
hair spray13 products
bubble bath12 products
bath oil/salts/soak12 products
toners/astringents7 products
hand cream7 products
facial moisturizer/treatment5 products
after shave5 products
makeup primer4 products
hair color and bleaching4 products
makeup remover3 products
hair-loss treatment3 products
serums & essences3 products
exfoliant/scrub3 products
body firming lotion2 products
baby soap1 products
antiperspirant/deodorant (men's)1 products
fragrance for women1 products
damaged skin treatment1 products
nail treatment1 products
sunless tanning1 products
around-eye cream1 products
bar soap1 products
baby shampoo1 products
shaving cream (men's)1 products
setting powder/spray1 products
polish remover1 products

Enhanced skin absorption

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Penetration enhancerOpen scientific literature
Absorbs into the skinOpen scientific literature

Allergies/immunotoxicity

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Human skin toxicant or allergen - strong evidenceCosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments
Human skin toxicant or allergen - strong evidenceEWG Assessment of Open Scientific Literature
One or more human case studies show possible photoallergic or allergenic effectsOpen scientific literature
One or more human case studies show equivocal photoallergic or allergenic effectsOpen scientific literature

Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs)

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Human any irritant - strong evidenceCosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments
Not likely to be a skin irritant in humansOpen scientific literature

Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)

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CONCERN REFERENCE
One or more animal studies show sense effects at moderate doses (low dose studies may be unavailable for this ingredient)Open scientific literature
One or more animal studies show broad systemic 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 harmfulEnvironment Canada Domestic Substance List

Endocrine disruption

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Associated with endocrine disruptionOpen scientific literature

Data gaps

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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 productCosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments
13180 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemicalNLM PubMed

Persistence and bioaccumulation

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Not suspected to be bioaccumulativeEnvironment Canada Domestic Substance List
Not suspected to be persistentEnvironment Canada Domestic Substance List

Cancer

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Not likely to be mutagenic in humansOpen scientific literature

Ecotoxicology

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

Informational

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CONCERN REFERENCE
Industry or government recommendations for safe use: restrictions on concentration, impurities, product types, or manufacturing methods - anyCosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments
  • Open scientific/peer reviewed literature
  • CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review). 2006. CIR Compendium, containing abstracts, discussions, and conclusions of CIR cosmetic ingredient safety assessments. Washington DC.
  • EWG Assessment of Open Scientific Literature
  • 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.

Score legend
WEIGHT-OF-EVIDENCE APPROACH

A product’s hazard score is not an average of the ingredients’ hazard scores. It is calculated using a weight-of-evidence approach that factors in all of the hazards or health impacts associated with the ingredients.

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
NONE

Ingredients have not been assessed.

LIMITED-FAIR

There is only a modest volume of research.

GOOD-ROBUST

Ingredients have been studied extensively.

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