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TRIETHANOLAMINE
Score:
Data: Good
- Other Concerns
- Functions
- About the Chemical
- Synonyms
-
Use restrictions (moderate), Non-reproductive organ system toxicity (moderate), and Contamination concerns (high)
Cancer 
Cancer: Ingredients linked to cancer in government, industry or academic studies or assessments.
Developmental & Reproductive Toxicity
Developmental and reproductive toxicity: Ingredients linked to developmental and reproductive toxicity, a broad class of health effects that range from infertility and reproductive organ cancers to birth defects and developmental delays in children.
Allergies & Immunotoxicity
Allergies and immunotoxicity: Ingredients linked to harm to the immune system, a class of health problems that manifest as allergic reactions or an impaired capacity to fight disease and repair damaged tissue in the body.
Products with this Ingredient
| moisturizer | 213 products |
| mascara | 171 products |
| hand sanitizer | 117 products |
| shaving cream | 116 products |
| foundation | 107 products |
| facial moisturizer/treatment | 95 products |
| mask | 91 products |
| recreational sunscreen | 82 products |
| hair styling aide | 70 products |
| after sun product | 57 products |
| styling gel/lotion | 50 products |
| facial cleanser | 43 products |
| exfoliant/scrub | 41 products |
| shaving cream (men's) | 39 products |
| serums & essences | 39 products |
| daily use with SPF | 39 products |
| brow liner | 30 products |
| hair color and bleaching | 30 products |
| around-eye cream | 25 products |
| hand cream | 21 products |
| body firming lotion | 21 products |
| hair treatment/serum | 21 products |
| eye shadow | 20 products |
| eye liner | 19 products |
| glitter | 19 products |
| baby sunscreen | 16 products |
| shampoo | 15 products |
| makeup primer | 13 products |
| foot moisturizer | 12 products |
| anti-aging | 12 products |
| body wash/cleanser | 10 products |
| toners/astringents | 10 products |
| bronzer/highlighter | 10 products |
| body spray | 9 products |
| baby lotion | 7 products |
| concealer | 7 products |
| conditioner | 7 products |
| after shave | 6 products |
| makeup remover | 6 products |
| hair spray | 6 products |
| muscle/joint soreness | 6 products |
| tooth whitening | 6 products |
| fragrance for women | 5 products |
| bar soap | 5 products |
| liquid hand soap | 4 products |
| 4 products | |
| foot cleansing | 3 products |
| nail polish | 3 products |
| bubble bath | 3 products |
| damaged skin treatment | 3 products |
| beard care | 3 products |
| lip balm | 2 products |
| tanning oil | 2 products |
| sunless tanning | 2 products |
| eyelash glue | 2 products |
| skin fading/lightener | 1 products |
| depilatory | 1 products |
| lipstick | 1 products |
| fragrance for men | 1 products |
| detangler | 1 products |
| nail treatment | 1 products |
| hair-loss treatment | 1 products |
| styling mousse/foam | 1 products |
| cuticle treatment | 1 products |
| other eye makeup | 1 products |
| antiperspirant/deodorant | 1 products |
| foot odor control | 1 products |
| setting powder/spray | 1 products |
| body art | 1 products |
| polish remover | 1 products |
| pore strips | 1 products |
| lip plumper | 1 products |
Contamination concerns
| Chemical |
|---|
| NITROSAMINES |
Allergies/immunotoxicity
| Concern | Reference |
|---|---|
| Human skin toxicant or allergen - strong evidence | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments |
| Human immune and respiratory toxicant or allergen - strong evidence | Association of Occupational and Environmental Clinics |
| Limited evidence of immune system toxicity or allergies | National Library of Medicine HazMap |
Use restrictions
| Concern | Reference |
|---|---|
| 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 |
| One or more animal studies show any effects at moderate doses (low dose studies may be unavailable for this ingredient) | EPA Categorized List of Inert Pesticide Ingredients |
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 |
| 22829 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemical | NLM PubMed |
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 |
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 |
Cancer
| Concern | Reference |
|---|---|
| Limited or incomplete evidence of cancer according to safety/hazard data – government assessment cannot classify as human carcinogen due to data gaps | Int'l Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) - Carcinogens |
Data Sources
- CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review). 2006. CIR Compendium, containing abstracts, discussions, and conclusions of CIR cosmetic ingredient safety assessments. Washington DC.
- AOEC (Association of Occupational and Environmental Clinics). 2009. AEOC exposures codes and asthmagen designation.
- NLM (National Library of Medicine). 2006. HazMap — Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Agents.
- 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.
- EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency). 1987 & 2005. Office of Pesticide Programs. Inert (other) Pesticide Ingredients in Pesticide Products - Categorized List of Inert (other) Pesticide Ingredients.
- 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.
- IARC (International Agency for Research on Cancer). 2008. Overall Evaluations of Carcinogenicity to Humans, as evaluated in IARC Monographs Volumes 1-99 (a total of 935 agents, mixtures and exposures).
ABOUT THE SKIN DEEP® RATINGS
EWG provides information on personal care product ingredients from the published scientific literature, to supplement incomplete data available from companies and the government. The ratings below indicate the relative level of concern posed by exposure to the ingredients in this product - not the product itself - compared to other product formulations. The ratings reflect potential health hazards but do not account for the level of exposure or individual susceptibility, factors which determine actual health risks, if any. Learn more | Legal Disclaimer
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