EWG Skin Deep® | What is TRIETHYL CITRATE

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Data: Fair

Triethyl Citrate

IMAGE SOURCE: PubChem

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Other Concerns

SYNONYMS

1,2,3-PROPANETRICARBOXYLIC ACID, 2-HYDROXY-, TRIETHYL ESTER, 1,2,3PROPANETRICARBOXYLIC ACID, 2HYDROXY, TRIETHYL ESTER, 2-HYDROXY- TRIETHYL ESTER 1,2,3-PROPANETRICARBOXYLIC ACID, 2-HYDROXY-1,2,3-PROPANETRICARBOXYLIC ACID, TRIETHYL ESTER, CITRIC ACID, TRIETHYL ESTER, TRIETHYL CITRATE, TRIETHYL CITRATE; TRIETHYL CITRATE, TRIETHYL ESTER 1,2,3-PROPANETRICARBOXYLIC ACID, 2-HYDROXY-, TRIETHYL ESTER 2-HYDROXY-1,2,3-PROPANETRICARBOXYLIC ACID, and TRIETHYL ESTER CITRIC ACID

Restricted

Restricted: EWG VERIFIED products cannot contain this ingredient without adequate substantiation

Triethyl Citrate is a triester of ethyl alcohol and citric acid.

Common concerns

See how this product scores for common concerns.

LOW

Cancer
LOW

Allergies & Immunotoxicity
LOW

Developmental and Reproductive Toxicity
LOW

Use Restrictions

Ingredient concerns

CONCERNS
DATA SOURCES

Products with this Ingredient

antiperspirant/deodorant	74 products
foundation	66 products
shampoo	52 products
hair spray	51 products
moisturizer	43 products
concealer	42 products
conditioner	38 products
recreational sunscreen	37 products
facial moisturizer/treatment	34 products
facial cleanser	32 products
body wash/cleanser	31 products
lipstick	27 products
hair styling aide	20 products
hair treatment/serum	20 products
serums & essences	18 products
liquid hand soap	15 products
bar soap	15 products
antiperspirant/deodorant (men's)	13 products
brow liner	13 products
exfoliant/scrub	11 products
daily use with SPF	11 products
hand sanitizer	11 products
lip gloss	11 products
baby shampoo	10 products
CC cream	10 products
fragrance for men	10 products
baby soap	9 products
mask	8 products
eye shadow	7 products
hand cream	7 products
styling gel/lotion	7 products
baby lotion	6 products
bubble bath	6 products
fragrance for women	6 products
baby sunscreen	5 products
body spray	5 products
toners/astringents	5 products
detangler	5 products
makeup primer	5 products
body oil	4 products
blush	4 products
body firming lotion	3 products
makeup remover	3 products
eye liner	3 products
nail treatment	3 products
anti-aging	3 products
setting powder/spray	3 products
bath oil/salts/soak	3 products
BB cream	3 products
beard oil	2 products
around-eye cream	2 products
after sun product	2 products
sunless tanning	2 products
shaving cream	2 products
eye makeup remover	1 products
skin fading/lightener	1 products
shaving cream (men's)	1 products
beard care	1 products
nail polish	1 products
baby oil	1 products
after shave	1 products
styling mousse/foam	1 products
hair color and bleaching	1 products
lip balm with SPF	1 products

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
2137 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

Informational

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Industry or government recommendations for safe use: restrictions on concentration, impurities, product types, or manufacturing methods - any	Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments

Ecotoxicology

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

Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Classified as not expected to be potentially toxic or harmful	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List

Persistence and bioaccumulation

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Not suspected to be persistent	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List
Not suspected to be bioaccumulative	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List

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.
EC (Environment Canada). 2008. Domestic Substances List Categorization. Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Environmental Registry.

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