EWG Skin Deep® | What is BASIC GREEN 4

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Data: Good

Basic Green 4

IMAGE SOURCE: PubChem

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Other Concerns

Use restrictions (high), Persistence and bioaccumulation (moderate), Non-reproductive organ system toxicity (moderate), Ecotoxicology (low), Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs) (high), and Occupational hazards (high)

SYNONYMS

BASIC GREEN 4, C.I. BASIC GREEN 4, CHLORIDE N-[4-[[4-(DIMETHYLAMINO)PHENYL]PHENYLMETHYLENE]-2,5-CYCLOHEXADIEN-1-YLIDENE]-N-METHYL-, CI 42000, MALACHITE GREEN, METHANAMINIUM, N[4[[4(DIMETHYLAMINO)PHENYL]PHENYLMETHYLENE]2,5CYCLOHEXADIEN1YLIDENE]NMETHYL, CHLORIDE, N-[4-[[4-(DIMETHYLAMINO)PHENYL]PHENYLMETHYLENE]-2,5-CYCLOHEXADIEN-1-YLIDENE]-N-METHYL-, CHLORIDE, N-[4-[[4-(DIMETHYLAMINO)PHENYL]PHENYLMETHYLENE]-2,5-CYCLOHEXADIEN-1-YLIDENE]-N-METHYL-METHANAMINIUM, CHLORIDE, and [4-[ALPHA-[4-(DIMETHYLAMINO)PHENYL]BENZYLIDENE]CYCLOHEXA-2,5-DIEN-1-YLIDENE]DIMETHYLAMMONIUM CHLORIDE

Basic Green 4 is a triphenylmethane color.

Common concerns

See how this product scores for common concerns.

MODERATE

Cancer
LOW

Allergies & Immunotoxicity
MODERATE

Developmental and Reingredientive Toxicity
HIGH

Use Restrictions

Ingredient concerns

CONCERNS
DATA SOURCES

Products with this Ingredient

conditioner	44 products
hair color and bleaching	6 products

Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs)

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Classified as irritant	CPS&Q - Classification & Labelling

Use restrictions

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Violation of government restrictions - Banned or found unsafe for use in cosmetics	CosIng
Determined safe for use in cosmetics, subject to concentration or use limitations - any	CTFA International Cosmetic Ingredient Dictionary and Handbook

Occupational hazards

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Allowed workplace exposures restricted to low doses	CPS&Q - Classification & Labelling

Persistence and bioaccumulation

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Persistent or bioaccumulative and moderate to high toxicity concern in humans	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List

Cancer

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Possible human carcinogen	NTP - Tumor Induction in Mammary Gland
One or more human case studies show possible cancer findings	NTP - Tumor Induction in Mammary Gland
Cancer - limited evidence	CTFA International Cosmetic Ingredient Dictionary and Handbook

Developmental/reproductive toxicity

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Limited evidence of developmental toxicity	CPS&Q - Classification & Labelling

Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Limited evidence of eye toxicity	CPS&Q - Classification & Labelling
Classified as medium human health priority	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List
Classified as expected to be toxic or harmful	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List
One or more animal studies show classified as toxic effects at low doses	EPA Categorized List of Inert Pesticide Ingredients
Classified as toxic or harmful	CPS&Q - Classification & Labelling
Limited evidence of sense organ toxicity	Scorecard.org Toxicity Information
One or more animal studies show classified as toxic effects at moderate doses (low dose studies may be unavailable for this ingredient)	EPA Toxic Release Inventory PBTs

Ecotoxicology

CONCERN	REFERENCE
Wildlife and environmental toxicity	CPS&Q - Classification & Labelling
Suspected to be an environmental toxin and be persistent or bioaccumulative	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List
Suspected to be an environmental toxin	Environment Canada Domestic Substance List

Data gaps

CONCERN	REFERENCE
1393 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemical	NLM PubMed

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.
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/ .
CTFA (Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Association). 2006. International Cosmetic Ingredient Dictionary and Handbook, 11th Edition. Color Additive Information. Washington, DC.
EC (Environment Canada). 2008. Domestic Substances List Categorization. Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Environmental Registry.
NTP (National Toxicology Program) 2006. Chemicals Associated with Site-Specific Tumor Induction in Mammary Gland.
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.
ED (Environmental Defense). 2006. Scorecard _ The Pollution Information Site. http://www.scorecard.org.
EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency). 1999. Toxics Release Inventory Program. PBT Chemical Rule.
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.

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Moderate Availability

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