Survey and health assessment of cosmetic products ... - Miljøstyrelsen

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Issues that are of importance for the self-preservation of cosmetic products
were discussed in the report:
� Production method. Good Manufacture Practice (GMP) covers
aspects like disinfection of equipment, preparation under strictly
aseptic conditions and so on.
� Container design. Appropriate packaging like use of dispensing
mechanisms that make the entry of microorganisms into the product
very difficult.
� Chemical composition of the product. Self-preservation of a cosmetic
product can be controlled by use of e.g.
o humectants that retains the moisture (water) in the formulation,
which is needed for bacterial growth,
o acids to lower the pH of the formulation, which slows the
growth rate of bacteria,
o alcohols, which in high concentrations can inhibit bacteria
growth, but in lower concentrations also can retain the moisture
in the formulation,
o substances with antimicrobial properties, like e.g. essential oils
(fragrances) or antioxidants.
In order to manage the product information from the investigated products a
database, containing all information about the products, was used. Of these
four fragrances (citral, geraniol, limonene, and linalool) were selected - all
having antimicrobial properties described in the literature. 21 different
cosmetic products were analysed quantitatively at Eurofins for the content of
these four fragrances in order to learn if the content was at a level that can be
preserving. Subsequently a brief health and risk assessments of the four
fragrances were performed.
Project results
The investigated products
A database containing all information about the “non-preserved” and
“naturally-preserved” cosmetic products available on the Danish market was
prepared. An almost equal amount of “non-preserved” products (45) and
“naturally-preserved” products (44) was found and entered into the database.
In the 89 cosmetic products 459 different substances were found.
The survey showed that the most frequent types of cosmetic products that are
either “non-preserved” or “naturally-preserved” are body lotion, day
cream/facial cream, body shampoo/bath gel, cleansing lotion, shampoo and
facial spray/toners.
For several products the statement of “non-preserved” or “naturallypreserved”
could only be found on the website, not on the actual product
itself.
Content of ingredients with antibacterial/antimicrobial properties
It was investigated whether the “non- and naturally-preserved” cosmetic
properties instead of preservatives contained other ingredients with
antibacterial/antimicrobial properties. The results showed that several of the
“non-preserved” products contained antimicrobial ingredients, like e.g.
alcohol or essential oils.