32 Ingredients Prohibited in All Types of Cosmetics

The ingredients of cosmetics are combined so as to give the aimed product form, which depend on the category of cosmetics (shampoos, conditioners, creams, facial toner, body shampoo, lipsticks, foundations, etc.), and to match the purpose of the product. All the categories of cosmetics will be briefly discussed before listing out the 32 ingredients prohibited in all types of cosmetics.

• Toilet soaps and cleansers are for removing filth from the skin. There are toilet soaps, which are solid, and body shampoos and facial cleansers, which are either cream or liquid.

• Shampoos are for cleansing the scalp and hair. Anionic surfactants are used as the major cleansing agent, and amphoteric surfactants are also combined as the second cleansing agent.

• Conditioners are applied after shampooing hair and are also called “hair treatment,”“hair pack,” and “hair rinse” depending on the contents of proteins, amino acids, and other effective components for repairing hair damage.

• Creams are for caring the skin of the face, hands, and other parts of the body.Product forms may be creams, milky lotions and gels. The purposes are diverse and include repairing the skin from damage, moisturizing the skin, whitening the skin and blotches, and protecting the skin from ultraviolet rays.

• There are hair care products of diverse purposes, such as for caring hair, improving the texture and styling. Product forms are also diverse and range from liquids to solids. There are hair mists, hair creams, waxes, styling agents, and hair oils.

• Constituents vary depending on purpose and product form and can be all kinds of surfactants, oil, polymer, and glycol.

• Cosmetic products that mainly consist of oils include cleansing oils, self-emulsifying bath oils, body massage oils, hair oils, lipsticks, and solid lip rouges.

• Facial toner is designed by combining moisturizing agents so as to moisturize, soften, smoothen, firm up and give luster to the skin. It may also contain vitamin C derivatives for whitening, and fermentation extracts are included in some quasi-drug products for antiaging and wrinkle prevention. Many products also contain ceramides, vitamins, sterols, vegetable extracts, and other efficacious components.

Points to note about cosmetic ingredients

• Not irritate or be toxic to the skin
• Not disturb the physiological functions of the skin
• Be stable and not undergo changes in color and smell
• Not separate, not coagulate, not precipitate, and not undergo changes in property
• Not undergo big changes in viscosity by passage of time or temperature changes
• Suppress the development of bacteria and secondary pollution

List of Ingredients Prohibited in all types of cosmetics

1. 6-Acetoxy-2,4-dimethyl-m-dioxane
2. Antihistamines except those of aminoether type (such as diphenhydramine)
3. Ingredients derived from cattle and other ruminants raised in an area other than the following countries: USA, Argentina, India, Uruguay, El Salvador, Australia, Canada,Kenya, Costa Rica, Colombia, Singapore, Swaziland, Chile, Nigeria, Namibia, Nicaragua, New Zealand, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Brazil, Botswana, Mauritius
4. Ingredients produced from the following parts of cattle or other ruminants: Pituitary,thymus, dura mater, pineal gland, spinal cord, placenta, intestine, brain, cerebrospinal fluid,spleen, adrenal glands, tonsils, eyes, lymph nodes
5. Hormones and those derivatives except estradiol, estrone, and ethinylestradiol
6. Vinyl chloride monomer
7. Methylene chloride
8. Bismuth compounds other than bismuth oxychloride
9. Hydrogen peroxide
10. Cadmium compounds
11. Sodium perborate
12. Chloroform
13.  Progrenolone acetate
14. Dichlorophene
15. Mercury and its compounds
16. Strontium compounds
17. Sulfamide and its derivatives
18. Selenium compounds
19. Nitrofuran-type compounds
20. Hydroquinone monobenzylether
21. Halogenated salicylanilide
22. Vitamin L1 and Vitamin L2
23. Bithionol
24. Pilocalpine
25. Pyrogallol
26. Inorganic fluorine compounds
27. Pregnanediol
28. Local anesthetics such as procaine
29. Hexachlorophen
30. Boric acid
31. Formalin
32. Methyl alcohol

Subsequent post will  highlight why these ingredients are prohibited.