Controversy around parabens: Alternative strategies for preservative use in cosmetics and personal care products.

Karolina Nowak, Ewa Jabłońska, Wioletta Ratajczak-Wrona

Journal: Environmental research 2021;198():110488

PMID: 33221305

Full Text on Elsevier Science View on PubMed

Abstract

Parabens usage as preservatives in cosmetics and personal care products have been debated among scientists and consumers. Parabens are easy to production, effective and cheap, but its safety status remains controversial. Other popular cosmetics preservatives are formaldehyde, triclosan, methylisothiazolinone, methylchloroisothiazolinone, phenoxyethanol, benzyl alcohol and sodium benzoate. Although their high antimicrobial effectiveness, they also exhibit some adverse health effects. Lately, scientists have shown that natural substances such as essential oils and plant extracts present antimicrobial potential. However, their use in cosmetic is a challenge. The present review article is a comprehensive summary of the available methods to prevent microbial contamination of cosmetics and personal care products, which can allow reducing the use of parabens in these products.

Address: Department of Immunology, Medical University of Bialystok, Poland. Electronic address: [email protected].; Department of Immunology, Medical University of Bialystok, Poland.

DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2020.110488

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MeSH Terms: Cosmetics, Formaldehyde, Parabens, Preservatives, Pharmaceutical