Toxicology of Cosmetics

Abstract

Cosmetics are personal care products that are designed to be applied to the body for the purpose of cleaning, protecting, beautifying, and producing a healthy appearance or altering appearance without changing the body's physiology. The seven categories of cosmetics include oral, skin, sun, hair, and body care products, as well as decorative cosmetics and perfumes. There are millions of cosmetic products in the marketplace, and new products are constantly introduced. Cosmetic products are not subjected to premarket evaluation and approval like food or drug products by the federal government in the United States (US). However, some states are implementing laws and regulations that are specific to cosmetic products. For example, California is the first state to ban specific ingredients from being included in any cosmetic product manufactured or sold in the state. Further, unlike in the US, preregistration of cosmetics is required in the European Union (EU). Specifically, before cosmetic products are placed or made available on the EU market, responsible persons must submit specific product information to the Cosmetic Product Notification Portal (CPNP), which then makes this information available to EU authorities and poison control centers. This chapter reviews the history of cosmetics, types of cosmetics and ingredients, contaminants in cosmetics, cosmetic ingredients of concern and prohibited ingredients, exposure assessment approaches, regulation of cosmetics in the US and in the EU, global approaches to nonanimal testing for cosmetic products, and the development and application of new approach methods (NAMs) for next generation risk assessment (NGRA) of cosmetic ingredients.