SEEN ON KESQ: Are Some Bathroom Products Harming You?
On News Channel 3 Live at Five on November 5, we aired a special report on the ingredients in certain bathroom products and if they harm those using them.
One of those ingredients reported was 1,4 dioxane — a chemeicalcommonly found in cosmetics, personal care products, and in some food.
The FDA and Johnson & Johnson have issued comments in response to the reported harm found in 1,4 dioxane.
We stand by the safety of our products, all of which are extensively tested and well within any FDA guidelines.
Recently, several environmental activist groups erroneously claimed that in 1985 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration asked the cosmetics/personal care industry to voluntarily limit 1,4-dioxane to a certain level.
However, the FDA has set no limits for 1,4-dioxane in cosmetics and personal care products, and the low levels in some of our products present no risk to consumers.
Some of the ingredients in our products may contain 1,4-dioxane as an incidental ingredient at extremely low levels. This trace ingredient is common in the personal care industry, and results from a process that makes products mild for even the most delicate skin. 1,4-dioxane is also a natural component of such food products as vine-ripened tomatoes and tomato products, fresh shrimp, brewed coffee and fried chicken.
Test results recently released by the activist groups state that some shampoos and bath products contain trace amounts of 1,4-dioxane. We are unclear as to the testing methodology used by these groups, and our own analysis disputes the groups’ findings. Two of the three Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies, Inc. products listed by the groups are no longer manufactured. For the one remaining product, our analysis reveals no presence of 1,4-dioxane above the analytical detection limit of 4 ppm.
Johnson & Johnson
The FDA’s response can be found by clicking here.
Product advocate group Safecosmetics.org also has information on harmful chemicals found in personal care products.
