Modern formulation

Modern formulation

Cold cream now replaces the olive oil with mineral oil or other oils, which are slower to spoil, as well as alcohol, glycerin, and lanolin.^[1] Beginning in the 1970s, jojoba oil became a common ingredient.^[1] Another common ingredient in modern cold cream is borax, which is also responsible for the whiteness of cold cream. Widely sold brands of cold cream in the United States include Pond's and Noxzema.

Over the centuries, new uses have been found for the product: "As a toilet requisite cold cream is used for softening and cooling the skin after sunburn, as a cleansing cream, to relieve harshness of the skin, etc"

History

History

The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics consumer campaign began in 2002 with the release of a report, "Not Too Pretty: Phthalates, Beauty Products and the FDA".

• For the report, environmental and public health groups contracted with a laboratory to test 72 name-brand, off-the-shelf beauty products for the presence of phthalates, a family of industrial chemicals linked to permanent birth defects in the male reproductive system.

• The lab found phthalates in nearly three quarters of the products tested, though the chemicals were not listed on any of the labels. A second report, "Pretty Nasty", documented similar product test results in Europe.

• In October 2005, the Environmental Working Group released "Skin Deep: A Safety Assessment of Ingredients in Personal Care Products" (website). This computer investigation into the health and safety assessments on more than 10,000 personal care products found major gaps in the regulatory safety net for these products. Also available is an online rating system that ranks products on their potential health risks and the absence of basic safety evaluations. The core of the analysis compares ingredients in 7,500 personal care products against government, industry, and academic lists of known and suspected chemical health hazards.

Visual effects

Visual effects

Strong red colours for eye products have been produced using the dye carmine, made from carminic acid extracted form the crushed bodies of the cochineal insect.^{[citation needed]} Carmine was once the only bright red color permitted by the FDA for use around the eye.^{[citation needed]}

Titanium dioxide

Pearlescence, also sometimes spelled as "pearl essence", is a shine or gloss effect commonly used in a wide variety of cosmetic products. The most usual source of pearlescence is the natural mineral mica covered by a thin layer of titanium dioxide. This coating causes goniochromism – the colour appears through interference effects with the naturally translucent mica, and varying the thickness of the titanium dioxide changes the colour.^[3] Alternatives exist, including the suspension of tiny flakes of a suitable material within the product, often a wax such as glycol distearate. A shimmery substance found on fish scales, most usually obtained from herring and one of many by-products of commercial fish processing, can also be used for pearlescent effects, primarily in nail polish, but is now rarely used due to its high cost, bismuth oxychloride flakes being used as a substitute instead.^[2]

Common ingredients

Common ingredients

Castor oil and its derivatives are found in many cosmetics as it is "non-comedogenic" (does not exacerbate or contribute to acne).^[1]

Cerebrosides (cells from the nervous systems of cattle or swine) were once used in some high-end skin-care products to increase moisture retention and to create a smooth skin surface,^[2] however the BSE controversy has put an end to this practice.^{[citation needed]}

In many countries colours in cosmetics are listed as numbers from the Colour Index International. The scheme covers colours used in food, personal care products, cosmetics, household products and fabric dyeing. So, for example you will not normally see tartrazine listed in lipstick ingredients, but it may be there listed as C.I. 19140. Erythrosine will be listed as C.I. 45430, and so on. In US and Canada colors are listed as FD & C colors. tartrazine (E012) is FD & C Yellow 5 and erythrosine (E127) is FD & C Red 3.

Ingredients of cosmetics

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Assorted cosmetics and tools

Cosmetics ingredients come from a variety of sources but, unlike the ingredients of food, are often not considered by most consumers. Cosmetics often use vibrant colours that are derived from some unexpected sources, ranging from crushed insects to rust. Many new techniques have allowed manufacturers to synthesise such colours and the use of animals (or parts thereof) has been declining for many years and is now virtually eliminated, due in large part to the efforts of Beauty Without Cruelty, PETA and other groups.^{[citation needed]}

Cosmetics in a variety of forms date back to early civilizations, with the need to improve ones personal appearance being an important factor in attracting a mate. Over the years the ingredients have changed dramatically as we discovered how to manufacture our own scents and cosmetic formulae. The realisation of the dangers of many common ingredients also greatly affected the growing industry.^{[citation needed]}

Ancient Egyptian aristocracy made use of minerals to provide colour and definition to their facial features. During the era of the Greek Empire it was common to use face paints, while the Romans indulged in baths containing oil-based perfume.

Cosmetics Directive

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The directive defines a "cosmetic product" as "any substance or preparation intended for placing in contact with the various external parts of the human body (epidermis, hair system, nails, lips and external genital organs) or with the teeth and the mucous membranes of the oral cavity with a view exclusively or principally to cleaning them, perfuming them or protecting them in order to keep them in good condition, change their appearance or correct body odours." (Art. 1.1)

The main part of the directive is the different lists of substances in the annexes:

• substances that are banned from use in cosmetics (Annex II)
• substances that are subject to restrictions on their use (Annex III): such substances might only be permitted for certain types of cosmetics, or in certain concentrations, or subject to warning labels, etc.
• permitted colourings (Annex IV)
• permitted preservatives (Annex VI)
• permitted UV filters (Annex VII)

The annexes are regularly amended (57 times up until April 2008) to take account of new data on the safety of particular substances

Cosmetic, Toiletry, and Fragrance Association

Cosmetic, Toiletry, and Fragrance Association (CTFA) was founded in 1894 as the Manufacturing Perfumers' Association and was renamed to the American Manufacturers of Toilet Articles (AMTA) in 1922;^[1] in 1970 the association adopted the name Cosmetic, Toiletry, and Fragrance Association.^[2] In November 2007, the name was changed to the Personal Care Products Council. Mark Pollak was named interim President in the wake of President Pam Bailey's resignation in December 2008.^[3]

Company structure

The company has five main departments:^[4]

• Science Department: research and development.
• Legislative Departments: state and federal lobbying.
• International Department: communication, changes in cosmetic regulation and anti-counterfeiting.
• Legal Department: takes appropriate against court decisions and regulatory agencies.
• Public Affairs Department: monitors media and distributes information to the media.

Challenges

California Safe Cosmetics Act

CTFA reportedly spent over $600,000 on lobbyists in Sacramento in the months before the vote on Senate Bill 484 (California Safe Cosmetics Act of 2005) to attempt to prevent the bill from passing.^[5][6]

Nanotechnology safety concerns

In 2006, Friends of the Earth and International Center for Technology Assessment filed a formal petition with the Food and Drug Administration for better monitoring and regulating of products containing harmful nanoparticles and stated they would sue if the FDA does not take adequate action in 180 days.^[7] CTFA vice president spoke out against the petition and stated, "I don't think there's anything to worry about ... All of the safety questions have been answered [in previous studies]."