TOCOPHEROL
Antioxidant; Fragrance Ingredient; Skin-Conditioning Agent - Miscellaneous;Skin-Conditioning Agent - Occlusive; SKIN CONDITIONING
Also listed as
MIXED TOCOPHEROLS; NATURAL VITAMIN E; D-ALPHA-TOCOPHEROL; DL-A -TOCOP HEROL; DL-ALPHA-TOCOPHEROL; VITAMIN E; TOCOPHERYL; VITAMIN E OIL; (+-) -ALPHA-TOCOPHEROL; DL-ALPHA-TOCOPHEROL; EPHANYL
Given the incomplete information made available by companies and the government, EWG provides additional information on personal care product ingredients from the published scientific literature. The chart below indicates that research studies have found that exposure to this ingredient -- not the products containing it -- caused the indicated health effect(s) in the studies reviewed by Skin Deep researchers. Actual health risks, if any, will vary based on the level of exposure to the ingredient and individual susceptibility -- information not available in Skin Deep.
| This ingredient: | |
 | Cancer |
 | Developmental/reproductive toxicity |
| Restrictions & warnings |
| Allergies/immunotoxicity |
 | Contamination concerns - HYDROQUINONE |
| Lesser or emerging concerns for this ingredient: Data gaps |
|
See products containing TOCOPHEROL | |
About TOCOPHEROL: Tocopherol is the organic compound.
TOCOPHEROL has reported used in the following product types: moisturizer (1015); facial moisturizer/treatment (948); anti-aging (500); lipstick (455); lip balm (434); lip gloss (297); foundation (266); exfoliant/scrub (257); body oil (256); facial cleanser (252)
Cancer
| type of concern | product conditions | reference |
| One or more in vitro tests on mammalian cells show positive mutation results | RTECS®- Cancer Letters (Shannon, Ireland) 1984 | |
| show more | ||
Data gaps
| type of concern | product conditions | reference |
| Risk assessment method deficiencies and data gaps - Maximum reported "as used" concentration is basis of safety assessment by industry safety panel (Cosmetic Ingredient Review, CIR) - implicit safe concentration limit in product | Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments | |
| 7,504 studies in PubMed science library may include information on the toxicity of this chemical see search results -> | PubMed |
Ecotoxicology
| type of concern | product conditions | reference |
| Not suspected to be an environmental toxin | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)
| type of concern | product conditions | reference |
| Classified as not expected to be potentially toxic or harmful | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Persistence and bioaccumulation
| type of concern | product conditions | reference |
| Not suspected to be bioaccumulative | Environment Canada Domestic Substance List |
Multiple, additive exposure sources
| type of concern | product conditions | reference |
| Designated as safe for general or specific, limited use in food | FDA Food Additive Status | |
| Designated as safe for general or specific, limited use in food | FDA Everything Added to Food |
Government, industry, academic studies and classifications
| government/industry list/academic study | appears on list as | classification(s) |
| FDA Food Additive Status | TOCOPHEROLS | • Food additive: chemical preservative • GRAS (generally recognized as safe) - use in food presumed safe based either on a history of use before 1958 or on published scientific evidence; need not be approved by the FDA prior to use in food; most have not limit for use but must conform to good manufacturing practices; some GRAS substances have quantitative limit for use in foods; by definition under Sec 201(s) of FD&C Act, not food additives • Food additive: must be in accordance with good manufacturing practices, or sufficient for purpose; or in quantity not greater than required - CFR182.3890; 184.1890 • DS/NUTR • GRAS (generally recognized as safe) - use in food presumed safe based either on a history of use before 1958 or on published scientific evidence; need not be approved by the FDA prior to use in food; most have not limit for use but must conform to good manufacturing practices; some GRAS substances have quantitative limit for use in foods; by definition under Sec 201(s) of FD&C Act, not food additives • Food additive: must be in accordance with good manufacturing practices, or sufficient for purpose; or in quantity not greater than required - CFR182.5890; 182.8890 |
| Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments | TOCOPHEROL | •Safe as used in cosmetics according to industry panel (Cosmetic Ingredient Review, CIR) •Maximum reported "as used" concentration is basis of safety assessment by industry safety panel (Cosmetic Ingredient Review, CIR) - implicit safe concentration limit in product •May contain harmful impurities |
| FDA Everything Added to Food | TOCOPHEROLS | • Fully up-to-date toxicology information has been sought. |
| Environment Canada Domestic Substance List | VITAMIN E | •This chemical was NOT flagged by CEPA for further attention. The chemical was flagged for suspected persistence. |
| IFRA Fragrance Ingredient List | 2H-1-BENZOPYRAN-6-OL, 3,4-DIHYDRO-2,5,7,8-TETRAMETHYL-2-(4,8,12-TRIMETHYLTRIDECYL)- | •The chemical has been reported as used in fragrance compounds by IFRA affiliated member companies in 2008. |
| CIR | TOCOPHEROL | Impurity: hydroquinone |
| Roelandts, 1998 | TOCOPHEROL | May protect skin fibroblasts and keratinocytes further against UVB-induced cytoxic effects |
| Bissett, 1990 | TOCOPHEROL | Some protection against skin wrinkling and tumour formation |
| Darr, 1996 | TOCOPHEROL | Some protection against skin wrinkling and tumour formation |
| Roelandts, 1998 | TOCOPHEROL | May protect skin fibroblasts and keratinocytes further against UVB-induced cytoxic effects |
| Bissett, 1990 | TOCOPHEROL | Some protection against skin wrinkling and tumour formation |
| Darr, 1996 | TOCOPHEROL | Some protection against skin wrinkling and tumour formation |
| Constantinides P, Harkey M, 1985 | TOCOPHEROL | Subcutaneously injection of Vitamin E induced formation of fast growing fibrosarcomata at the site of the injection |
| Nitta Y, Kamiya K, Tanimoto M, Sadamoto S, Niwa O, Yokoro K, 1991 | TOCOPHEROL | Injection of Vitamin E in soya oil induced tumor formation at the site of injection |
| RTECS®- Cancer Letters (Shannon, Ireland) 1984 | TOCOPHEROL | • mutagenic - Positive mutation assay: DNA Damage (rat ipr) |
references
| government/industry list/academic study | reference |
| FDA Food Additive Status | FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) 2006. Food Additive Status List. Downloaded from http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/%7Edms/opa-appa.html, Oct 16, 2006. |
| Cosmetic Ingredient Review Assessments | CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review). 2006. CIR Compendium, containing abstracts, discussions, and conclusions of CIR cosmetic ingredient safety assessments. Washington DC. |
| FDA Everything Added to Food | FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration). 2008. EAFUS [Everything Added to Food]: A Food Additive Database. FDA Office of Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. |
| Environment Canada Domestic Substance List | EC (Environment Canada). 2008. Domestic Substances List Categorization. Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Environmental Registry. |
| IFRA Fragrance Ingredient List | IFRA (International Fragrance Assocication). 2010. IFRA Fragrance Ingredient List based on 2008 Use Survey. Accessed online 01/04/2010: http://www.ifraorg.org/Home/News/Latest-News/page.aspx/66?xf_itemId=43&xf_selectionDatapartId=25 |
| Impurities - Open Scientific Literature | CIR |
| Open scientific literature | {Roelandts, 1998} |
| Open scientific literature | {Bissett, 1990} |
| Open scientific literature | {Darr, 1996} |
| Open scientific literature | {Roelandts, 1998} |
| Open scientific literature | {Bissett, 1990} |
| Open scientific literature | {Darr, 1996} |
| Open scientific literature | Constantinides P, Harkey M. 1985. Initiation of a transplantable fibrosarcoma by the synergism of two non-initiators, alpha-tocopherol and soya oil. Virchows Arch A Pathol Anat Histopathol 405(3): 285-97. |
| Open scientific literature | Nitta Y, Kamiya K, Tanimoto M, Sadamoto S, Niwa O, Yokoro K. 1991. Induction of transplantable tumors by repeated subcutaneous injections of natural and synthetic vitamin E in mice and rats. Jpn J Cancer Res 82(5): 511-7. |
| RTECS®- Cancer Letters (Shannon, Ireland) 1984 | RTECS®- Cancer Letters (Shannon, Ireland). (Elsevier Scientific Pub. Ireland Ltd., POB 85, Limerick, Ireland) V.1- 25,163,1984 |
"RTECS®" is a United States trademark owned and licensed under authority of the U.S. Government, by and through MDL Information Systems, Inc.
Copyright © 2010 by Environmental Working Group
All rights reserved.
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