Is clean beauty regulated?
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No. Neither "clean" nor "chemical-free" has a regulatory definition, and the US FDA has no definition for "natural" or "organic" in cosmetics, so any product may use those words. In the EU, "free from" claims are not permitted where they denigrate legally used ingredients. The label says little about allergens either: fragrance and botanical allergens appeared in 82.9% of 1,470 retailer-designated "clean" products.
What do people believe about clean beauty?
"Clean" or "chemical-free" products are safer, gentler and free of harmful ingredients.
What does the evidence show?
Start with the regulators. The US FDA states plainly that it has no regulatory definition for "natural" or "organic" in cosmetics - the terms appear nowhere in the FD&C Act or FDA regulations, so any product may use them. In the EU, the common criteria for cosmetic claims under Regulation 655/2013 go further: "free from" claims are not permitted where they denigrate legally used ingredients or imply a safety benefit the product does not have, which makes "chemical-free"-style marketing non-compliant.
Then the substance. A study in Dermatitis analyzed 1,470 products carrying a major retailer's "clean" designation and found allergens throughout: fragrances and botanicals in 82.9%, phenoxyethanol in 40.2%, tocopherol in 40.2%, benzoates in 29.5%, propylene glycol in 25.1%, alkyl glucosides in 20.7%. The "clean" label did not predict low allergenicity.
A review in Current Dermatology Reports adds the sting: reformulating away from named preservatives has been linked to rising allergic contact dermatitis from the replacements, notably isothiazolinones and alkyl glucosides. Removing a well-characterized ingredient in favor of a less-studied one is not automatically a safety gain.
Can a product be chemical-free?
Water is a chemical. So is every ingredient in every cosmetic ever made. The phrase describes nothing, and its function is to imply a hazard in the alternative rather than to state a property of the product. It is worth saying because a brand that uses it has told you something about its standards of argument.
What works instead?
Judge products on named ingredients, concentrations and evidence, not on category labels. If you are avoiding a specific substance for a specific reason - a diagnosed allergy, a clinician's advice - read the INCI list, which is regulated, rather than the front of the pack, which is not.
Key takeaways
- "Clean" and "chemical-free" have no regulatory definition, and the FDA has none for "natural" or "organic" in cosmetics.
- EU claim rules (Regulation 655/2013) do not permit "free from" claims that denigrate legal ingredients or imply a safety benefit.
- In 1,470 "clean"-designated products, fragrances and botanicals appeared in 82.9% and phenoxyethanol in 40.2%.
- Replacing named preservatives has been linked to rising allergic contact dermatitis from the replacements.
- The INCI ingredient list is regulated; the front of the pack is not.
References
Frequently asked questions
What does clean beauty mean?
It has no regulatory meaning. "Clean" is a retailer designation rather than a defined standard, and in a study of 1,470 products carrying one major retailer's "clean" designation, the label did not predict low allergenicity.
Are clean beauty products less likely to cause allergies?
Not on the evidence. Allergens appeared throughout 1,470 "clean"-designated products: fragrances and botanicals in 82.9%, phenoxyethanol and tocopherol in 40.2% each, and benzoates in 29.5%. Reformulating away from named preservatives has also been linked to rising allergic contact dermatitis from replacements such as isothiazolinones and alkyl glucosides.
What does chemical-free mean on a label?
Nothing measurable. Water is a chemical, and so is every ingredient in every cosmetic, so the phrase describes no property of the product. Its function is to imply a hazard in the alternative, and EU claim rules do not permit "free from" wording that denigrates legally used ingredients.
How should you choose products if you avoid an ingredient?
Read the INCI ingredient list, which is regulated, rather than the front of the pack, which is not. Judge products on named ingredients, concentrations and evidence rather than category labels, especially when avoiding a substance because of a diagnosed allergy or a clinician's advice.
More in what doesn't work
Products
No direct product mapping. This page examines a claim rather than a single ingredient, so no product maps to it directly.