Almost every site I looked at, said that Phenoxyethanol has one of the lowest ratings for adverse effects on the skin, when used in the proper percentage which is 1/2 to 1%. While it is a chemical compound..it is one that is found in nature, and is the safest all natural preservative to date.
I use it in my lotions and face creams. You HAVE to have a preservative in such products or you run the HIGH risk of your lotions and makeups becoming contaminated with all kinds of molds, fungi and bacterium.
Vitamin E or essential oils have long been touted as the ONLY natural preservatives that you need....while they are preservatives...they do NOT fully protect the products from mold, fungi and bacterium.. of which those can cause far worse effects than any that phenoxyethanol can!
I have read on a couple of blogs that bash Phenoxyethanol saying it causes cancer, and skin problems and nerve damage...but that is ONLY in the case of being exposed to a HUGE amount of it...basically.. you would have to immerse yourself in a tub of it and stay there for a day or two! Who is going to do that? They also say that it carries are warning "toxic if swallowed". Well, of course it would make you sick but once again ...only if you drank a bottle of phenoxyethanol! It's not made to be eaten!
You have to be aware that there are people out there on line that are posting things about ingredients just because they heard from someone else that the product is toxic, so they panic...it's just a case of another Chicken :Little saying "the sky is falling".....DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH!
If you find, say, only two or three spouting negativity about a certain ingredient in a product while 10 or more different sites are telling you that the product is safe....I would say that you are safe to believe the majority instead of the minority. Also some of those spouting off about adverse reactions may just have an MLM product they are trying to SCARE you into buying!
I also put a warning on ALL my products that they are NOT made to be eaten, in today's "Lawsuit happy" society you have to put stupid warnings on things so you don't get sued!
While phenoxyethanol can be harmful in LARGE doses...in the 1/2-1% formula that I and many other people who make lotions and makeups, it is NOT harmful. Read the labels ingredients...the farther down the lable that an item is listed, the less the amount of said ingredient is in the product. Also keep in mind that we do NOT have to list it at all...all we are REQUIRED to do is list "natural preservative"
I do make body butters that contain NO preservatives just for my customers that are absolute purists, but those are made on a per order basis, and contain only Organic Coconut Oil & Olive oils, Wild crafted Shea Butter, Organic Cocoa butter and Organic Vanilla or other essential oils that are requested.
I do make body butters that contain NO preservatives just for my customers that are absolute purists, but those are made on a per order basis, and contain only Organic Coconut Oil & Olive oils, Wild crafted Shea Butter, Organic Cocoa butter and Organic Vanilla or other essential oils that are requested.
Just do your research and make an informed decision. I for one will be using phenoxyethanol in my products until I find a different natural preservative that works the same way.
