Stricter Regulations on 1,4-Dioxane in Cosmetics

March 4, 2020

Although most organisations categorize 1,4-dioxane as a suspected carcinogen, it is found in many of our products. This issue has raised the concern amongst consumers. In recent years, stricter laws on the level of 1,4-dioxane has been imposed. Other than the regulations in ASEAN and EU, New York’s governor Andrew Cuomo also signed a bill prohibiting the sale of any household cleaning products, cosmetics, and personal care products that contain 1,4-dioxane above trace concentrations.

What is 1,4-dioxane?

1,4-dioxane is a by-product formed through ethoxylation and is a contaminant found in many products. It is also known as dioxane, dioxan, p-dioxane, diethylene dioxide, diethylene oxide, diethylene ether and glycol ethylene ether.

Why should we be concerned of the presence of 1,4-dioxane in our products?

Classifications of 1,4-dioxane:

EU: category 2 (suspected of causing cancer).
International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC): Group 2B (possibly carcinogenic to humans)
US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA): Group B2 (probable human carcinogen or likely to be carcinogenic to humans)
Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH): Potential occupational carcinogen

Regulations of 1,4-dioxane:

Limitations
	New York		ASEAN Cosmetic Directive		EU Cosmetic Directive
Type of Product/ Effective Date	1 January 2022	1 January 2023	19 June 2020	19 June 2023	2016
Cosmetics	≤ 10 ppm	≤ 10 ppm	≤ 25 ppm	≤ 10 ppm	Under List of prohibited substances (Annex II-343)
Personal Products	≤ 2 ppm	≤ 1 ppm	≤ 25 ppm	≤ 10 ppm	Under List of prohibited substances (Annex II-343)
Household Cleaning Products	≤ 2 ppm	≤ 1 ppm	-	-	-

Our solution

We are committed in understanding how your products will be impacted. Are you looking to explore dioxane-free alternatives? Maha Chemicals supplies glutamate/alaninate and APG which are dioxane-free solutions for your products.

Attributes	Glutamate/ Alaninate	APG	Betaines	SLES	Alkyl Sulfosuccinate	AOS	Imidazolidine/ Amphoacetate	Isethionate
Free from Toxic Residues/ Dioxane	Yes ☆☆☆☆☆	Yes ☆☆☆☆☆	No ☆☆	No ☆	No ☆☆	No ☆☆	No ☆☆	No ☆
Natural & Sustainable	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆	☆☆☆	☆☆	☆	☆☆	☆☆
Mildness	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆	☆☆	☆☆☆☆	☆☆	☆☆	☆☆☆
Effect on skin (harsh & Adsorption)	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆	☆	☆☆☆	☆☆	☆☆☆	☆☆☆
Biodegradable	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆
Carbon Footprint	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆	☆☆☆	☆☆☆	☆☆☆	☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆
Energy Savings	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆	☆☆☆	☆☆☆	☆☆☆	☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆
Formulation Compatibility & Easy to Formulate	☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆
Hard Water Tolerance	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆☆	☆☆☆☆☆
Total Score	46	42	35	31	34	30	31	34
Excellent =☆☆☆☆☆; Good = ☆☆☆☆; Fair = ☆☆☆; Poor = ☆☆; Very Poor = ☆

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