When you are allergic to a substance, you must be vigilant about avoiding it, wherever it may lurk. When your allergy trigger is something like pets or certain grasses, it can be easy to avoid them. But when you are allergic to a substance that is put into everyday products, such as beauty products and cosmetics, avoiding the allergen can be much more difficult. Allergens in beauty products can cause an itchy rash called, contact dermatitis, or even respiratory symptoms.
5 Classes of Allergens in Beauty Products
The FDA splits allergens in beauty products into five classes. Let’s do a bit of a deep dive into each class:
1. Natural Rubber/Latex
While latex isn’t the most common ingredient to find in beauty products, it is in more items than you think. Makeup brushes and sponges are commonly made with latex-based substances. You can also find latex in eyelash glues and even some topical skincare products. If you’re allergic to latex or natural rubber, look out for the following substances in your beauty products:
- Latex
- Natural Rubber Latex
- Natural Latex Rubber
- Rubber Latex
- Natural Latex
- Latex Rubber
- Natural Centrifuged Latex
- Natural Liquid Latex
- Aqueous Latex Adhesive
2. Fragrances
Fragrances are probably the most common cause of allergic reactions to beauty products. Fragrances encompass a huge collection of chemical combinations to produce literally thousands of different smells. Each combination may only vary slightly from another but can result in a completely different smell and skin reaction. Fragrances are also a common cause of asthma attacks. While the FDA does not require manufacturers to list the exact components of fragrances in their products, Annex III of the European Union Cosmetics Directive has identified the following ingredients as common allergens:
- Amyl cinnamal
- Amylcinnamyl alcohol
- Anisyl alcohol
- Benzyl alcohol
- Benzyl benzoate
- Benzyl cinnamate
- Benzyl salicylate
- Cinnamyl alcohol
- Cinnamaldehyde
- Citral
- Citronellol
- Coumarin
- Eugenol
- Farnesol
- Geraniol
- Hexyl cinnamaladehyde
- Hydroxycitronellal
- Hydroxyisohexyl 3-cyclohexene carboxaldehyde (HICC), (also known as Lyral)
- Isoeugenol
- Lilial
- d-Limonene
- Linalool
- Methyl 2-octynoate
- g-Methylionone
- Oak moss extract
- Tree moss extract
3. Preservatives
Preservatives are another common culprit for allergic reactions to beauty products. Manufacturers use preservatives in their beauty products to keep them fresh and usable while sitting on retail shelves waiting to be purchased. Preservatives accomplish this by inhibiting bacterial growth, so you can think of them as beauty product disinfectants of sorts. Without preservatives, many of the products we know and love would not stay good for more than a few weeks, or even days. However, preservatives can cause havoc for people with sensitivities.
The FDA identifies the most troublesome preservatives in beauty products for allergy sufferers to be:
- Methylisothiazolinone (MIT)
- Methylchloroisothiazolinone (CMIT)
- Formaldehyde and formaldehyde releasing ingredients:
- Bronopol (2-bromo-2-nitropropane-1,3-diol)
- 5-bromo-5-nitro-1,3-dioxane
- Diazolidinyl urea
- DMDM hydantoin (1,3-dimethylol-5,5-dimethylhydantoin)
- Imidazolidinyl urea
- Sodium hydroxymethylglycinate
- Quaternium-15 (Dowicil 200; N-(3-chloroallyl) hexaminium chloride)
Parabens are another preservative that can cause allergic symptoms and show up on product labels in many forms. If you are sensitive to them, you’ll need to read the labels each and every time you purchase a product to be sure parabens haven’t been added to the formulation. The most common names for parabens in beauty products include:
- Methylparaben
- Ethylparaben
- Propylparaben
- Butylparaben
- Benzyl-parahydroxybenzoate (p-hydroxybenzoate)
- Methyl-parahydroxybenzoate (p-hydroxybenzate)
- Ethyl-parahydroxybenzoate (p-hydroxybenzoate)
- Propyl-parahydroxybenzoate (p-hydroxybenzoate)
- Butyl-parahydroxybenzoate (p-hydroxybenzoate)
- Parahydroxybenzoate (p-hydroxybenzoate)
4. Dyes
Dyes used in hair dye products or henna tattoos are known to cause allergy symptoms in sensitive people. The most common offenders are p-phenylenediamine (PPD) and coal-tar, although dyes in cosmetics and skin care products can cause issues too. Some people are particularly sensitive to red dyes, with the FDA-approved dye FD&C Red 40 being of particular concern.
5. Metals
While it is uncommon for metals to be present in beauty products, some products do contain small amounts of nickel or gold, both of which are common allergens. Also, beauty tools may contain metals that can cause allergic reactions. If you experience contact dermatitis symptoms like redness and itching when wearing certain pieces of jewelry, try to find out what those pieces of jewelry are made of to identify the metals you are sensitive to, then avoid any products containing those metals.
Allergy Identification and Treatment in Tampa Bay
If you experience redness, itching, swelling, hives, pain, or even respiratory symptoms after using a beauty product, stop using that product immediately and bring it with you to your appointment at Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Associates of Tampa Bay. Using state-of-the-art testing with a review of the specific products and circumstances that cause your allergic symptoms, we will pin down your allergy triggers. Once you know your triggers, we can develop a treatment plan that minimizes their effects and help you learn to avoid them. Contact us at (813) 971-9743 or online to schedule your appointment today.
