Canada Declares Chemicals Used in Cosmetics to Be Toxics

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Forwarded  from

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http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jan2009/2009-01-30-01.asp

Canada Declares Chemicals Used in Cosmetics to Be Toxics

 

OTTAWA, Ontario, Canada, January 30, 2009 (ENS) - The Canadian government today

declared two chemicals used in lipstick and other personal care products to be

toxic to the environment, although officials said they are not used in large

enough quantities to be of concern for human health. Two other chemicals used in

cosmetics were found to be harmful to human health.

 

 

Canada's declaration is the first environmental or health-based determination

concerning these chemicals issued by any country.

 

 

The two personal care chemicals of concern for the environment are the siloxanes

D4 and D5. Used as emollients to soften the skin, siloxanes are found in most

personal care products on the market in Canada and the United States.

 

 

The siloxanes are also used in textiles, paints and coatings, antiperspirants,

sealants, lubricants, plastics, non-medical ingredients in pharmaceuticals,

silicone polymers, food additives, surface treatments for wounds, and medical

devices.

 

 

While not believed to be harmful to health, because these chemicals enter the

environment in large quantities, persist in the environment, bioaccumulate up

the food chain and may harm fish and aquatic organisms, Canada is proposing to

set concentration limits for them.

 

 

This will minimize the amount of D4 and D5 in personal care products that is

released to municipal wastewater streams when they are washed off. The

government also proposes to regulate the amounts of D4 and D5 that are released

to the environment manufacturing process wastewater.

 

 

Two other substances used in cosmetics were found to be of concern for human

health - isoprene and epichlorohydrin - both considered to be human carcinogens.

 

 

They will be added to the Cosmetic Ingredient Hotlist to prevent their future

use in cosmetics. For isoprene, Health Canada is proposing that manufacturers

use best-available technology to control releases.

 

 

Environment Minister Jim Prentice and Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq announced

the findings of toxicity today as they released final conclusions and initial

risk management approaches for Batch 2 substances in Canada's Chemicals

Management Plan

 

 

" The government of Canada is doing its part to protect Canada's environment from

the harmful effects of chemical substances, " said Prentice. " This work means

that harmful substances will be stopped from entering the environment and

becoming a problem for future generations. "

 

 

" The Chemicals Management Plan is an important part of our actions to protect

Canadians' health, " said Aglukkaq. " These substances have been carefully

reviewed by our scientists and we have proposed several actions that will better

protect the health of families and our environment. "

 

 

Of the 16 substances assessed, three were found to be of concern for the

environment - the two siloxanes D4 and D5 - and a fuel additive known as TTBP

(2,4,6-tri-tert-butylphenol).

 

 

TTBP persists in the environment and builds up in wildlife. The government will

add this substance to the Virtual Elimination List to ensure that releases to

the environment will be reduced below levels that can be measured.

Three other substances were found to be of concern to human health - thiourea,

Pigment Yellow 34, Pigment Red 104.

 

 

Thiourea was found to be a " genotoxic carcinogen, " a chemical capable of

producing cancer by directly altering the genetic material of cells. This

chemical poses a " probability of harm to human health at any level of exposure, "

the government said.

 

 

Thiourea is used in metal finishing solutions and in etch treatments used for

printed circuit boards, in copper refining and in rubber production. It is used

at pulp and paper mills in the manufacture of paper and paperboard food

packaging and as a cleaner and scale remover in food plants.

 

 

In addition, thiourea may be used as a rust inhibitor, in silver polish, tarnish

removers and metal cleaners, in the textile industry, as a photographic fixing

agent, and in pharmaceutical synthesis. Thiourea may be used in insecticides and

agrochemicals, and is a mold inhibitor.

 

 

The publication of this final assessment moves thiourea into risk management

mode, and the ministers said plans will be developed to control its release to

the environment and impact on human health.

 

 

Pigment Yellow 34 and Pigment Red 104 were both found to be carcinogens that are

toxic to human reproduction and development. They contain the persistent

chemicals chromium and lead.

 

 

These pigments are used when high visibility is needed such as in traffic paint

striping for highways and airports, and safety identification paints on buses,

ambulances and fire trucks. Industrial paints using lead chromate pigments

include automotive finishes, industrial and agricultural equipment, industrial

baking enamels and air-dried finishes.

 

 

Most human exposure to these pigments is expected to be from soils, but it is

considered " negligible via drinking water, ambient air or consumer products, "

the government said.

 

 

Although Canadians' exposure to the five substances of concern to human health

is very low, the government is proposing regulations for all except isoprene to

prevent them from being used in the future without undergoing a new series of

assessments.

 

 

In the United States, environmentalists called on the federal government to

undertake similar evaluations.

 

 

" Today's move by Canada is not only important for the health of its citizens, it

helps underscore the need for real reforms within the EPA's failed programs to

regulate toxins in the U.S., " said Jane Houlihan, vice president for research

with the Environmental Working Group based in Washington, DC.

 

 

" Congress and President [barack] Obama need to overhaul broken toxics laws, " she

said, " and establish a policy that forces the chemical companies to first prove

their products are safe before being used. "

 

 

Copyright Environment News Service (ENS) 2009. All rights reserved.

 

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Expédié par: Forwarded by:

L’Association pour la santé environnementale les hypersensibilités et les

allergies du Québec- AEHAQ

The Allergy and Environmental Health Association of Quebec - AEHAQ

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