Ingredient-aware product choices linked to reduced chemical exposure

Ingredient-aware product choices linked to reduced chemical exposure | Image Credit: © AnnaStills - © AnnaStills - stock.adobe.com.

In a clinical trial published in Environmental Justice, reduced exposure to severe chemicals linked to health risks was reported in women who selectively buy personal care products based on their ingredients.¹

Concentrations of the metabolite of diethyl phthalate were significantly lower in Black women who selected products without fragrance compared to those who chose to use fragranced products. This is significant because of the health risks linked to phthalates, including obesity and diabetes.

“To fill a regulatory gap, Black women and Latinas have had to become chemistry experts to shop for beauty products… The burden to protect oneself from risky products should not be on the consumer,” said Lariah Edwards, PhD, study co-first author and associate research scientist at Columbia Mailman School.

Product use and chemical testing

The study was conducted to evaluate the link between self-reported product selection strategies and urinary chemical concentrations.² Participants included 35 Black women and 35 Hispanic women aged 18 to 49 years and residing in South Los Angeles.

These patients used a smartphone app developed for the study to self-report daily consumer product use across 1 week. Phone and video chat meetings were conducted to ensure adherence, and a video tutorial taught participants how to use the app.

Baseline data included demographics, health, and general product use. Product selection strategies were also reported through responses to questions about how often participants selected products based on ingredients and whether they avoided products with phthalates, parabens, fragrance, triclosan, bisphenol A (BPA), or BP-3.

Detailed product tracking

The smartphone app was available for iOS and Android devices, using unique codes for each participant to allow for personal product inventories by scanning barcodes, taking photos of product labels and ingredient lists, and manually entering product information.

Products documented over the study week included hair, cosmetics, menstrual, personal care, pest control, air fresheners, and household cleaning products. Study team members were available through text message or phone when participants encountered issues.

Urine samples were also obtained on the evening of day 6 and the morning of day 7. These samples were tested for 28 chemicals often used in personal care products. Analyses were stratified between Black and Hispanic women.

Key chemicals identified across participants

Of Black women, most were aged 25 to 34 years or 35 to 44 years, 31% had a household income of $75,000 or greater, and 37% had professional or other graduate degrees. Of Hispanic participants, approximately half were aged 35 to 44 years, while 34% had attended some college and 40% had household incomes of $25,000 to $49,999.

Considering product ingredients while shopping was reported by 100% of Black women and 66% of Hispanic women, with fragrance being the most avoided ingredient by 89% and 49%, respectively. This was followed by parabens and BPA. However, most women did not know about phthalates and BP-3.

Monoethyl phthalate (MEP) was the most concentrated chemical in Black women, vs methyl paraben in Hispanic women. At least 90% of the study population presented with one of the common chemicals.

Efficacy of ingredient-avoidance strategies

Mean mono-2-ethyl-5-hydroxyhexyl terephthalate concentrations were significantly reduced in Black women selecting products based on ingredients vs those who did not, with medians of 3.29 ng/mL and 12.4 ng/mL, respectively. For mono-n-butyl phthalate, concentrations were 16.5 ng/mL and 23.5 ng/mL, respectively.

Significant reductions in median mono-benzyl phthalate were also reported in Black patients avoiding products with phthalate, at 1.06 ng/mL vs 2.07 ng/mL in non-avoiders. MEP was significantly reduced in those avoiding fragrance, at 95 ng/mL vs 276 ng/mL in non-avoiders.

In Hispanic patients, BP-3 medians were 1.96 ng/mL among those avoiding products with BP-3 and 12.7 ng/mL among those not avoiding these products. A 2-fold reduction in methyl and propyl paraben concentrations was also reported in those avoiding products with parabens, though this reduction was not statistically significant.

Implications

Overall, the results indicated efficacy from product selection strategies in avoiding certain ingredients toward reducing related chemical exposures in Black and Hispanic women. Investigators noted this method should only be one piece of a broader intervention strategy.

“Policy changes that specify labeling requirements and create an industry-standard definition for 'clean' are needed to advance beauty justice and health equity,” wrote investigators.

References

1. Choosing safer personal care products can help lower exposures to risky chemicals. Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. September 17, 2025. Accessed September 22, 2025. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1098745.
2. Edwards L, Connolly CL, Dodson RE, et al. Examining the role of self-reported product selection strategies in shifting chemical exposures among Black women and Latinas: Lessons from the Taking Stock Study. Environmental Justice. 2025. doi:10.1177/1939407125137644