PFAS: The forever chemicals
In recent years, the presence of harmful substances in cosmetic products has been under high scrutiny and one group of chemicals raising particular concern is Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) due to their ubiquitous prevalence in the environment, degradation resistance, and potential toxicity.
What are PFAS?
The term PFAS refers to perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, a large, complex group of thousands of synthetic chemicals that have been immensely produced and extensively used in a wide variety of industrial, domestic, and consumer products.
Certain PFAS are intentionally added as ingredients in some cosmetic products and others may also be present in cosmetics as impurities stemming from the raw materials or due to the breakdown of intentionally added PFAS ingredients that form other types of PFAS.
Some common PFAS ingredients found in cosmetics include perfluorohexylethyl triethoxysilane, tetradecyl aminobutyroylvalylaminobutyric urea trifluoroacetate, trifluoropropyl cyclotetrasiloxane, and trifluoropropyl cyclopentasiloxane.
Concerns about PFAS
PFAS do not easily break down in the environment or in the human body which means they can accumulate over time, being commonly referred to as “forever chemicals”. Because of this persistence, even if all releases of PFAS would cease tomorrow, they would continue to be present in the environment, and humans, for generations to come.
Studies have linked PFAS exposure to serious health issues, including endocrine (hormonal) disruption, reproductive and developmental issues and cancer.
Regulatory measures
With the potential for long-term health impacts due to their persistence in the environment and the human body, there is growing pressure to address the PFAS issue.
Recognising the harmful effects of PFAS on human health and the environment, global manufacturers have started to replace certain PFAS over the last decades. In the past 20 years, the EU has also taken increasing action to address the use and contamination with PFAS under REACH, the EU’s chemicals legislation, and under other environmental and human health specific legislations.
Since 2009, perfluorooctane sulfonic acid and its derivatives (PFOS) have been included in the international Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) to eliminate their use and have been restricted in the EU for more than 10 years, under the EU’s POPs Regulation.
The Stockholm Convention also regulates the global elimination of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), its salts and PFOA-related compounds. PFOA has been banned under the POPs Regulation since 4 July 2020.
In June 2022, the Stockholm Convention parties decided to include perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS), its salts and PFHxS-related compounds in the treaty. The Commission added the substance group in the EU's POPs Regulation in May 2023 and the regulation entered into force on 28 August 2023.
Under REACH, Perfluorocarboxylic acids (C9-14 PFCAs), their salts and related substances have been restricted in the EU since February 2023.
On 19 September, the Commission adopted new measures to protect human health and the environment by restricting the use of undecafluorohexanoic acid (‘PFHxA') and PFHxA ‑related substances.
A “universal PFAS restriction” is currently being assessed by ECHA’s scientific committees following a 2023 proposal by the national authorities of Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden.
References:
Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Per and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in Cosmetics. 2024
European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)
Health Canada. Chemicals and polluants: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and your health
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