Is Cyclopentasiloxane safe?

If you haven't heard of cyclopentasiloxane or have heard it may not be good for your health, this article is for you. It's natural to wonder whether the skin and body care products you use every day can be harmful to your health. A quick look at their ingredients should offer clues and help you decide whether they're safe or you should go for safer products.

Cyclopentasiloxane is among the ingredients to have developed a bad reputation of sorts. This article explains the facts on cyclopentasiloxane.

What is Cyclopentasiloxane?

Cyclopentasiloxane, also called decamethylcyclopentasiloxane or D5, is a common ingredient in skincare, body care, and cosmetic products, including sunscreen, moisturizers, hand and body lotions, deodorants, lipsticks, and hair conditioners. It gives products their smooth and silky texture, allowing them to glide evenly on skin and hair. A silicone, D5 is colorless, odorless, water-thin, and evaporates from skin rather than getting absorbed by it.

Why is there controversy around Cyclopentasiloxane?

The science on the health risks of D5 is limited. Most of the research on its potentially harmful effects are on animals. The Environmental Working Group rates D5 a 3 out of 10 on the toxicity scale, with 10 being the worst. However, D5 is classified as "very persistent and very bioaccumulative", which means it doesn't break down so easily in the environment and can gradually build up in animals and humans. So, it is unclear whether cyclopentasiloxane might be harmful with frequent use over time.

Is there a ban on Cyclopentasiloxane?

The Cosmetic Ingredient Review Panel Board, an independent body of skin care experts that assesses ingredients in cosmetic products, found the existing concentrations of cyclopentasiloxane safe to use. D5 is generally well-tolerated and has no known side effects.

It's also important to consider contrarian views. The European Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS) does not find cyclopentasiloxane in skin and other body products safe. That said, they stress that potential damage can occur due to inhaling D5 in hair care and sunscreen sprays.

SCCS has also stated that D5 may contain trace amounts of cyclotetrasiloxane (D4), which is classified as a reprotoxic substance, a chemical agent that can adversely affect fertility in both males and females. In addition, D4 may significantly alter a child's development during gestation and after birth.

In 2020, the European Commission banned D4 in cosmetics meant for application on the body. D4 and D5 are also on the restricted list of the European Chemical Agency (ECHA). The scope of restriction is limited to wash-off cosmetic products with a D4 or D5 concentration equal to or exceeding 0.1% by weight of either substance.

Is cyclopentasiloxane an endocrine disruptor?

According to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), there is low concern that D5 can be considered an endocrine disruptor, which is anything that can interfere with the normal functioning of your hormones. The concern may be higher if D5 is used in concentrations higher than what is typically used in skincare, body care, and cosmetic products. Moreover, to be an endocrine disruptor, the chemical must enter the body. D5 isn't absorbed into the skin, rather, it evaporates rapidly upon coming in contact with the skin, and very little of the chemical agent goes into the body.

On the other hand, there is debate around whether trace amounts of endocrine disruptors can be harmful, even at low doses that are assumed safe. A group of U Missouri-Columbia researchers have claimed that endocrine disruptors have non-monotonic toxicology curves, that is, toxic effects actually decrease with greater dosage.

Environmental impact of Cyclopentasiloxane

A recent study by Purdue University found that cyclic volatile methyl siloxanes (cVMS) easily evaporate and linger in the air after they're applied. The study concerning hairstyling products found that an average hairstyling session at home could easily result in someone inhaling between 1 and 17 milligrams of the chemicals. The most abundant chemical that lingered in the air was Cyclopentasiloxane.

The use of a heated appliance further amplified the release of the potentially harmful chemical agents in the air. When the study participants used a heating tool that reached 210 degrees Celsius/410 degrees, the chemical emissions from the hair styling products increased anywhere from 50% to 310%. Those using hair styling products containing D5 and heating products every day or frequently are exposing themselves to potentially harmful chemicals.

How to avoid exposure to Cyclopentasiloxane?

Simple, avoid using sunscreen and other skin, body, and cosmetic products that contain D5. You can use them every day, and reapply as required, with peace of mind.

Products without D5 are effective and smooth minus the safety concern. CodeSkin's sunscreen formulations avoid 1600 ingredients that are in the restricted list of international organizations. We go above and beyond, avoiding ingredients that may be potentially harmful, when the science behind them is limited. Check out our sunscreen products. here.