A recent report found high levels of the cancer-causing chemical benzene in acne treatments containing the popular ingredient benzoyl peroxide.
The report, published in Reuters, shared the results of an independent test conducted by the Valisure laboratory, which has since filed a request with the Food and Drug Administration to recall these products. The carcinogen has been found in products from well-known brands such as Clearasil, Clinique and Up & Up, Target’s cosmetics line.
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Benzoyl peroxide is effective in treating acne, according to the Cleveland Clinic, because it “works by reducing inflammation and killing or preventing the growth of bacteria on your skin.”
However, according to Vailsure, it can also create carcinogenic benzene under certain conditions.
“Valisure’s tests on dozens of prescription and over-the-counter benzoyl peroxide products suggest that currently formulated BPO drugs are fundamentally unstable and can generate unacceptably high levels of benzene when handled or stored at the higher temperatures to which the products may be exposed during handling consumers,” the laboratory reported.
“Benzene can be produced in the product itself and potentially escape into the surrounding air.”
Clinique counter.
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Reckitt, the manufacturer of Clearasil, gave the following statement to PEOPLE:
“Reckitt is confident that all Clearasil products, when used and stored as directed on their labels, are safe. The safety and quality of our products is our top priority and we work closely with regulators around the world to ensure our products are safe and effective for their intended use. Clearasil products and their ingredients are stable under the storage conditions described on their packaging that represent all reasonable and foreseeable conditions. The findings presented today by the independent laboratory reflect unrealistic scenarios, not actual conditions.”
Vailsure also reported finding benzene in Proactiv, PanOxyl, Walgreens acne soap and Walmart’s Equate Beauty acne cream.
According to the CDC, “The Department of Health and Human Services has determined that benzene is a known carcinogen (can cause cancer). Both the International Agency for Research on Cancer and the EPA have determined that benzene is a human carcinogen. Exposure to benzene can be harmful to reproductive organs.”
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Although benzene has been found in other products before, Vailsure said “the benzene we have found in sunscreens and other consumer products are impurities that come from contaminated ingredients; however, the benzene in benzoyl peroxide products comes from the benzoyl peroxide itself, sometimes at hundreds of times the FDA’s conditional limit. This means that the problem is broadly affecting both prescription and over-the-counter benzoyl peroxide products and requires immediate action,” said Valisure Co-Founder and President David Light.
In 2021, Coppertone recalled a sunscreen because it contained benzene, shortly after Johnson & Johnson announced a recall for the same reasons. Dry shampoo has also been withdrawn due to carcinogens.
PEOPLE has contacted the manufacturers of the affected products for more information.
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Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education