Final Report on the Safety Assessment of Aluminum Silicate, Calcium Silicate, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Magnesium Silicate, Magnesium Trisilicate, Sodium Magnesium Silicate, Zirconium Silicate, Attapulgite, Bentonite, Fuller's Earth, Hectorite, Kaolin, Lithium Magnesium Silicate, Lithium Magnesium Sodium Silicate, Montmorillonite, Pyrophyllite, and Zeolite

Abstract

This report reviews the safety of Aluminum, Calcium, Lithium Magnesium, Lithium Magnesium Sodium, Magnesium Aluminum, Magnesium, Sodium Magnesium, and Zirconium Silicates, Magnesium Trisilicate, Attapulgite, Bentonite, Fuller's Earth, Hectorite, Kaolin, Montmorillonite, Pyrophyllite, and Zeolite as used in cosmetic formulations. The common aspect of all these claylike ingredients is that they contain silicon, oxygen, and one or more metals. Many silicates occur naturally and are mined; yet others are produced synthetically. Typical cosmetic uses of silicates include abrasive, opacifying agent, viscosity-increasing agent, anticaking agent, emulsion stabilizer, binder, and suspending agent. Clay silicates (silicates containing water in their structure) primarily function as adsorbents, opacifiers, and viscosity-increasing agents. Pyrophyllite is also used as a colorant. The International Agency for Research on Cancer has ruled Attapulgite fibers >5 μm as possibly carcinogenic to humans, but fibers