Fragrance contact allergens in 5588 cosmetic products identified through a novel smartphone application.

BACKGROUND: More than 25% of the adult European population suffers from contact allergy, with fragrance substances recognized as one of the main causes. Since 2005, 26 fragrance contact allergens have been mandatory to label in cosmetic products within the EU if present at 10 ppm or above in leave-on and 100 ppm or above in wash-off cosmetics. OBJECTIVE: To examine exposure, based on ingredient labelling, to the 26 fragrances in a sample of 5588 fragranced cosmetic products. METHODS: The investigated products were identified through a novel, non-profit smartphone application (app), designed to provide information to consumers about chemical substances in cosmetic products. Products registered through the app between December 2015 and October 2016 were label checked according to International Nomenclature of Cosmetic Ingredients (INCI) for the presence of the 26 fragrance substances or the wording 'fragrance/parfum/aroma'. RESULTS: The largest product categories investigated were 'cream, lotion and oil' (n = 1192), 'shampoo and conditioner' (n = 968) and 'deodorants' (n = 632). Among cosmetic products labelled to contain at least one of the 26 fragrances, 85.5% and 73.9% contained at least two and at least three of the 26 fragrances, respectively. Linalool (49.5%) and limonene (48.5%) were labelled most often among all investigated products. Hydroxyisohexyl 3-cyclohexene carboxaldehyde (HICC/Lyral® ) was found in 13.5% of deodorants. Six of the 26 fragrance substances were labelled on less than one per cent of all products, including the natural extracts Evernia furfuracea (tree moss) and Evernia prunastri (oak moss). A total of 329 (5.9%) products had one or more of the 26 fragrance substances labelled but did not have 'parfum/fragrance/aroma' listed on the label. CONCLUSIONS: Consumers are widely exposed to, often multiple, well-established fragrance contact allergens through various cosmetic products intended for daily use. Several fragrance substances that are common causes of contact allergy were rarely labelled in this large sample of cosmetic products.

Trends in contact allergy to fragrance mix I in consecutive Danish patients with eczema from 1986 to 2015: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: For more than 30 years, fragrance mix I (FMI) has been the most important screening marker for fragrance contact allergy. Meanwhile, governmental and corporate initiatives have been implemented, aimed at reducing sensitization to fragrance allergens, including the single constituents of FMI. OBJECTIVES: To examine trends in contact allergy to FMI from 1986 to 2015 in patients with dermatitis, and to test the hypothesis that sensitization to the fragrance screening marker has decreased within recent years. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional registry study on patch test results to FMI among consecutively tested patients with dermatitis from a single university clinic across three 10-year periods. From 2006 to 2015, data on eczema location according to the MOAHLFA index (male; occupation; atopic dermatitis; hand; leg; face; age ≥ 40 years), clinical relevance of sensitization, and cosmetic exposures were available. RESULTS: Of 24 168 patients, 7·8% (95% confidence interval 7·4-8·1) were sensitized to FMI. For women, a significant trend (P = 0·004) was observed for an increase in sensitization to FMI across the three decades. From 2011 to 2015, the prevalence of contact allergy to FMI increased significantly for women (8·0% vs. 10·4%, P = 0·002) and men (4·4% vs. 7·3%, P = 0·002) compared with the previous 5-year period. From 2006 to 2015, clinical relevance was established in 78·2% of FMI-positive patients with no differences over time. An increase (28·6% vs. 36·1%, P = 0·05) in FMI-positive patients suffering from facial dermatitis was observed for the period 2011 to 2015 compared with 2006 to 2010. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of contact allergy to FMI has been increasing in recent years. There was no demonstrable effect of previous preventive initiatives.