Cosmetic Safety Database users

jennyk213

What number are you comfortable with and why?  What do you do when a product isn't in their database at all?

I'm replacing my old products with safer options as I run out.  I use two different foundations - my every day foundation is rated a 4 and my special occasion/important meeting at work one isn't rated at all (Bobbi Brown).  I'm tempted to stick with the 4 rating but I'm not sure what to do about the other one. 

ETA:  Okay, I wonder if they recently updated ratings.  I got the 4 rating a couple weeks ago and now when I look at it, it's rated a 5.  

Mrs.A&J

If you sign up as a user, you can submit a product. You have to enter all the ingredient information exactly as listed on the label and then it'll give you a score. I have done this, it was easy enough.

As a general rule, I try to stick with 3 or better, but it does depend on why it's rated as such. I always scan through to see what the "problem" ingredients are.

Ms.MKBT

Ditto pp.  I look for which ingredients are labeled as the higher numbers and why- I stay away from the "reproductive issues" and "may cause cancer" products.

BlueMnM

i also recommend looking at the specific ingredients. they rate fragrance very high, so an EF product that has fragrance may be rated worse than a conventional product that does not. i would say 3 or better is a safe bet.

SuperGreen

I also try to stick with 3 or better.  From researching products, I've found that if it's made by any of the big brands (Cover Girl, Maybelline etc..) 9 times out of 10 it's way above a 3 so I usually don't even bother.

pixieprincss

I don't go by #, I go by ingredients and factor in the data gap. For example, (from a blog entry)

My summer standby for daily facial wear Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunblock, SPF 55 receives a Hazard Score of 7, which is not good (lower is better), but there is a data gap of 82%, so not much is known about all the products ingredients. It could be worse or more harmless that they currently think. But, going on what we DO know, if I take a look at the ingredients list I can see the main culprits in this sunscreen are methylparaben, fragrance, and oxybenzone. Methylparaben: I try to avoid parabens, but I am willing to compromise for this products. Fragrance: I am not a fan of artificial fragrance, but plenty of people would not care or see this as a big drawback, this is why you must judge for yourself and not just go by product score. Oxybenzone: No clue what this is so I click on the hyperlink to learn that they can cause photoallergenic effects, something, again, I have never heard of. So, I do some searching and learn that if I had lupus (as my mom does) I would want to avoid this product. Since I don't I am okay with the ingredient until I notice adverse effects. I am now educated on this product and decide I can live with the 7 rating in this particular product, even though most of my products are rated 0-2.

jennyk213

pixieprincss:

I don't go by #, I go by ingredients and factor in the data gap. For example, (from a blog entry)

My summer standby for daily facial wear Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunblock, SPF 55 receives a Hazard Score of 7, which is not good (lower is better), but there is a data gap of 82%, so not much is known about all the products ingredients. It could be worse or more harmless that they currently think. But, going on what we DO know, if I take a look at the ingredients list I can see the main culprits in this sunscreen are methylparaben, fragrance, and oxybenzone. Methylparaben: I try to avoid parabens, but I am willing to compromise for this products. Fragrance: I am not a fan of artificial fragrance, but plenty of people would not care or see this as a big drawback, this is why you must judge for yourself and not just go by product score. Oxybenzone: No clue what this is so I click on the hyperlink to learn that they can cause photoallergenic effects, something, again, I have never heard of. So, I do some searching and learn that if I had lupus (as my mom does) I would want to avoid this product. Since I don't I am okay with the ingredient until I notice adverse effects. I am now educated on this product and decide I can live with the 7 rating in this particular product, even though most of my products are rated 0-2.

Thank you.  This method makes a lot of sense to me.