In order to standardize and guide the registration and filing of children's cosmetics and ensure the safety of children's use of cosmetics, recently, the China National Inspection and Quarantine Office drafted the "Technical Guiding Principles for Children's Cosmetics (Soliciting Comments)" in accordance with the " Cosmetics Supervision and Administration Regulations " and supporting regulatory documents. Draft)” (hereinafter referred to as the “Draft for Comments”).
The "Draft for Comments" is based on the "Draft Regulations on the Supervision and Administration of Children's Cosmetics", which puts forward relatively complete technical requirements to facilitate the use of registrants, filers and regulatory authorities; further clarifies the specific requirements for children's cosmetics to increase the availability of Operational, it provides technical guidance for enterprise product research and development, and also provides a basis for technical review and filing management. The "Draft for Comments" consists of 7 parts, including basic requirements for children's cosmetics, product name and related information requirements, product formula and raw material use requirements, product execution standard requirements, labeling requirements, product inspection report requirements, safety assessment report requirements, etc.
Safety assessment requirements are more specific
Meng Hong, a professor at Beijing Technology and Business University ( chief physician ), said that the "Regulations on the Supervision of Children's Cosmetics" puts forward requirements for the safety evaluation of children's cosmetics, clarifying that "they should pass safety assessment and necessary poison Rigaku test for product safety evaluation." This is because the skin structure and immune system functions of infants and young children are not yet perfect, and there are certain unknown risks only through safety assessment. To this end, the Draft for Comments clarifies more specific requirements to increase operability.
Article 7 of the "Draft for Comments" points out that the evaluation of children's cosmetics should comply with the principles and requirements of the "Technical Guidelines for Safety Assessment of Cosmetics", be exposure-oriented, and take into account the physiological characteristics of children and the use methods, parts of use, dosage, and Conduct safety assessments on exposure levels such as residues.
In this regard, Tao Lili, deputy secretary-general of the Beijing Daily Chemical Association, said that the particularity of children's skin determines that children's cosmetics must be different from adult cosmetics. "The skin of infants and children has different physiological characteristics from that of adults. Their skin is smooth and delicate, their immune function is immature, they are more sensitive to foreign substances, and they are easily damaged. Therefore, the regulatory requirements and technical standards for children's cosmetics are more stringent." Tao Lili said, "Infants and young children have different behavioral and emotional development characteristics from adults, and they are not yet fully capable of self-identification and selection. This requires children's cosmetics to be in accordance with the law in all aspects of the industrial chain such as raw material selection, formula development, production, and sales. Under the premise of ensuring children's growth and development, we should fully consider the characteristics of children's growth and development, think about and solve problems from the perspective of children, and come from children to children to more fully ensure the safety of children's makeup."
The selection of raw materials is outstanding. "Three major principles"
Raw materials are the source of cosmetics R&D and production. The safety of raw materials determines the safety of products to a large extent.
Tao Lili said that for children's cosmetics, formula design should follow the principles of safety first, necessary efficacy, and minimal formula. The types of raw materials used in the formula should be reduced, and the scientific nature and necessity of the raw materials used should be evaluated from the aspects of safety, stability, function, compatibility, etc. of the raw materials, based on the physiological characteristics of children, especially flavors, colorants, preservatives, and surfactants. raw material.
Meng Hong introduced that the "Technical Guidelines for Cosmetics Safety Assessment (2021 Edition)" requires that children's cosmetics should use cosmetic raw materials with a history of safe use. New cosmetic raw materials that are still under safety monitoring must not be used, and cosmetics that are not safe for children must not be used. Clear raw materials; raw materials prepared by new technologies such as gene technology, , and nanotechnology are not allowed to be used. If there are no alternative raw materials and must be used, the reasons should be explained in the product safety assessment data, and the safety of children's cosmetics should be fully evaluated. .In principle, it is not allowed to use raw materials for the purpose of removing spots, whitening, acne, hair removal, deodorization, anti-dandruff, preventing hair loss, hair dyeing, and perming. If raw materials that may have the above effects are used for other purposes, the necessity of use must be understood. and evaluate the safety of children’s cosmetics.
The "Draft for Comments" also pointed out that children's cosmetics should comply with the relevant requirements of " Cosmetics Safety Technical Specifications " and shall not use raw materials that are clearly prohibited in children's cosmetics in national mandatory standards such as "Cosmetics Safety Technical Specifications"; it is not appropriate to use materials that may Raw materials with carcinogenic risks such as formaldehyde releasers; for children's cosmetics containing infants and young children, iodopropynyl butylcarbamate (except bath products and shampoos), salicylic acid and its salts must not be used (Except shampoo), silver chloride and other raw materials deposited on titanium dioxide .
According to children's cosmetics R&D personnel, currently in the R&D and production of children's cosmetics, companies will try to reduce the types of raw materials on the basis of meeting the needs of children's skin. For example, the raw materials of children's facial creams are generally only composed of water, emulsifiers, oils, moisturizers, preservatives, etc.
Nonionic emulsifiers are widely used in children's cosmetics, mainly because they have excellent skin feel, mildness, and compatibility.
The oils in children's cosmetics usually use safe and nutritious plant oils , or synthetic oils with good moisturizing effects and refreshing skin feel, and can improve the compatibility of other components. The Shenzhen Consumer Council has recommended that consumers avoid children's cosmetics containing mineral oil raw materials, because relevant studies have shown that hydrocarbon mineral oil has become the largest accumulated pollutant in the human body, and long-term intake of products contaminated by hydrocarbon mineral oil Can cause serious health risks.
The most important moisturizer for children's skin care has rich sources of raw materials, and new raw materials are constantly being launched. However, based on safety considerations, moisturizers that are naturally derived, do not contain risky substances, and have no safety disputes are more popular. Commonly used ingredients Such as glycerol, squalene, etc.
Many ingredients commonly used in adult cosmetics, such as salicylic acid, boric acid , etc., are clearly stated in the "Safety Technical Specifications for Cosmetics" and must not be used in products for children under 3 years old.
26 kinds of allergenic fragrances were named
Flavors are blended spices that combine several spices in a certain dosage ratio and order of addition to create a certain aroma or type of fragrance. In order to mask the taste of cosmetic raw materials and give consumers a pleasant feeling of use, fragrance is almost indispensable in cosmetics. Although fragrances are used in small amounts in cosmetics, they are one of the most common causes of allergic reactions and other irritating reactions.
Since cosmetic fragrances can cause allergic contact dermatitis, skin irritation dermatitis, phototoxicity and photosensitivity, etc., children’s cosmetics need to be more sensitive to the sensitization of fragrances for immature children’s skin. Ingredients are strictly avoided.
The "Draft for Comments" clarifies that children's cosmetic formulas should use as little or no flavors or fragrances as possible, and it is not recommended to use raw materials with complex ingredients that may contain 26 kinds of allergenic components as fragrances. If you use flavors or fragrances containing 26 allergenic components, a full safety assessment should be conducted. The content of allergenic components should be greater than or equal to 0.001% in leave-on products, and greater than or equal to 0.01% in rinse-off products. When this happens, it should be marked on the label to inform consumers.
Tao Lili introduced that the "Cosmetics Safety Assessment Report (Simplified Version)" requires the evaluation of fragrances as follows: fragrances are category raw materials and cannot be used. The highest historical usage amount of "flavors" in the "Catalogue of Used Cosmetic Raw Materials" should be provided. The fragrance used in the product must meet the requirements. International Fragrance and Fragrance Association (IFRA) certification documents that meet regulatory requirements or comply with relevant national standards in my country.If both "flavor" and the specific fragrance components in the fragrance are filled in the product formula form, information on the types and contents of all fragrance components contained in the fragrance should be submitted from the manufacturer of the fragrance raw materials, and each fragrance component should be tested. assess safety. A full safety assessment should be conducted on flavors or fragrances containing 26 allergenic components.
The 26 allergenic components that may be contained in cosmetic fragrances listed in the "Draft for Comments" are actually the 26 allergenic components specified in EU EC 1223/2009. It is clearly listed in the "Draft for Comments", which is a supplementary guidance on the control of important allergens in cosmetics, filling the gap in this aspect.
Industry insiders said that this is a "bottom line" for the addition of fragrances and flavors in children's cosmetics, and is also a major step forward in ensuring the safety of children's makeup. In the context of tightening supervision of cosmetics, manufacturing companies should organize production in strict accordance with or even higher than national standards, and try to reduce the types and amounts of additives such as flavors, preservatives, surfactants, etc., so as to eliminate toxic and harmful substances Threatens the safety of children using makeup.
