Comprehensive review of avobenzone (butyl methoxydibenzoylmethane) toxicology data and human exposure assessment for personal care products.

A comprehensive review of existing toxicity and human exposure data for the ultraviolet filter avobenzone (butyl methoxydibenzoylmethane) was conducted to assess its safety as currently used in over-the-counter sunscreen formulations. Avobenzone has a suitable safety profile without any clear markers of toxicity or endpoints of concern. There are sufficient clinical studies and and toxicity studies in animal models to assess avobenzone's pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and potential toxicological properties, supportive of its long history of safe use.

Application habits and practices of regular sunscreen users in the United States: Results of an online survey.

A nationwide online survey assessed claimed usage of sunscreen products in 2283 self-identified regular sun protection factor (SPF) consumers (RSPFC) in the United States. Subjects applied sunscreen most frequently when spending more than 3 h in the sun. Sunscreen usage peaks during the summer, with sunny weather prompting 99% usage of beach/recreational SPF products but drops to approximately 50% and 30% on partly cloudy and cloudy days, respectively, regardless of SPF product category.

Ocular irritation reversibility assessment for personal care products using a porcine corneal culture assay.

Personal care product manufacturers have used a broad spectrum of alternative ocular irritation assays during the past two decades because these tests do not require the use of live animals, they provide reliable predictive data, and they are relatively inexpensive to conduct. To complement these assays, the ex vivo Porcine Corneal Opacity Reversibility Assay (PorCORA) was recently developed using a corneal culture model to predict reversibility of ocular irritants. Three commercially available consumer products (a shampoo, a hair color glaze, and a hair colorant system containing 12% hydrogen peroxide) were each tested in two PorCORA study replicates in order to assess potential ocular damage reversibility for surfactant-, propylene carbonate-, and peroxide-based formulations, respectively.