Glitter
Glitter is a popular cosmetic ingredient used in many makeup products, such as eyeshadows, highlighters, lip glosses, nail polishes, and body lotions. It can beapplied directly to the skin, nails, or lips or incorporated into makeup products to enhance their visual appeal.It's also often used to accent or color soap.
Glitter is most often made by bonding colorto a thin layer of plastic which is chopped into small pieces. Pearlescent and other shimmery colors may also be made by bonding color to plastic. These are different from the normal colored mica, which isjust mica mixed with color additives.
Plastic Safety
The plastic used in glitter is most often polyethylene terephthalate. It is commonly known as PET, PET plastic, or PET Resinwhen used for containers or other applications. It is commonly known as polyesterwhen used in fiber or fabric applications.
PET is used in a wide variety of products for a multitude of reasonsand is approved for contact with food and in medical devices. A Cosmetic Ingredient Review safety assessment of polyethylene terephthalate and other polymers used in cosmetics found that they appear to be "safe in the current practices of use." The usage levels noted in the report were from .05% to 100%.1
Environmental Concerns
However, polyethylene terephthalate is a plastic. There is growing concern over the effect of microplastics in the environment, particularly in waterways and oceans, and their effect on both humans and marine life.2
Plastic microbeads have already been prohibited for use in cosmetics in the US3and other countries. Pressure is building to prohibit the general use of all microplastics in cosmetics, which would likely include plastic-based glitters.4
Alternatives
A new class of glitter, called biodegradable or enviro-friendly glitter has come onto the market in recent years to replace actual plastics. In some cases, it is glitter made from real or synthetic mica (and soisnot a plastic at all), and in othercases,it is made from plant-based "plastics." There is still some controversy over the actual biodegradability of such productsand their long-term effect on the environment.5
Borosilicate glasses are also being used as a replacement for PET in glitter manufacturing. In addition to being used as a carrier for colors, borosilicate glasses are also used as bulking agents and for skin conditioning. They have been found to be chemically inert and thus not systemically toxic and are considered safe at the present practices and concentrations of use.6
Regulatory Issues
The FDA considers some glitters andpearlescentsto be "new composite pigments" that have not been approved for use in cosmetics. However, at least since 2012 they "developing an enforcement strategy" and thus are not taking action against cosmetic products containing glitter.7
The glitter itself may contain components that are not themselves color additives (i.e. PET, plant-based "plastic" or borosilicate glass). However, regardless of the base to which the color is bonded, the color additives used in any type of glitter must be approved for use in cosmetics and approved for the intended use of the product. See Color Additives: Cosmetics.
Ingredient Declaration
The color additives –and only the approved color additives –used in the glitter may be listed at the end of the ingredient declaration.
The ingredients thatare NOT approved as color additives—even if they are included in a composite that adds color to your product—must be listed with the other non-color ingredients in your product, in descending order of predominance. In the alternative order, they can be listed in any order with other ingredients present at 1% or less.
Warning—"Craft" Glitter
Glitter that isn't intended to be used on the human body as a cosmetic doesn't have the same restrictions on the color additives that may be used. So-called "craft glitter" marketed for use in craft projects is very likely to contain colorants meant for paint or chemicals, many of which are NOT approved for use on the human body (and for good reason).
Never use glitter in a cosmetic unless you can verify the color additives in it are safe and approved for cosmetic use.
1 Cosmetic Ingredient Review. Safety Assessment of Modified Terephthalate Polymers as Used in Cosmetics.
International Journal of Toxicology 33, no. 3_suppl (September 2014): 36S-47S. DOI: 10.1177/1091581814537001.
2 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). What are Microplastics?
321 USC 331(ddd)
4 FDA. The Microbead-Free Waters Act: FAQ
5 Green, Dannielle Senga, Megan Jefferson,Bas Boots,Leon Stone. All that glitters is litter? Ecological impacts of conventional versus biodegradable glitter in a freshwater habitat. January 15, 2021,Journal of Hazardous MaterialsVolume 402
6 Cosmetic Ingredient Review. Safety Assessment of Borosilicate Glasses as Usedin Cosmetics. International Journal of Toxicology. Vol 32, )Supplement 3) 655-725. DOI: 10.1177/1091581813507089
7 FDA Compliance Program Guidance Manual, Chapter 29 – Colors and Cosmetics Technology Part V, page 8. 2016
