What is benzene, and why does it keep causing beauty product recalls?
An expanded recall of a Banana Boat spray sunscreen has drawn new attention to the problem of benzene lurking in a number of aerosol beauty products.
The latest recall is for a batch of Banana Boat Hair & Scalp Sunscreen Spray SPF 30, for a total of four batches of Banana Boat that have been recalled since July because of the presence of benzene. But in the past two years, several major consumer products companies, including Unilever, Procter & Gamble and Johnson & Johnson, have announced recalls of well-known aerosol sunscreens, deodorants and dry shampoos.
Why do we keep hearing about benzene in beauty products? Here are answers to common questions about aerosols and spray sunscreens.
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How does benzene get into beauty products?
The issue appears to be related mostly to butane-powered propellants that create pressure inside an aerosol can, which is what ultimately allows us to spray a fine mist of the product when we press the nozzle. Butane is a petroleum-based propellant, and there's a chance that the end product could contain traces of benzene from the refinement process, said Chris Cappa, a professor of environmental engineering at the University of California at Davis.
"Aerosol sprays appear to be one of the highest-risk categories for benzene contamination in consumer products," said David Light, the chief executive of Valisure, told The Washington Post last fall. Light also warned in May 2021 of benzene contamination in sunscreen products. "We don't want to scare people into never using an aerosol can ever again, but it is a real risk."
In a statement announcing its recall of various dry shampoo products in October, Unilever said the company confirmed the propellant "as the source" of the benzene contamination. Johnson & Johnson also confirmed the contamination was related to the propellant.
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What products has benzene been found in?
It's not clear how widespread the problem is, and the major companies involved haven't provided many details. The affected aerosol products include some of the world's biggest brand names, including certain lots of Neutrogena, Aveeno, Banana Boat and Coppertone sunscreens; Sure, Brut, Suave, Secret and Old Spice deodorants; Dove, Nexxus, Suave, Tresemmé and Bed Head dry shampoos; and Tinactin and Odor Eaters foot sprays.
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Is benzene a poison?
We can be exposed to benzene in many ways. Rubber collars were added to nozzles at the gas pump to protect us from the benzene in the fumes. We inhale benzene when we smoke tobacco and expose our families to benzene through secondhand smoke. In a study published last month, researchers found benzene leaking from gas stoves in California.
"Everyone is exposed to benzene," said Stephen M. Rappaport, a professor emeritus at the University of California at Berkeley's School of Public Health. "It's just a question of how much."
The World Health Organization has said "there's no safe level" of exposure to benzene in the air we breathe.
Breathing or otherwise absorbing benzene over time can lead to leukemia, anemia and other blood disorders, according to the Food and Drug Administration.
Much of the research on the harmful effects of benzene focuses on occupational hazards. One study published in 1977 found workers in the U.S. rubber industry were at least five times more likely to develop leukemia.
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Is benzene safe in sunscreen or dry shampoo?
Some experts say the concern with any amount of benzene in consumer products such as dry shampoo or deodorant is that we're often spraying these cans in enclosed spaces like small bathrooms. In such spaces, there's not a lot of air flow and a higher possibility of someone inhaling the spray residue, which could contain trace amounts of benzene.
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Why do we keep hearing about benzene in beauty products?
The string of aerosol can recalls started after Valisure, an independent laboratory based in New Haven, Conn., published two studies detecting traces of benzene in dozens of deodorant and sunscreen brands. Since then, a number of firms have announced product recalls.
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How do I know if my spray beauty product might contain benzene?
Not all spray cans rely on petroleum-based propellants. Cans of whipped cream are often powered by nitrous oxide. Other spray cans use a "bag-on-valve" technology that separates the propellant from the product inside the can, said Marisa Plescia, a cosmetic chemist based in Minneapolis.
To find out if your product contains a butane-powered propellant, just check the label. The chemicals used in the propellant should be listed in the ingredients or inactive-ingredients box. Look for any ingredients that end in "-ane," such as propane, butane and isobutane.
Clues that a product may use an alternate technology such as the bag-on-valve system are claims that the product doesn't contain flammable ingredients or has a "continuous spray." Some canned cooking sprays such as a can of canola oil spray from Whole Foods explicitly note the can doesn't use any propellant, petroleum or otherwise.
To find out more about which products and lot numbers have been recalled, you can go to the FDA's recall page and search for "benzene."
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