We’re actively recruiting qualified applicants to join our volunteer committees to help us define the core elements of safer, more sustainable products. Industry alignment on these elements is the first step toward achieving a common definition and forming a meaningful, marketable category of safer and more sustainable everyday products.

The Initiative

We’re launching a collaborative initiative with retailers, brands, and policy advocates to develop a market-led health and environmental product rating based on the core elements of a green product: safer chemicals, sustainable packaging, responsible sourcing, and low-impact manufacturing.

Research consistently shows that confusion and skepticism around sustainability claims drives a big gap between the number of shoppers who say they want eco-conscious products and the number who buy them. Developing a common framework for meaningful health and sustainability claims will build consumer trust, simplify purchasing decisions, and drive clear and consistent standards throughout the value chain.

Industry practitioners and advocates have the potential to drive significant impact for this initiative through their guidance and insight.

Call for Applicants

Apply to join our volunteer committees and help us define the core elements of safer, more sustainable products. Participants will bring both market and technical perspectives to the development of category-specific criteria and claims in:

• cleaning & laundry care
• personal care & cosmetics
• towel & tissue
• home restoration products

Selected members should expect to contribute a few hours a month to activities such as attending meetings, reviewing documents, or providing feedback.

If you are interested in participating in our committees, please apply by March 19, 2025.

Polyethylene glycol (PEG) is a versatile and widely used compound found in everything from pharmaceuticals to cosmetics. This petroleum-derived chemical acts as a solvent and is often used to enhance product performance.

PEG is generally considered a safer ingredient, but it can be contaminated with toxic impurities.

Here, we’ll discuss what polyethylene glycol is, where it’s commonly found, and whether you should be concerned when you see this ingredient on product labels.

Polyethylene Glycol in Consumer Products

PEG is a polyether compound derived from petroleum. PEG can be a liquid, semi-solid, or solid depending on its molecular weight — making it highly adaptable and useful for formulators. PEG also is known for its water-solubility, low toxicity, and minimal reactivity, and widely used to enhance product stability, texture, and efficacy.

You might find PEG-400 on product labels for personal care products, pharmaceuticals, and food items, or PEG-8000 on cosmetics and cleaning products. The numbers following PEG indicate the ingredient’s average molecular weight — PEG-400 is a liquid, while PEG-8000 is a solid.

In personal care, you may find polyethylene glycol in shampoo, creams, lotions, or toothpaste, where it serves as a humectant, emollient, and thickening agent. In these applications, PEG helps retain moisture, improve texture, and stabilize formulations.

Polyethylene Glycol: Is It Safe?

Polyethylene glycol itself is not typically associated with significant health risks. However, because of the manufacturing process used to produce it, PEG can contain carcinogenic contaminants such as ethylene oxide and 1,4-dioxane. These contaminants also may cause skin irritation or other adverse reactions for people with sensitivities or allergies.

To be confident that a product containing PEG is free from harmful levels of contaminants, look for reputable ecolabels like Green Seal. We screen all chemicals in a product, including contaminants, to ensure certified products meet a high standard for protecting people and the planet.

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A Guide to Formaldehyde

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“Fragrance” is a common ingredient on consumer product labels that indicates the product is scented. Although it’s often noted as a single ingredient, “fragrance” is actually an umbrella term for a combination of chemicals that produces a desired aroma.

Understanding the nature of the chemicals in fragrances, their uses, and potential safety concerns can help you make informed choices about the products you bring into your home.

Here, we’ll explore the composition of fragrances, their applications, safety considerations, and ways to minimize your exposure.

Fragrance Ingredients and Safety

The term “fragrance” on ingredient labels is a catch-all for a mixture of chemicals designed to give products a specific scent. These mixtures can contain anywhere from a few to several hundred individual chemicals. Because the formulas can be considered trade secrets, companies often are not required to publicly disclose the specific chemicals used in their fragrances.

Green Seal reviews every chemical used in a product’s formula, including the chemicals used in fragrances, to ensure certified products meet a high standard for protecting people and the planet.

Fragrance ingredients commonly include synthetic chemicals that provide a distinctive aroma and that stabilize and prolong scents. Here are some common chemicals used in fragrances, and their associated health impacts. None of these are permitted in Green Seal Certified products:

• Phthalates, such as diethyl phthalate (DEP), are often used to help scents last longer. They are associated with endocrine disruption and other health issues
• Synthetic musks, like galaxolide and tonalide, provide products with a long-lasting scent. They are endocrine disruptors, which can affect human development, growth and metabolism
• Aldehydes are commonly used to produce fruity scents, but some, like Acetaldehyde, are known carcinogens
• Styrene is used to make fragrances last longer. It is a carcinogen, reproductive toxin, neurotoxin, and asthmagen

Fragrance blends may contain natural ingredients like essential oils, though these are often mixed with synthetic chemicals to enhance or stabilize the scent. Even on their own, many essential oils can be skin sensitizers that cause uncomfortable allergic reactions.

Overall, the complexity and lack of transparency around fragrance ingredients can pose a risk to consumers with chemical sensitivities by triggering symptoms such as headaches, respiratory issues, and skin irritation.

Where You’re Likely to Find Fragrance in Products

Fragrances are used across a wide range of consumer products. In personal care items, you can find fragrances in perfumes, colognes, shampoos, conditioners, lotions, and deodorants, to name a few. These scents are designed to provide a pleasant sensory experience and are a significant factor in the appeal of these products.

Fragrances also are prevalent in household products including cleaners, laundry detergents, fabric softeners, and air fresheners. Even products like trash bags and diapers can contain added fragrances to mask odors.

The pervasive use of fragrances in everyday items means that exposure to these chemicals is almost unavoidable.

How to Avoid Harmful Fragrance Chemicals

It is difficult to avoid fragrance altogether, but you can minimize your exposure to harmful fragrance chemicals by taking the following steps:

• Buy products from brands that prioritize transparency and disclose their fragrance ingredients.
• Look for Green Seal Certified products, which are formulated with safer ingredients.
• Look closely at “fragrance-free” marketing claims, as these claims are not regulated. Some of these products may contain essential oils or other fragrance ingredients.
• Be wary of items labeled as “unscented,” as they may still contain masking agents that neutralize odors without imparting a noticeable scent.

Formaldehyde is a chemical with widespread applications that exposes humans to significant health risks. Known for its preservative and disinfecting properties, formaldehyde (also known as HCHO) can be found in a variety of product types including paints, cleaners, personal care products, and cosmetics.

Formaldehyde is classified as a carcinogen, skin sensitizer, and mutagen. This common ingredient is among the many harmful chemicals we prohibit in Green Seal-certified products to ensure products meet a high standard for protecting people and the planet.

Here, we’ll explore how formaldehyde is used today, why you might find formaldehyde in shampoo and other everyday products, how to choose safer and more sustainable products, and other tips for reducing your exposure.

What is Formaldehyde?

Formaldehyde is a compound with the chemical formula CH₂O. It’s a colorless, strong-smelling gas at room temperature that is naturally occurring in small amounts in the human body and environment. The chemical compound is low cost and highly reactive, making it useful in various household and industrial applications.

Formaldehyde is classified as a volatile organic compound (VOC) and can offgas from products that contain it as an ingredient, exposing humans to its known health effects. It also can be absorbed into the body when products containing formaldehyde are applied to or come into contact with skin. As a chemical, formaldehyde is a gas at room temperature, but formulators may incorporate it into products in various states of matter. For example, it can be mixed with water to form an aqueous solution, formalin. Similarly, paraformaldehyde (PFA) is a powder that consists of polymers of formaldehyde. Both formalin and PFA have notable disinfecting and preservative properties.

Common Uses for Formaldehyde Around the House 

Formaldehyde is used extensively in the textile industry, in building materials, and in household products. It is a key component in resins and is used in pressed wood products such as particleboard, plywood, and fiberboard. These materials can be found in furniture, cabinetry, flooring, adhesives, coatings, and insulation materials.

Formaldehyde commonly is included in personal care products in the form of formaldehyde-releasing ingredients. These preservatives are chemical compounds specifically designed to release formaldehyde into the product over time to help prevent microbial growth and extend a product’s shelf life. This is why you may find shampoos, conditioners, nail polishes, lotions, or cosmetics with formaldehyde. 

Formaldehyde can also be found in multi-purpose cleaners, sanitizing products, and restroom cleaners due to its known disinfecting properties and ability to act as an antimicrobial agent, germicide, and fungicide.

How Formaldehyde Affects Your Health 

Exposure to high levels of formaldehyde can cause several acute health effects, including respiratory issues, skin irritation, and allergic reactions. Long-term exposure to high levels of formaldehyde is also linked to an increased risk of cancer, particularly nasopharyngeal cancer and leukemia. 

Formaldehyde’s designation as a human carcinogen has prompted stricter regulations and guidelines for consumer products and occupational exposure. Despite these measures, low-level exposure remains common, putting the responsibility on consumers to understand potential sources. 

How to Reduce Your Exposure to Formaldehyde

Being mindful of the products you bring into your home and use on and around your body can help protect you. As a consumer, it can be challenging to avoid products containing formaldehyde because its use is often contained within formaldehyde-releasing ingredients such as quaternium-15, DMDM hydantoin, and imidazolidinyl urea. Choosing products with third-party certifications that prohibit the intentional addition of formaldehyde can provide assurance that the products are safer for human health and the environment.

By making informed choices and seeking safer alternatives, you can significantly reduce your exposure to formaldehyde. This proactive approach contributes to a healthier living environment and minimizes potential health risks associated with this pervasive chemical.