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News

New guide answers parents’ questions about the safety of cosmetics and toiletries

25 May 2010

CTPA has launched Facts About Cosmetics for Parents, an online guide to parents’ most common questions about the safe use of cosmetics and toiletries, both during pregnancy and on young children.

The guide brings together questions from some of the UK’s top parenting journalists who regularly deal with reader enquiries about product safety, as well as questions obtained directly from parents themselves during a live webchat hosted by CTPA in partnership with Netmums on Thursday 13 May 2010.

Research by YouGov for CTPA suggests 89% of parents are concerned at some level that the chemicals in their everyday products might impact their children’s health* - and more than half (54%) would feel reassured by a better understanding of the ingredients in their products and what they do*. ^*

CTPA hopes Facts About Cosmetics for Parents will help reassure parents about the safety of cosmetic ingredients. It also provides practical, family-friendly advice on product application, such as the most effective way to apply sunscreen.

Dr Emma Meredith, CTPA, said: “Parents share many concerns about the safe use of cosmetics during pregnancy and on young children. The same questions appear time and again in internet forums and magazine letters pages. We hope that, by bringing together answers to these common questions in one place, Facts About Cosmetics for Parents will help to allay some of the concerns parents have.”

Ellen Raphael, Director UK at Sense About Science, said; “Parents and pregnant women are bombarded by so many conflicting messages about what they should and shouldn’t avoid to keep their child safe. As a mother myself, I know how confusing even a simple trip to the supermarket can be, trying to work out what all the different labels mean.”

She continued: “CTPA’s guide captures some of the most common worries parents have about cosmetics and toiletries, and provides balanced, science-based facts in response. It’s a great tool for addressing some of the confusion that exists.”

The guide is available by clicking on the image in the Babycare section.

* YouGov survey among 2013 UK adults aged 18+ carried out between 1^st – 3^rd April 2009

 

The Cosmetic, Toiletry and Perfumery Association (CTPA) is an association of manufacturers of cosmetic, toiletry and perfumery products, founded in 1945 to promote the interests of members, primarily with government. That remit has now extended to include the European Commission and many other regulatory bodies, national and international groups.

Members are manufacturers (full members), raw material suppliers and suppliers of services (associate members). Our Council is made up of senior industry representatives from small, medium, large and multi-national companies. Activities are funded through membership subscriptions.

The focus of our work centres on scientific, regulatory and legislative issues. We have a constant dialogue with the UK Government and this process is repeated at European level through COLIPA, the European trade body and internationally through an extensive network of national association contacts.

Visit the CTPA main website »

The Cosmetic, Toiletry and Perfumery Association (CTPA) is the voice of the cosmetic, toiletry and perfumery industry in the UK. Our members vary from small and medium-sized companies to large multi-nationals and include manufacturers, raw material suppliers and service providers.

Our primary goal is to promote good working practice to ensure that consumers are provided with the very best products. To this end, we co-ordinate the industry's viewpoint on key issues such as science, innovation and safety and maintain an open dialogue with government, both at UK and European level, as well as with international regulatory authorities and key opinion formers.

CTPA recognises that the consumer has a right to understand the processes that industry and the regulatory bodies go through to ensure the safety and efficacy of cosmetic and toiletry products. Over the years we have steadily increased our focus on providing the public with direct access to the industry's perspective and progress on safety, science and innovation.

In April 2008 we launched our consumer information website, www.thefactsabout.co.uk, which provides scientific facts about common ingredients used in cosmetics and the industry's perspective on common safety questions as well as information on how products are regulated to ensure safety and efficacy.

Further information on the work of the CTPA is available from our main website www.ctpa.org.uk which also houses the full set of legislation under 'Cosmetic regulations'.