Titanium Dioxide safety and mineral makeup

We were not a little dismayed to discover that The Environmental Working Group (EWG) has reclassified it’s titanium dioxide safety rating from 1 to 6. It appears that EWG in the process of reassessing all mineral cosmetics containing this particular ingredient, so it’s only a matter of time before most of the cosmetics which had a ’1′ (low hazard) rating will have a ’3′ (medium hazard) rating.

After discussions with EWG, we discovered that the reclassification is related to their mistaken belief that nano-sized titanium dioxide particles, which are often used in sunscreens because of their transparency, are a component of mineral cosmetics. We would like to go out on a limb and say that it is very unlikely that any mineral cosmetics manufacturer, not just Alima Pure, uses nano-sized titanium dioxide and zinc oxide for precisely this reason: nano-sized particles are so tiny that they are nearly transparent. Transparency is great in sunscreen, but totally useless in, say, foundation, where coverage is the point.

We’ve been in contact with EWG about correcting their records. Meanwhile, Alima Pure is committed to bringing you the very safest, purest cosmetics available, and we are following this issue carefully. As you know, all of our products are compliant with the European Union Cosmetics Directive and the strict standards of the BDIH. For our part, we intend to err on the side of caution in our formulations. We’ll certainly keep you posted as this issue unfolds, and please let us know if you have any questions.