The GuardianThe Guardian

Several big brands voluntarily recalled dozens of products in recent months after independent testing found that hundreds of popular personal care items in the US were contaminated with benzene.

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Last year the lab detected benzene in a number of products. Aerosol or spray products have been found to be contaminated at levels the Food and Drug Administration considers life-threatening.

David Light, Valisure's chief executive, said that the findings suggest that benzene is widespread and probably in more products that have not yet been tested.

He said that Benzene shouldn't be there at all.

The voluntary recalls for widely distributed brands include Brut, Sure, Pantene, Herbal Essences, Old Spice, Secret, Tinactin, Lotrimin, Coppertone and Neutrogena. Art Naturals, Best Brands, and Natural Wunderz are some of the recalled brands.

Light pointed to decades of research that found no safe levels of benzene exposure because it is so toxic at very low levels. The US Department of Health and Human Services wrote that the chemical causes cancer in leukemia and in blood forming organs. The central nervous system and reproductive organs have been shown to be harmed by the toxin.

The US banned benzene's use as an ingredient nearly 45 years ago, and it's been known for being incredibly toxic.

The FDA failed to do more to protect the public. The agency urged companies to recall contaminated products in a December statement.

The FDA does not have the authority to order recalls or require testing, but advocates want the FDA to clarify an existing benzene limit, set new exposure limits, and conduct more testing of products on store shelves to ensure they are safe. Light said that the FDA's system lacks independent review because it relies on companies to self report.

Federal rules allow benzene to be used in the manufacture of personal care products, even if it isn't listed as an ingredient. If it provides significant therapeutic advantages, Benzene can be added in emergency situations. The FDA's limit is two parts per million, but some products had levels as high as 21 parts per million.

The FDA wrote in a statement that it continues to monitor the issue and work with companies to recall contaminated products. The agency doesn't have exposure limits, so it informs companies that benzene shouldn't be used in the manufacture of drug substances, excipients, or drug products because of their unacceptable toxicity.

Some companies capitalized on the confusing regulations to downplay the problem. Johnson and Johnson said that exposure to benzene in aerosol sunscreen products at the levels detected in our testing would not be expected to cause adverse health consequences.

The company's statement was posted by the FDA on its website even though agency scientists found in a July analysis that benzene-contaminated sunscreen did pose a life-threatening risk.

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There is a bit of a mystery about how benzene is landing in products. The FDA theorizes that it's probably in contaminated agents or spray propellant, since companies claim they aren't adding it to their formulas.

In many cases, Valisure found that one batches of a product would contain benzene while another batches would not. The lack of oversight in the global supply chains that produce personal care products highlights the complexity. A propellant like butane that is refined very early in the manufacturing process touches dozens of different hands, yet nobody detected benzene, Light said.

Nearly half of the products from 30 different brands contained benzene, which is found in body sprays. The highest levels were found in Sure, Old Spice, Secret, and Right Guard.

Valisure tested nearly 300 sunscreens and found 77 that had levels in them. Neutrogena, Sun Bum, Raw Elements, and Banana Boat were among those with the highest levels. The spray-on sunscreen was found to be contaminated most frequently.

As demand for the product spiked, Valisure found the highest levels of benzene in small brands. Out of 260 samples from 168 brands sold on Amazon, 44, or about 17%, had levels of benzene that were detected. Household names like Purell and Suave did not contain the chemical.

There have been no reports of adverse events related to the recall. The voluntary recall is being conducted out of an abundance of caution.

It is nearly impossible to prove that one chemical causes an illness, and benzene has a long time between exposure and cancer.

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