THE EUROPEAN Commission on Thursday banned 22 hair dye chemicals after the cosmetic industry failed to submit any safety files on them.
The ban, which is due to come into force on December 1, was based on the conclusion of a scientific study that revealed long-term use of certain hair dyes could potentially increase the risk of bladder cancer.
The commission said its strategy foresaw a ban on all permanent and non-permanent hair dyes for which the industry had not submitted any safety files and those judged to be unsafe.
“Substances for which there is no proof that they are safe will disappear from the market. Our high safety standards do not only protect EU consumers, they also give legal certainty to
European cosmetics industry,” Commission Vice President Gunter Verheugen said.
The ban applies to all products on the EU market, including imports, a commission spokesman said.
More than 60 per cent of women and five to 10 per cent of men dye their hair. The average frequency of use is six to eight times per year. But the move will not affect the 2.6 billion euro EU hair dye market because the substances are not used anyway, Gerald Rennor, director of science and research at the European Cosmetic Toiletry and Perfumery Association, told Reuters.
“The impact will be zero,” he said.
The EU’s Scientific Committee on Consumer Products (SCCP) said at the end of 2002 that there was epidemiological evidence indicating that the regular and long-term use of hair dyes by women may be associated with the development of bladder cancer.
In 2001 the EU’s Scientific Committee on Cosmetic Products and Non-Food Products intended for Consumers (SCCNFP) concluded that the potential risk for the development of bladder cancer in past users of permanent hair dyes “is of concern”.
The SCCNFP recommended that “the European Commission provides resources for the urgent review of the information, further epidemiological studies are performed to evaluate the possible association between bladder cancer and the use of permanent hair dyes in the EU and the European Commission takes further steps to control the use of hair dye chemicals since the potential risks of using this category of substances give cause for concern”.
The following year the SCCNFP recommended an overall safety assessment strategy for hair dyes including the requirements for testing hair dye cosmetic ingredients for their potential genotoxicity and carcinogenicity.
Against this background, Commission services together with Member States agreed on a regulatory strategy to all hair dyes in use. The main element of the strategy was a tiered, modulated approach requiring industry to submit by certain deadlines files on hair dyes to be evaluated by the SCCNFP to ensure they did not pose a health risk. The industry submitted such safety files on 115 substances in use.
The ban by the European Union’s executive body concerns 22 hair dye substances for which industry has not submitted any safety files.
“The scientific committee advising the Commission had recommended the ban of these substances following the conclusions of a scientific study that the long-term use of certain hair dyes bears a potential risk of bladder cancer,” the Commission said in a statement.
