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Olaplex and Infertility: A Cosmetic Regulator Weighs In

Olaplex and Fertility: A Cosmetic Regulator Explains Why You Don't Need to Worry

This week, one of our and TikTok's favourite at-home hair-bonding treatments, Olaplex No. 3, has been in hot water over some frankly scary infertility links. Unfortunately, these loaded statements seem to spread like wildfire with little scientific proof to back them up. So with the help of an expert, we're going to get to the bottom of whether Olaplex is really something you should fear (spoiler: it's not).

The Olaplex and Fertility Claims

On 25 March, Tyla reported that the fragrance butylphenyl methylpropional (known as lilial) — which is now banned in line with EU regulations and has to be off shelves from 1 March — was still found on ingredient lists of Olaplex No. 3 bottles. The publication reported the the ingredient in question could have "adverse effects on fertility, as well as on the development of a foetus". It was further noted that Olaplex users were being "warned to check their bottles" of Olaplex. Tyla didn't state who warned people to "check their bottles" for this particular ingredient, but it certainly wasn't cosmetic regulators or chemists.

To get straight to the facts and avoid any scaremongering (honestly, we don't need any more of that in our lives), we spoke with The Cosmetic Regulator (whose identity remains private) to help clear up the confusion.

What Is Lilial?

Lilial is a fragrance used in beauty products, mostly in perfumes. It has no "active" properties, meaning it's used purely for fragrance. "Studies evaluating the concerns around this ingredient have been happening since before 2015, and the industry has been working on reformulations since then — this isn't new news if you're in the cosmetics industry," The Cosmetic Regulator says. "The reason for the negative resurgence [of lilial] is because 1 March, 2022, is the ban date for all cosmetic products containing lilial."

Investigations into beauty products and cosmetics are ongoing, with consumer safety being absolute top priority. Brands hire in-house teams and also regulatory bodies that make sure products are abiding by the rules. "All cosmetic products sold in the UK and EU are safety assessed strictly by experienced toxicologists who have a responsibility to ensure the product is safe before it can be sold," The Cosmetics Regulator says. With lots of scary news often making headlines when it comes to "toxic ingredients" in beauty products, it can sometimes seem like brands don't care about the welfare of their customers, but we can assure you they absolutely do. If you think about it from a purely business standpoint, it actually doesn't make much business sense for a company to harm its customers. The job of cosmetic regulators isn't to sell products but instead make sure they're safe.

"Applying Olaplex to your hair isn't going to absorb through to have a direct link to fertility."

Unfortunately, the nature of misinformation and the "natural" or "clean" beauty movement has meant that when an ingredient is banned or replaced for an alternative, it can cause mass panic among the public — which is understandable when alarming clickbait headlines circulate.

Should You Throw Away Your Olaplex?

Despite those worrying claims, you don't need to throw away perfectly good bottles of Olaplex. Like everything in the beauty industry, dose matters. "Lilial is only present in tiny amounts (usually less than 0.1 percent); this is nowhere near the amount required to establish a direct link to fertility," The Cosmetic Regulator explains. "Also, cosmetic products are not readily absorbed by the skin that easily. Our skin is designed to keep things out and protect us. Penetrating through layers and layers of skin before even reaching tissue is not something any cosmetic product should be doing. Anything that can do this is a medicinal product. Applying Olaplex to your hair isn't going to absorb through to have a direct link to fertility," they add.

"Yes, there is clearly a concern with the ingredient, and it's rightly being banned to protect consumers, but it is also about context."

As previously mentioned, the danger in beauty is all down to dose. Sure, lilial can be dangerous, but only if you consume a lot of it — and we mean a lot. "You would literally need to eat or dermally apply a solution containing 99 percent lilial periodically for several hours/days to see negative outcomes directly linked to male fertility," The Cosmetic Regulator explains. "It all relates to context: How much is being used? Where is it being used? What other ingredients are in the formulation? How long is it being used for? Which other products is it being used with?" In short: "Yes, there is clearly a concern with the ingredient, and it's rightly being banned to protect consumers, but it is also about context."

"In the UK, [lilial] can still be sold after today in cosmetic products without any legal implications as the process for banning ingredients hasn't been established yet since the UK left the EU [due to Brexit backlog]." Having said that, you won't find the ingredient in any Olaplex products moving forward. Olaplex is also not being banned in the UK, as this TikTok user claimed.

Olaplex's Statement Regarding Lilial

Olaplex said in a statement: "In September 2020, the EU regulatory authority announced their intent to phase butylphenyl methylpropional commonly referred to as 'lilial' out by March of 2022. At Olaplex, lilial was previously used in small amounts as a fragrance in No. 3 Hair Perfector. It is not an active or functional ingredient. While this phase out is limited to the EU, out of an abundance of caution, Olaplex proactively removed lilial from our No.3 Hair Perfector globally. Since January 2022, Olaplex no longer sold products using lilial in the UK or EU."

To conclude, don't go throwing away perfectly good bottles of Olaplex if you don't want to (let's be honest, that stuff doesn't come cheap). The ingredient is being banned for a reason and many regulators are pleased it is. However, for Olaplex specifically to be a concern here you would have to ingest large amounts of it to affect fertility. If you're worried about infertility, visit your GP or a medical professional to discuss your health.

Image Source: POPSUGAR Photography / Tori Crowther
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