Zeolite / crystalline aluminosilicate

[Guest guest]

Hello

I did a search the ingredient in the subject title but couldn't find

anything. (..unless I've missed something in which case DO let me

know)

QUESTIONS:

What is Zeolite / crystalline aluminosilicate?

Can it be used on skin?

If so...say I were to use it in a salt or sugar scrub...

How much would need to be used - percentage?

If this is not viable then....why not?

Many thanks in advance for your assistance.

Anita

[Guest guest]

> Hello

>

> I did a search the ingredient in the subject title but couldn't

find

> anything. (..unless I've missed something in which case DO let me

> know)

>

> QUESTIONS:

> What is Zeolite / crystalline aluminosilicate?

>

> Can it be used on skin?

Zeolite is a hydrated alkali aluminum silicate.

> If so...say I were to use it in a salt or sugar scrub...

> How much would need to be used - percentage?

>

> If this is not viable then....why not?

Several people on this list have played with it. If you search the

CosmeticInfo message archives, I KNOW yoou'll get several hits.

Maurice

[Guest guest]

International Journal of Toxicology

Volume 22, Supplement 1 / 2003

Pages: 37 - 102

Final Report on the Safety Assessment of Aluminum Silicate, Calcium

Silicate, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Magnesium Silicate, Magnesium

Trisilicate, Sodium Magnesium Silicate, Zirconium Silicate,

Attapulgite, Bentonite, Fuller's Earth, ite, Kaolin, Lithium

Magnesium Silicate, Lithium Magnesium Sodium Silicate,

Montmorillonite, Pyrophyllite, and Zeolite

Abstract:

This report reviews the safety of Aluminum, Calcium, Lithium

Magnesium, Lithium Magnesium Sodium, Magnesium Aluminum, Magnesium,

Sodium Magnesium, and Zirconium Silicates, Magnesium Trisilicate,

Attapulgite, Bentonite, Fuller's Earth, ite, Kaolin,

Montmorillonite, Pyrophyllite, and Zeolite as used in cosmetic

formulations. The common aspect of all these claylike ingredients is

that they contain silicon, oxygen, and one or more metals. Many

silicates occur naturally and are mined; yet others are produced

synthetically. Typical cosmetic uses of silicates include abrasive,

opacifying agent, viscosity-increasing agent, anticaking agent,

emulsion stabilizer, binder, and suspending agent. Clay silicates

(silicates containing water in their structure) primarily function as

adsorbents, opacifiers, and viscosity-increasing agents. Pyrophyllite

is also used as a colorant. The International Agency for Research on

Cancer has ruled Attapulgite fibers µm as possibly carcinogenic to

humans, but fibers µm were not classified as to their carcinogenicity

to humans. Likewise, Clinoptilolite, ite, Mordenite,

Nonfibrous Japanese Zeolite, and synthetic Zeolites were not

classified as to their carcinogenicity to humans. These ingredients

are not significantly toxic in oral acute or short-term oral or

parenteral toxicity studies in animals. Inhalation toxicity, however,

is readily demonstrated in animals. Particle size, fibrogenicity,

concentration, and mineral composition had the greatest effect on

toxicity. Larger particle size and longer and wider fibers cause more

adverse effects. Magnesium Aluminum Silicate was a weak primary skin

irritant in rabbits and had no cumulative skin irritation in guinea

pigs. No gross effects were reported in any of these studies. Sodium

Magnesium Silicate had no primary skin irritation in rabbits and had

no cumulative skin irritation in guinea pigs. ite was

nonirritating to the skin of rabbits in a Draize primary skin

irritation study. Magnesium Aluminum Silicate and Sodium Magnesium

Silicate caused minimal eye irritation in a Draize eye irritation

test. Bentonite caused severe iritis after injection into the

anterior chamber of the eyes of rabbits and when injected

intralamellarly, widespread corneal infiltrates and retrocorneal

membranes were recorded. In a primary eye irritation study in

rabbits, ite was moderately irritating without washing and

practically nonirritating to the eye with a washout. Rats tolerated a

single dose of Zeolite A without any adverse reaction in the eye.

Calcium Silicate had no discernible effect on nidation or on maternal

or fetal survival in rabbits. Magnesium Aluminum Silicate had neither

a teratogenic nor adverse effects on the mouse fetus. Female rats

receiving a 20% Kaolin diet exhibited maternal anemia but no

significant reduction in birth weight of the pups was recorded. Type

A Zeolite produced no adverse effects on the dam, embryo, or fetus in

either rats or rabbits at any dose level. Clinoptilolite had no

effect on female rat reproductive performance. These ingredients were

not genotoxic in the Ames bacterial test system. In primary

hepatocyte cultures, the addition of Attapulgite had no significant

unscheduled DNA synthesis. Attapulgite did cause significant

increases in unscheduled DNA synthesis in rat pleural mesothelial

cells, but no significant increase in sister chromosome exchanges

were seen. Zeolite particles (<10 µm) produced statistically

significant increase in the percentage of aberrant metaphases in

human peripheral blood lymphocytes and cells collected by peritoneal

lavage from exposed mice. Topical application of Magnesium Aluminum

Silicate to human skin daily for 1 week produced no adverse effects.

Occupational exposure to mineral dusts has been studied extensively.

Fibrosis and pneumoconiosis have been documented in workers involved

in the mining and processing of Aluminum Silicate, Calcium Silicate,

Zirconium Silicate, Fuller's Earth, Kaolin, Montmorillonite,

Pyrophyllite, and Zeolite. The Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR)

Expert Panel concluded that the extensive pulmonary damage in humans

was the result of direct occupational inhalation of the dusts and

noted that lesions seen in animals were affected by particle size,

fiber length, and concentration. The Panel considers that most of the

formulations are not respirable and of the preparations that are

respirable, the concentration of the ingredient is very low. Even so,

the Panel considered that any spray containing these solids should be

formulated to minimize their inhalation. With this admonition to the

cosmetics industry, the CIR Expert Panel concluded that these

ingredients are safe as currently used in cosmetic formulations. The

Panel did note that the cosmetic ingredient, Talc, is a hydrated

magnesium silicate. Because it has a unique crystalline structure

that differs from ingredients addressed in this safety assessment,

Talc is not included in this report.

Maurice

[Guest guest]

In response to this report and apologies for seeming obtuse, but could

you, Maurice, or somebody else explain what, exactly, this statement

that I noted in the report that Maurice kindly sent to the list means:

Zeolite particles (<10 µm) produced statistically significant increase

in the percentage of aberrant metaphases in human peripheral blood

lymphocytes and cells collected by peritoneal lavage from exposed mice.

Although this report seems to conclude that the use of Zeolite in

cosmetics is safe, the statement that I have referenced above is

concerning and confusing to me – are they talking about a danger that is

caused only when large quantities of Zeolite are inhaled? Thank you!

Meagan

[Guest guest]

Well, I must really be wanting to avoid work tonight, but I actually went and

read this paper---all 60 odd pages of it to get to the good stuff. It's hard to

find out what a paper is really saying based on an abstract, and even harder

when you take a little snip out of an abstract.

The review is talking about a paper that was published in 1993, and so I

unfortunately don't have access to the original paper. But what it sounds like

the authours did was incubate zeolite particles of a certain size with a cell

line. (You can grow certain human tumour cells on plastic dishes in the lab,

and it is a general way of testing the effects of chemicals and such on *humans*

without actually going to an animal model. That being said, what happens in a

cell line on a plastic plate is not always what is going to happen once you

introduce it into or onto a live person, as you can well imagine.) I imagine

they examined the cells then by microscopy looking for DNA damage. And what

they saw were " aberrant metaphases " , which means " strange looking DNA during

cell division " . The authors go on to say that this was due to chromosomal

breakage. (If I'm not being clear, or being condescending, please give me a

little kick.) By itself, this data may have been of some concern,

but they review several other studies looking at oral toxicity, and injection

into animal models resulted in little tumour formation. In fact, the final

paragraph of

the review paper by Elmore (2003) reads:

CONCLUSION

The CIR Expert Panel concludes that Aluminum Silicate,

Calcium Silicate, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Magnesium

Silicate, Magnesium Trisilicate, Sodium Magnesium Silicate,

Zirconium Silicate, Attapulgite, Bentonite, Fuller’s Earth, ite,

Kaolin, Lithium Magnesium Silicate, Lithium Magnesium

Sodium Silicate, Montmorillonite, Pyrophyllite, and Zeolite

are safe as used in cosmetic products.

Although I cannot actually find within this review the concentrations zeolite is

normally used at, I'm sure as Maurice mentioned that it will show up in the

archives if people on the list have talked about it before.

Mel's two cents.

N. Holowaty

www.melskitchen.com

Previous message:

Zeolite particles (<10 µm) produced statistically significant increase

in the percentage of aberrant metaphases in human peripheral blood

lymphocytes and cells collected by peritoneal lavage from exposed mice.

[Guest guest]

Thank you very much for this response, ! It really was helpful!

Have a nice day, Meagan