Survey of Chemical Substances in Consumer Products, 61 – Colorants in transferable picture tattoos for the skin

Colorants in transferable picture tattoos for the skin

Summary

The use of transferable picture tattoos for the skin is popular among children. As these picture tattoos are used on the skin, they should comply with the Danish Statutory Order on Cosmetic Products/EU Cosmetic Directive. There is very little knowledge of the colorants that may be present in the picture tattoos.

Picture tattoos are sold as such, or they can be attached to different types of products such as toys, food, candies and chewing gums etc. The aims of the present investigation were to perform a survey of the colorants that may be present in the transferable picture tattoos for children, to check the compliance of these products with the Cosmetic Directive, and to derive general conclusions concerning the safety of the these products with respect to their colour contents.

Forty-two products of picture tattoos or other products with attached picture tattoos were purchased in Denmark. Of these, 22 products were selected for the chemical analysis of colorants, so that most of the colorants present in the collected picture tattoo samples were represented.

The colorants in the picture tattoos were extracted in suitable solvents and analysed by high performance liquid chromatography. The presence of 129 cosmetic colorants, permitted for the use in cosmetic products, was checked in the picture tattoos. Only 11 of these colorants could be identified in the analysed samples. The content of seven of these colorants (CI 15850, CI 11920, CI 45220, CI 75300, CI 13015, CI 45100, CI 15525) was >12 ppm. Risk assessment of these seven colorants has been performed on the basis of the information available in the scientific literature.

The Danish EPA has received a few complaints about children getting skin reactions from the use of picture tattoos. The reason for these skin reactions from picture tattoos is not known. No cases of allergic skin reaction from transferable picture tattoos have been reported in the scientific literature, from selected Dermatology Departments (a query was made), or from the Danish Consumer Association. There is no information on animal testing for sensitisation or allergic reactions in humans by the colorants CI 45220, CI 13015 and, CI 15525. However, there are reports of a few cases of allergic reactions caused by CI 15850 and 75300 in humans, but never by the use of picture tattoos. QSAR studies based on the physical chemical properties have indicated that CI 11920 may be a moderate/strong allergen and CI 45100 may be a weak allergen. Further studies are required to confirm whether these colorants are potential allergens in practice. It is possible that the sensitisation potential of the colorants has been evaluated in animal tests without the results being published. Similarly, there may be unpublished cases of skin allergy from these colorants.

On the basis of the present investigation, it is concluded that the potential risk of allergic reactions from the colorants in transferable picture tattoos is limited. .

All colorants found in the picture tattoos are permitted for the use in cosmetic products. However, the colorants CI 45100 and CI 45200 should only be used in the products, which remain in contact with the skin for a short period. The colour contents were not labelled in most of the investigated picture tattoos.

Before publication, the report has been sent in hearing to manufacturers and retailers of picture tattoos included in the report. The Danish EPA have asked the manufacturers and retailers for their comments on the results of the analysis and have drawn attention to the current rules and regulations. Several of them have since approached the Danish EPA with their comments and stated that they will in future make sure the rules and regulations are followed, while others have stated that they will no longer sell this type of products.