Fructose
What Is It?
Fructose is a simple sugar found in fruit and honey. In cosmetics and personal care products, Fructose may be used in the formulation of bath products, cleansing products, eye makeup, face powders, hair care products and skin care products.
Why Is It Used?
Fructose functions as a flavoring agentIngredients that impart a flavor or a taste to a product., humectantIngredients that slow the loss of moisture from a product during use. and as a skin conditioning agent – humectant.
Scientific Facts
Fructose is the sweetest of all natural sugars. Fructose is produced from corn starchA complex carbohydrate widely distributed among plants. It is the chief storage form of carbohydrates in plants. hydrolysateThe product of hydrolysis. by partial enzymatic conversion of glucose to Fructose using a glucose isomerase enzymeA protein found in animal and plant cells that help to initiate or to accelerate specific chemical reactions. preparation. Fructose is an isomer of glucose. This means that Fructose has the same chemical composition (C6H12O6) as glucose but the atoms are arranged in a different structure.
Safety Information
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) includes high Fructose corn syrup on its list of direct food substances affirmed as Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS“GRAS” is an acronym for the phrase Generally Recognized As Safe. Under sections 201(s) and 409 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (the Act), any substance that is intentionally added to food is a food additive, that is subject to premarket review and approval by FDA, unless the substance is generally recognized, among qualified experts, as having been adequately shown to be safe under the conditions of its intended use, or unless the use of the substance is otherwise excluded from the definition of a food additive.). High Fructose corn syrup consists of 42 to 55% Fructose.
FDA: Link to Code of Federal Regulations for Fructose http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRSearch.cfm?fr…
Fructose may be used in cosmetics and personal care products marketed in Europe according to the general provisions of the Cosmetics Regulation of the European UnionUnder the general provisions of the cosmetics regulation of the EU, ingredients appearing on the following function-specific annexes must comply with the listed restrictions and/or specifications: colorants (Annex IV), preservatives (Annex V), UV filters (Annex VI) and other ingredients with specific concentration limits and/or other restrictions (Annex III). Ingredients specifically prohibited from use in cosmetic products are listed in Annex II. Other ingredients listed in the EU cosmetic ingredient database (CosIng) may be used without restrictions..
Link to the EU Cosmetic Regulation: http://europa.eu/legislation_summaries/consumers/product_labelling_and_packaging/co0013_en.htm
Resources
Find out more about the regulation of Food Additives by the Food and Drug Administration
Food Ingredients and Packaging: http://www.fda.gov/Food/IngredientsPackagingLabeling/default.htm
Food Contact Substances: http://www.fda.gov/Food/IngredientsPackagingLabeling/PackagingFCS/default.htm
Substances Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS): http://www.fda.gov/Food/IngredientsPackagingLabeling/GRAS/default.htm
Search the Code of Federal Regulations http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/cfrsearch.cfm
EU Cosmetics Inventory http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/cosmetics/cosing/