Glucose

What Is It?

Glucose is a simple sugar used as the source of energy by living cells. It is produced by plants as one of the main products of photosynthesis. Glucose is available as a white substance, a solid crystal or an aqueous solution. In cosmetics and personal care products, Glucose may be used in the formulation of bath products, cleansing products, eye makeup, skin care products, makeup and hair care products.

Why Is It Used?

Glucose 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., skin-conditioning agent – humectant and as a skin-conditioning agent – miscellaneous.

Scientific Facts

Glucose is produced commercially by the enzymatic hydrolysisDecomposition of a chemical compound into smaller constituents by reaction with water. of starchA complex carbohydrate widely distributed among plants. It is the chief storage form of carbohydrates in plants.. The starch may be obtained from many types of plants including corn, rice, wheat, potato, cassava, arrowroot and sago. Corn starch is the most common source of Glucose in the United States.

Safety Information

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) permits Glucose syrup and dried Glucose syrup to be used as sweeteners in food.

FDA: Link to Code of Federal Regulations for Glucose:

In its review of High Production Volume (HPV) chemicals, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) decided that Glucose was not a candidate for testing under the HPV Challenge Program. The EPA review concluded that additional data would not further our understanding of the properties of Glucose.

Link to EPA HPV program: http://www.epa.gov/HPV/pubs/general/hpvcolst.htm

Glucose 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“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.): 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/