Here you will find information and links about the preservatives that I use and feel are necessary for safety in many products. Preservatives are used at 1.0% or less in any given product. As you can see, this is a very tiny amount.
I am not a chemist, nor do I claim to be. There are many fine chemists that act as advisors to those of us who choose to add preservatives to our product for safety reasons. I do not attempt to paraphrase what they have to say, so while this information can be overwhelming, I am confident of it's content.
Maurice O. Hevey Convergent Cosmetics, Inc.was one of these advisors. Maurice recently passed away and his family has passed on his legacy. I credit them and thank them for the following resources and information:
Germaben II is a broad spectrum, liquid preservative system. Its active components have been solubilized in propylene glycol, making them easy to incorporate into formulations. It is ready-to-use in emulsions with an oil phase of about 25% or less and water soluble formulations. Germaben II is heat sensitive and should be added to the water phase or to the emulsified portion of the formulation at a temperature of 140°F (60°C) or below, during the cool down stage, generally prior to the addition of fragrance. Adding Germaben II above 140°F (60°C) could result in compromising the preservative system in your product. Germaben II is compatible with most cosmetic ingredients.
Recommended use levels: 0.3 - 1%.
Appearance: Clear viscous liquid
INCI: Propylene Glycol (and) Diazolidinyl Urea (and) Methylparaben (and) Propylparaben
http://www.lotioncrafter.com/reference/tech_data_germaben_II.pdf
Germall Plus can effectively preserve cosmetic and personal care formulations beginning at 0.025%. Typical usage levels of Germall Plus range From 0.05% - 0.2%. Challenge data have confirmed that even at low usage levels, Germall Plus can deliver broad spectrum antimicrobial preservation. For products containing a significant amount of proteins and/or complex ingredients, 0.2% of Germall Plus is recommended for proper presentation.
Recommended Use Levels: 0.1 - 0.5%
Appearance: Clear viscous liquid
INCI: Propylene Glycol (and) Diazolidinyl Urea (and) Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate
http://www.lotioncrafter.com/reference/tech_data_liquid_germall_plus.pdf
Experience has shown that Phenonip will preserve cosmetics and toiletries when incorporated at concentrations from 0.25% to 1.0%. The higher concentrations are generally required only for formulations which, by their nature, are particularly difficult to preserve. Shampoos and foam baths may be preserved with Phenonip at concentrations typically between 0.25 - 0.65%. Products with a high protein content may require levels from 0.5% - 1.0%. Other surfactant-based products, for example liquid dishwashing detergents, are generally preserved with Phenonip over the range 0.2% -0.6%. Emulsified systems, both o/w and w/o types, may be effectively preserved by the addition of Phenonip at 0.4 - 0.7%. Phenonip can also be used to preserve emulsions based on nonionic surfactants, but slightly increased concentrations may be required, eg. 0.5-1.0%.
http://fun.clariant.com/fun/e2wtools.nsf/lookupDownloads/PHENONIP.pdf/$FILE/PHENONIP.pdf
LiquaPar Oil is an active blend of parabens, useful in a wide range of cosmetic formulations including anyhydrous systems. LiquaPar Oil effectively preserves most products when used at concentrations of0.3-0.6%. For complex formulations, a dual preservation system consisting of 0.4% LiquaPar Oil in combination with 0.2% EDTA and/or 0.1% Germall II has been found to be particularly effective.
Grapefruit Seed Extract
Following are abstracts from PubMed addressing Grapefruit Seed Extract.
Apparently, GSE contains a synthetic antibacterial product similar to Triclosan. This means that although GSE probably does provide some antibacterial property to your product, it cannot be considered natural.
J Altern Complement Med. 2002 Jun;8(3):333-40. Erratum in:J Altern Complement Med 2002 Aug;8(4):521. Reagor Lana
The effectiveness of processed grapefruit-seed extract as an antibacterial agent: II. Mechanism of action and in vitro toxicity.
Heggers JP, Cottingham J, Gusman J, Reagor L, McCoy L, Carino E, Cox R, Zhao JG, Reagor L. Department of Surgery (Plastic), School of Medicine, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, USA. jphegger@utmb.edu
OBJECTIVES: Recent testimonials report grapefruit-seed extract, or GSE (Citricidal) to be effective against more than 800 bacterial and viral strains, 100 strains of fungus, and a large number of single and multicelled parasites. This study investigated GSE for antibacterial activity at varying time intervals and concentration levels and tissue toxicity at varying concentrations in an effort to determine if a concentration existed that was both microbicidal and nontoxic and in what period of time. DESIGN: Gram-negative and gram-positive isolates were introduced into graduated dilutions of GSE (twofold concentrations ranging from 1:1, through 1:512) for determination of bacterial activity. In vitro assays with human skin fibroblast cells were also performed at the same dilutions to determine toxicity. RESULTS: These tests indicated that from the 1:1 through the 1:128 concentrations, GSE remained toxic as well as bactericidal. However, test results indicated that at the 1:512 dilution, GSE remained bactericidal, but completely nontoxic. CONCLUSIONS: The initial data shows GSE to have antimicrobial properties against a wide range of gram-negative and gram-positive organisms at dilutions found to be safe. With the aid of scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM), the mechanism of GSE's antibacterial activity was revealed. It was evident that GSE disrupts the bacterial membrane and liberates the cytoplasmic contents within 15 minutes after contact even at more dilute concentrations.
PMID: 12165191 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
J Altern Complement Med. 2002 Jun;8(3):325-32.
Related Articles
The effectiveness of processed grapefruit-seed extract as an antibacterial agent: I.
An in vitro agar assay.
Reagor L, Gusman J, McCoy L, Carino E, Heggers JP.
School of Medicine, University of Texas, Medical Branch, Galveston, USA.
OBJECTIVES: Grapefruit-seed extract (GSE) Citricidal has, in recent reports, been reported to be successful in combating a variety of common infectious agents. In our study, drops of concentrated grapefruit-seed extract were tested for antibacterial properties against a number of gram-positive and gram-negative organisms. DESIGN: Sixty-seven (67) distinct biotypes were tested for their susceptibilities to the GSE as well as to 5 other topical antibacterials (Silvadene, Sulfamylon, Bactroban, Nitrofurazone, and Silvadene, Nystatin). Wells were punched into Mueller-Hinton agar plates, which were then inoculated with the organism to be tested; each well was then inoculated with one of the antibacterial agents. After an overnight incubation period, the plates were checked for zones of bacterial susceptibility around the individual wells, with a measured susceptibility zone diameter of 10 mm or more considered a positive result. RESULTS: The GSE was consistently antibacterial against all of the biotypes tested, with susceptibility zone diameters equal to or greater than 15 mm in each case. CONCLUSIONS: Our preliminary data thus suggest an antibacterial characteristic to GSE that is comparable to that of proven topical antibacterials. Although the GSE appeared to have a somewhat greater inhibitory effect on gram-positive organisms than on gram-negative organisms, its comparative effectiveness against a wide range of bacterial biotypes is significant.
PMID: 12165190 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Pharmazie. 1999 Jun;54(6):452-6.
Information provided with permission from: Cindy Jones
http://www.sagescript.com/grapefruit_seed.htm
Propylene Glycol
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