What are Botanical Ingredients?
A Botanical Ingredient is a component of a cosmetic or personal care product that originates from plants (herbs, roots, flowers, fruits, leaves or seeds). Specific ingredients derived from biological sources are classified based on their chemical structure and how they are isolated from plants.
Why are Botanical Ingredients used in cosmetic and personal care products?
Plant-derived (Botanical) Ingredients were among the very first cosmetics. Natural colorants, plant juices for soothing and protection from insect pests, and fragrant oils for imparting scent were all used in ancient times. Historically, plants were the only way to produce products for cleaning, moisturizing, covering up blemishes and even treating minor skin conditions.
Are Botanical Ingredients safe?
In considering the safety of Botanical Ingredients used in cosmetics and personal care products, it is important to consider the specific botanical material, the amount of the botanical in the raw material and finished product and the route of exposure. Most applications of Botanical Ingredients in cosmetics are topical; they are applied externally to the skin. In selecting Botanical Ingredients for preparation of cosmetic products, formulators take into account the extensive history of their preparation and use. Plant materials have been used for decades or even centuries and, based upon the human experience with these botanical ingredients, knowledge of their safety has been gained. Manufacturers of cosmetic and personal care products are required by law to adequately substantiate the safety of their products, including products containing Botanical Ingredients. There are many different references that describe the isolation, use and safety of botanical preparations. FDA Guidance for Industry – Botanical Drug Products Link:
More Information:
Find out more about the history of using plants to obtain beneficial materials:• Duke University: Brief History of Beauty and Hygiene Products http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu/adaccess/cosmetics-history.html • National Library of Medicine: Beauty and the body: the origins of cosmetics http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&lis… Information about the naming of botanical ingredients on cosmetic product labels: Links for- NIH: Office of Dietary Supplements: Botanical Dietary Supplements: Background Information FDA: Guidance for Industry Botanical Drug Products: http://www.fda.gov/downloads/Drugs/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformati… FDA: Dietary Supplement Overview: http://www.fda.gov/Food/DietarySupplements/default.htm National Academies of Science: Proposed Framework for Evaluating the Safety of Dietary Supplements — For Comment (2002): http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?isbn=NI000760 Links for- American Herbal Products Association: http://www.ahpa.org/Default.aspx?tabid=70 FDA: Incorporation by Reference for the Labeling of Foods and Dietary Supplement: http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRSearch.cfm?fr… American Botanical Council: http://www.herbalgram.org/ References: Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients Used in Food, Drugs, and Cosmetics, 2nd Ed., 1996, John Wiley and Sons, ISBN 0-471-50826-8. Bibliography: Anton, Robert, Franco Patri, and Vittorio Silano (consultants). Plants in Cosmetics Volume II. Strasbourg Cedex: Council of Europe Publishing, 2001. Arvigo, Rosita and Michael Balick. Rainforest Remedies:ne Hundred Healing Herbs of Belize. Second Edition. Twin Lakes, WI : Lotus Press, 1998. Bisset, Norman Grainger (Ed.).Herbal Drugs and Phytopharmaceuticals. (Translated from the Second German Edition. Boca Raton : CRC Press, 1994. Blumenthal, Mark (Ed.). The Complete German Commission E Monographs: Therapeutic Guide to Herbal Medicines. Austin, TX: American Botanical Council, 1998. D’Amelio, Frank S. Sr. Botanicals: A Phytocosmetic Desk Reference. Boca Raton : CRC Press LLC, 1999. Duke, James A. Phytochemical Constituents of GRAS Herbs and Other Economic Plants. Boca Raton: CRC Press LLC, 1992. Grieve, M. A Modern Herbal. London: Tiger Books International, 1994. Gruenwald, Joerg et al. (editors). PDR For Herbal Medicines. Montvale, New Jersey: Medical Economics Company, 1998. Greuter, W. Et al. (editors). International Code of Botanical Nomenclature. Konigstein, Federal Republic of Germany, 1988. Hobbs, Christopher. Medicinal Mushrooms. Loveland, CO : Interweave Press, Inc.