Body & Beauty / Compounds / Benzophenone

Benzophenone on your skin: a safety profile

Moderate risk

(People-specific data is limited; this page draws from human adult context.) Benzophenone (CAS 119-61-9) is classified by IARC as Group 2B (possibly carcinogenic to humans) based on sufficient animal evidence (renal tumors in male rats, NTP bioassay). FDA revoked its GRAS status for food use following the 2013 classification. The primary exposure route for the general adult population is dietary — migration from printing inks in food packaging into packaged foods — rather than occupational or topical use. Estrogenic endocrine disruption is a secondary concern: benzophenone binds ERα, has been detected in human blood and urine, and may contribute to cumulative estrogenic burden in food-contact-exposed populations. Benzophenone is also produced as a degradation product of octocrylene (a UV filter) in sunscreen formulations stored over time — a source of topical exposure. Occupational exposure in printing, UV-curing industries, and plastics manufacturing warrants industrial hygiene controls (inhalation prevention, skin contact avoidance). Consumer risk from food packaging migration is real but low in magnitude; regulatory limits on migration are in place in the EU (10 μg/kg food, specific migration limit from plastic materials).

What is benzophenone?

The IUPAC name is diphenylmethanone.

Also known as: diphenylmethanone, Diphenyl ketone, Benzoylbenzene, Methanone, diphenyl-.

IUPAC name
diphenylmethanone
CAS number
119-61-9
Molecular formula
C13H10O
Molecular weight
182.22 g/mol
SMILES
C1=CC=C(C=C1)C(=O)C2=CC=CC=C2
PubChem CID
3102

Risk for people

Moderate risk

Benzophenone (CAS 119-61-9) is classified by IARC as Group 2B (possibly carcinogenic to humans) based on sufficient animal evidence (renal tumors in male rats, NTP bioassay). FDA revoked its GRAS status for food use following the 2013 classification. The primary exposure route for the general adult population is dietary — migration from printing inks in food packaging into packaged foods — rather than occupational or topical use. Estrogenic endocrine disruption is a secondary concern: benzophenone binds ERα, has been detected in human blood and urine, and may contribute to cumulative estrogenic burden in food-contact-exposed populations. Benzophenone is also produced as a degradation product of octocrylene (a UV filter) in sunscreen formulations stored over time — a source of topical exposure. Occupational exposure in printing, UV-curing industries, and plastics manufacturing warrants industrial hygiene controls (inhalation prevention, skin contact avoidance). Consumer risk from food packaging migration is real but low in magnitude; regulatory limits on migration are in place in the EU (10 μg/kg food, specific migration limit from plastic materials).

Regulatory consensus

5 regulatory and scientific bodies have classified Benzophenone. The classifications differ — that's the data.

AgencyYearClassificationNotes
IARC2013Group 2B — possibly carcinogenic to humans
EPA CTX / IARC—Group 2B - Possibly carcinogenic to humans
EPA CTX / CalEPA—Known human carcinogen
EPA CTX / Genetox—Genotoxicity: positive (Ames: positive, 2 positive / 15 negative reports)
EPA CTX / Genetox—Genotoxicity: positive (Ames: positive, 2 positive / 15 negative reports)

Regulators apply different standards of evidence — animal-data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds — which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. The disagreement is the data.

Where you encounter benzophenone

  • Industrial Facilities — Manufacturing plants, Chemical storage areas, Waste treatment sites
  • Occupational Environments — Factories, Warehouses, Transportation vehicles
  • Personal Care — sunscreen, moisturizer with SPF, foundation, lip balm

Safer alternatives

Lower-risk approaches that achieve a similar outcome to Benzophenone:

  • Fragrance-free formulations
    Trade-offs: Consumer preference for scented products
    Relative cost: Lower (ingredient elimination)
  • Essential oil-based fragrances (with disclosure)
    Trade-offs: Natural does not mean safe — many essential oils are skin sensitizers
    Relative cost: 2-5× conventional

Frequently asked questions

What products contain benzophenone?

Benzophenone appears in: Manufacturing plants (Industrial facilities); Chemical storage areas (Industrial facilities); Factories (Occupational environments); Warehouses (Occupational environments); sunscreen (Personal care).

Why do regulators disagree about benzophenone?

Benzophenone has been classified by 5 agencies including IARC, EPA CTX / IARC, EPA CTX / CalEPA, EPA CTX / Genetox, EPA CTX / Genetox, with differing conclusions. Regulators apply different standards of evidence (animal data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds), which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. See the regulatory consensus table on this page for the full picture.

See Benzophenone in the body app

Look up products containing benzophenone, compare to alternatives, and explore the full data record.

Open in body View raw API data

Sources (2)
  1. IARC Monographs Vol 101 (2013): Benzophenone Group 2B Possibly Carcinogenic; Renal Tubular Cell Tumors Male Rat NTP Bioassay; Food Contact Material Migration UV Photoinitiator; ERα Estrogenic Activity (2013) — iarc_monograph
  2. FDA Benzophenone GRAS Status Revocation 2013: No Longer Generally Recognized as Safe Food Additive; IARC 2B Classification Basis; Specific Migration Limit EU 10 μg/kg Food; Octocrylene Degradation Product (2013) — regulatory

Reference data, not professional advice. Aggregates publicly available regulatory and scientific data; not a substitute for veterinary, medical, legal, or regulatory advice. Why we built ALETHEIA →