Body & Beauty / Compounds / Citric acid

Citric acid on your skin: a safety profile

Low risk

(People-specific data is limited; this page draws from human adult context.) Citric acid (2-hydroxypropane-1,2,3-tricarboxylic acid; C₆H₈O₇; E330) is a tricarboxylic acid naturally abundant in citrus fruits (lemons contain ~5–8% citric acid by dry weight; limes ~6–7%; oranges ~0.5–2%) and a central metabolite in the Krebs cycle (tricarboxylic acid cycle) — it is produced endogenously in virtually all aerobic organisms. Global production: ~2.5 million tons/year, predominantly via fungal fermentation (Aspergillus niger fermentation of molasses or corn starch) — making it among the most produced organic acids industrially. FDA GRAS status: citric acid is GRAS for food use as acidulant, flavoring, preservative, and chelating agent. Applications: soft drinks (tartness, pH adjustment, preservation), canned foods, jams, confectionery, pharmaceutical excipient (effervescent tablets, mineral supplement formulation), cosmetics/personal care (pH adjustment, chelation), metal cleaning (chelates calcium, magnesium, iron — rust remover), and industrial cleaning. Oral toxicity: extremely low — the estimated oral LD50 in rats is approximately 3000 mg/kg; dietary citric acid is essentially indistinguishable from endogenous citrate in terms of metabolism and elimination. Regulatory status: ADI 'not specified' (JECFA) — meaning no acceptable daily intake restriction is needed given extensive safety data. No carcinogen classification.

What is citric acid?

The IUPAC name is 2-hydroxypropane-1,2,3-tricarboxylic acid.

Also known as: 2-hydroxypropane-1,2,3-tricarboxylic acid, Citric acid, anhydrous, Aciletten, Anhydrous citric acid.

IUPAC name: 2-hydroxypropane-1,2,3-tricarboxylic acid
CAS number: 77-92-9
Molecular formula: C6H8O7
Molecular weight: 192.12 g/mol
SMILES: C(C(=O)O)C(CC(=O)O)(C(=O)O)O
PubChem CID: 311

Risk for people

Low risk

Citric acid (2-hydroxypropane-1,2,3-tricarboxylic acid; C₆H₈O₇; E330) is a tricarboxylic acid naturally abundant in citrus fruits (lemons contain ~5–8% citric acid by dry weight; limes ~6–7%; oranges ~0.5–2%) and a central metabolite in the Krebs cycle (tricarboxylic acid cycle) — it is produced endogenously in virtually all aerobic organisms. Global production: ~2.5 million tons/year, predominantly via fungal fermentation (Aspergillus niger fermentation of molasses or corn starch) — making it among the most produced organic acids industrially. FDA GRAS status: citric acid is GRAS for food use as acidulant, flavoring, preservative, and chelating agent. Applications: soft drinks (tartness, pH adjustment, preservation), canned foods, jams, confectionery, pharmaceutical excipient (effervescent tablets, mineral supplement formulation), cosmetics/personal care (pH adjustment, chelation), metal cleaning (chelates calcium, magnesium, iron — rust remover), and industrial cleaning. Oral toxicity: extremely low — the estimated oral LD50 in rats is approximately 3000 mg/kg; dietary citric acid is essentially indistinguishable from endogenous citrate in terms of metabolism and elimination. Regulatory status: ADI 'not specified' (JECFA) — meaning no acceptable daily intake restriction is needed given extensive safety data. No carcinogen classification.

Regulatory consensus

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

Agency	Year	Classification
EPA CTX / Genetox	—	Genotoxicity: positive (Ames: positive, 15 positive / 5 negative reports)
EPA CTX / Genetox	—	Genotoxicity: positive (Ames: positive, 15 positive / 5 negative reports)
FDA	—	GRAS — no ADI limitation; E330
EU	—	E330 — quantum satis (no upper limit specified for most foods)
JECFA	—	ADI not limited — acceptable at current intake

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 citric acid

Industrial Facilities — Manufacturing plants, Chemical storage areas, Waste treatment sites
Occupational Environments — Factories, Warehouses, Transportation vehicles
Food — processed food, beverages, candy, baked goods
Fragrance — perfume, cologne, scented personal care products, household fragrance products, candles
Identified in Fragrance Ingredient Safety Priority Research database (2,325 ingredients)
Food And Beverage — soft drinks, candy, canned goods, jam, wine
Personal Care — shampoo (pH adjuster), skin care (AHA exfoliant), bath bombs
Cleaning Products — descalers, dishwasher rinse aids, toilet bowl cleaners
Pharmaceutical — effervescent tablets, oral solutions (pH buffer), anticoagulant in blood banking
Industrial — cement retarder, oil well acidizing, metal cleaning

Safer alternatives

Lower-risk approaches that achieve a similar outcome to Citric acid:

Physical/mechanical pest control (IPM)
Trade-offs: More labor-intensive. May not be sufficient for severe infestations.

Relative cost: 1.2-2×

Frequently asked questions

What products contain citric acid?

Citric acid appears in: Manufacturing plants (Industrial facilities); Chemical storage areas (Industrial facilities); Factories (Occupational environments); Warehouses (Occupational environments); processed food (Food).

Why do regulators disagree about citric acid?

Citric acid has been classified by 5 agencies including EPA CTX / Genetox, EPA CTX / Genetox, FDA, EU, JECFA, 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 Citric acid in the body app

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

Open in body View raw API data

Sources (2)

FDA GRAS: Citric Acid (21 CFR 184.1033) — GRAS acidulant; not specified ADI; soft drinks; effervescent tablets; chelation; TCA cycle metabolite; dental erosion concern (2021) (2021) — regulatory
EFSA ANS Panel: Re-evaluation of Citric Acid (E 330) — ADI not specified; dietary exposure assessment; dental erosion; calcium chelation; sour candy oral injury; safety conclusion (2018) (2018) — 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 →