Unilever is withdrawing the shampoo from the market due to cancer risk

International Desk: Due to the presence of dangerous levels of benzene, a chemical ingredient that provokes the possibility of cancer, the multinational British company Unilever, which produces cosmetics, has started withdrawing all brands of dry shampoo from the market, including Dove, Nexus, Suav.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a notice on its website on Friday. The notice mentions the presence of benzene in Unilever's Dove, Nexus, Suave and Tiggi brands of dry shampoo. Along with this, Unilever was also called to withdraw the shampoo of these brands from the market.

The FDA notice says, 'The levels of benzene present in these dry shampoos may increase the risk of leukemia and other blood cancers if used for a long time. FDA does not expect any contamination of harmful substances in everyday products such as food-beverage-medicine-cosmetics.'

Unilever is recalling all its dry shampoos from the market taking into account the FDA notice. A company official told US media outlet Bloomberg that almost all of the shampoos being recalled were manufactured in October 2021.

However, this is not the first time that aerosol or spray-based dry shampoos have been accused of containing cancer-causing ingredients. Last year, US laboratory Valisure detected high levels of benzene in Pantene & Herbal, a dry shampoo manufactured by the multinational cosmetics company Procter & Gamble (P&J). This US organization primarily researches the quality of healthcare and cosmetic products.

In December 2021, following the publication of Valisure's research report, P&J withdrew all Pantene and Herbal brand dry shampoos from the market the same month.

David Light, chief executive officer of Valisur, told Bloomberg, "For a long time, we have been researching various types of cosmetics including soaps, shampoos, body sprays, and other brands in the market. The study found benzene in almost every aerosol or dry shampoo.'

'Most dry shampoos have been found to contain high levels of benzene. Cosmetics containing high levels of benzene can cause cancer if used for a long time and we are actively working on this.'

However, an Unilever official defended himself and told Bloomberg, "We do not knowingly use any harmful chemicals in our products. If the FDA gives any guidance on the extent to which various chemical ingredients can be used in cosmetics, then we will benefit.'