Is there gluten in perfume? Yes, there sure can be. As well as wheat, barley, and other allergens, along with additives that we probably shouldn’t be wearing.
Not impressed by Estée Lauder’s response. I specified the products I was concerned about in my initial e-mail. This was about perfume I used to like to wear (in very, very, very small spritzes).
Estée Lauder’s 1st Response:
Thank you for taking the time to contact us and for your interest in Estée Lauder.
In response to your inquiry, as you may know, our product line is quite extensive. Therefore, in order to respond to your inquiry regarding gluten, we need to know the exact name and shade (if applicable) of the product(s) which you use or would be interested in using. We will then consult our laboratories and share our findings with you.
Again, thank you for taking the time to contact us.
Sincerely,
Noemi Miranda
Response Representative
Global Consumer Communications
Their follow-up about a week later:
Thank you for taking the time to contact us and for your interest in Estée Lauder.
A vast number of raw materials from many different suppliers and sources are used in the manufacture of Estee Lauder Companies’ products. It is therefore not possible for us to fully guarantee that our products are completely free of ingredients that may elicit an allergic response in highly sensitive individuals who react to gluten. For example, it is possible that small amounts of a wheat sourced ingredient may remain on shared manufacturing equipment even after a thorough cleaning. We therefore recommend that you discuss this with your physician, because consumer safety is of utmost concern to us.
In response to your inquiry, the Beautiful fragrance may contain ingredient derived from wheat.
Again, thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and concerns.
Sincerely,
Keimone Downer
Response Representative
Global Consumer Communications
Additional Info:
They have no ingredient or allergen FAQ. Searching their site for gluten produced zero results. Wheat brought products named wheat for their color. Perusing the ingredients of some of them led me to discovering the ingredient Hordeum Vulgare – aka Barley.
So, 1) Estée Lauder is a company that translates gluten to mean wheat, exclusively, and 2) they use other glutens in their products and don’t mention this at all when asked. And then they fall back on the CYA physician statement.
NOT SAFE.
5/6/2022 Update:
The Estée Lauder website now includes this section in their General, Consumer Relations FAQ:
Product Ingredients
-
- Lists all ingredients used in the formula in descending order of concentration. This is especially important for those people who are seeking a specific ingredient or want to avoid one. In addition, our ingredient listing now includes the various components of a fragrance ingredient previously not listed and therefore may be longer. This is important information for that small percentage of the population who may be sensitive to certain components of fragrances.
You cannot search the site for products by their allergen, however. I tried. You will have to look at the ingredient list for every single item you’re interested in, but keep in mind that it is very likely they are still using shared lines. The ingredient list includes the Latin name with the English name in parentheses. However, not all ingredients provide any information at all as to what they’re sourced from.
Each product also provides this warning: Please be aware that ingredient lists may change or vary from time to time. Please refer to the ingredient list on the product package you receive for the most up to date list of ingredients.
This means that a product that used to contain wheat, barley, et cetera, may suddenly no longer contain it . . . but it also means it may be abruptly reformulated to contain an allergen. Be sure you check the full ingredient list, not just the featured ones.
Further Issues:
Gluten in perfumes, along with ingredients such as wheat, barley, et cetera, are not the only allergens you’re going to want to watch out for. I looked up Beautiful, the perfume I used to like to wear and found that one of the ingredients is Coumarin. “Coumarin is a known immune-system and skin allergen, causing everything from mild irritation to severe dermatitis. What’s worse, it’s been banned as a food additive in the U.S.A. and many European countries due to its potential liver and kidney toxicity, yet not as an additive to topical products.” [Source: https://thechalkboardmag.com/toxic-timeout-coumarin]
I will look into other well-known brands of perfumes/colognes, but Estée Lauder is probably not alone in being unsafe.
Recommended reading: What’s Gluten In?
