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Usage of Microplastic Beads in Pharmaceuticals and Cosmetics Industry: A Review
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Researchers reviewed how microplastic beads are widely used in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, warning that these particles can take decades to break down in the environment and pose growing risks to ecosystems and potentially human health through ongoing exposure.
Environmentalists and researchers have expressed future alarm over the widespread usage of microplastic beads in the cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries. The microplastics used in those industries take decades to break down and are dangerous for both the ecosystem...
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Evaluating alternatives to plastic microbeads in cosmetics
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Researchers used life cycle assessment to compare environmental impacts of potential alternatives to plastic microbeads in rinse-off cosmetics, finding that while some substitutes offer genuine benefits, others could introduce new environmental and human health risks that may offset the gains from microbead bans.
Application of Microplastics in Toiletry Products
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Researchers examined the use of microplastics in toiletry and personal care products such as exfoliants and toothpastes, assessing how these intentionally added particles enter waterways and accumulate in aquatic environments after passing through wastewater treatment systems.
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Analysis of ten personal care and cosmetic products sold in India—including toothpaste, face scrubs, and eyeliner—confirmed the presence of polyethylene microplastics in nearly all samples, with additional traces of PVC and PET detected by FTIR spectroscopy. These findings highlight that everyday consumer products are a direct primary source of microplastic release into wastewater, contributing to broader environmental and human exposure.
Microplastics in Personal Care Products and Cosmetics
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This review documented the types and quantities of microplastics deliberately added to personal care and cosmetic products — including microbeads in exfoliants, glitter in makeup, and plastic-encapsulated fragrances — and traced their path from consumer drains through wastewater treatment to aquatic environments. Personal care products represent one of the most direct routes of purposeful microplastic introduction into water systems and onto human skin and mucous membranes, making regulatory bans on intentionally added microplastics an immediately actionable health and environmental intervention.
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Plastic microbeads from personal care and cosmetic products pass through wastewater treatment largely intact, persist in the environment, and interact with other pollutants, while regulatory bans in some countries have not fully eliminated their occurrence in aquatic systems. Developing biodegradable polymer alternatives for cosmetic applications and improving coupled analytical detection systems are identified as key strategies for reducing this direct and preventable source of microplastic contamination.
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