NOAEL (No-Observed-Adverse-Effect Level) is a safety value used by toxicology offices to guarantee the safety of products before they are placed on the market. It is in force in the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetics industries.
NOAEL is part of a set of values which guarantee product safety. As regards cosmetic products, toxicologists measure the maximum dose of an ingredient that can be integrated to a formula, without any observed adverse effect. This way, the safety margin is satisfactory, and product safety is guaranteed to consumers.
To calculate an ingredient’s NOAEL, all the data available about it are collected. Then, they are modelled and transposed into statistics to get reference values and determine the best-adapted safety thresholds.
The safety margin depends on what the cosmetic product targets. It is more drastic for baby skincare products: children’s skin is more permeable, due to their skin immaturity.
The finished product’s Marfin of Safety (MoS) is calculated based on the individual NOAEL of each ingredient.
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