The challenge of distilling science into a sound bite or 140-character tweet has rendered the personal-care industry susceptible to unwarranted criticism and pressure to dispense with ingredients that could be used safely, according to Halyna Breslawec, the Personal Care Products Council’s executive vice president of science, who will retire from her role at the trade group April 30.

The exec will step down after just under three years in the position she assumed following John Bailey’s exit in July 2011. In an April 15 interview with “The Rose Sheet,” the former FDAer reflected on her accomplishments at PCPC, as well as the frustrations that have come with the job in an increasingly inhospitable climate for science.

“Over the past few years, one of the really significant changes is that the criticism of the industry is based not on science but on emotional argument,” she said. “That’s an unfortunate change. … While you can criticize the industry, criticize an ingredient, indict an ingredient in a sound bite, you can’t really explain sound science in less than 30 seconds.”

PCPC Executive VP, Science Halyna Breslawec

Breslawec brought a “fundamental respect for science” to PCPC from her 14 years at FDA, as well as from her prior experience as deputy director of the Cosmetic Ingredient Review. Upon joining PCPC, she said that a focus on sound science would be key to her advocacy work with the organization Also see "“Science Matters”: Council’s Breslawec Upholds Role Of Science In Cosmetics Safety Debate" - HBW Insight, 20 February, 2012..

While neither she nor industry have abandoned science in their approach to ingredient safety issues, they have encountered campaigns and decision making influenced by other factors.

“Understanding science really takes the capacity for critical thinking and openness to reason and openness to understanding the basis for safe use of an ingredient,” she explained. “But public perception and emotional arguments and criticism of ingredients – they’ve driven policies at a state level, at a retailer level or at a public perception level that makes fewer ingredients available.”

The most glaring example is in the area of preservatives, the science chief said.

She noted that in recent years, regulatory bans and restrictions have significantly reduced the palette of preservatives that manufacturers can use in personal-care products.

“I think we’re at the point where this is going to start to have an adverse impact on public health, and that’s scary,” Breslawec said.

Consumer sentiment also has played a role in sidelining preservatives due to perceived health risks that science does not support.

Parabens represent one such case, she said, noting that movement away from parabens in the personal-care sector has resulted in increased use of methylisothiazolinone (abbreviated MI or MIT), which now has come under fire in light of rising allergy reports linked to the substance.

Breslawec recounted a recent meeting with dermatologists who expressed concern about the escalating trend of MI-related adverse skin reactions. “The dermatologists [asked], ‘Why aren’t you guys using parabens anymore? I was shocked because everybody knows what kind of attacks have been launched against parabens lately. And yet I know that the scientific basis for many of these challenges is [lacking].”

Parabens are recognized in the dermatological community as having extremely low sensitization potential, and according to PCPC’s CosmeticsInfo.org they are “highly effective” at preventing microbial growth.

Nevertheless, it is unlikely that the personal-care industry will gravitate back to using parabens to preserve products, as the ingredients have been linked to endocrine-disrupting effects and acquired an unsavory reputation. Industry’s argument that parabens in personal-care products are used at levels far too low to pose risks has fallen largely on deaf ears.

Meanwhile, the CIR Expert Panel awaits new data as it continues its review of MI Also see "Viability Of Preservative MI Use Remains Unclear; CIR Tables Review" - HBW Insight, 24 March, 2014..

“Our companies are constantly innovating and reformulating based on the most recent science and on what their consumer demands,” Breslawec said. But “the need for preservation is important, and the industry’s ability to continue to provide preserved cosmetics and personal-care products in the format that consumers are used to is threatened.”

Exec Proposes Shift In Messaging

In its battle to keep sound science at the center of ingredient safety debates and prevent further depletion of its ingredient palette, industry could benefit from a shift in its messaging, according to Breslawec.

While historically industry’s rhetoric has been around using safe ingredients, it may be better served to emphasize using ingredients safely, she says.

At PCPC’s Annual Meeting in February, the exec posited that the cosmetics industry “will never win the battle of safe ingredients, as there’s a range of safety – any ingredient can be used safely and not safely.”

Instead, “I think we need to switch in our discussions with retailers and the press and the public to discuss how we use our ingredients safely,” she said.

During the interview, Breslawec elaborated on the topic.

“It is a shift in thinking, from ‘Yes, this is absolutely safe,’ which is unrealistic and not a reasoned position, to ‘This is how an ingredient can, is and should be used safely,’” she explained.

Impressing on the public that “there’s a range of safety in everything,” and emphasizing the need to factor risk into the equation, could help extend consumers’ perspective on ingredient safety issues.

“When we use ingredients in our products, we’re using them in amounts that do not subject the user to a significant risk,” Breslawec said. “The difference we’re talking about – it’s a recognition that we need to convey to the consumer and to everybody else that there’s a risk to everything in life.”

The exec maintained that “the critical part is how to use ingredients safely, and that’s what the industry does and that’s what it does very, very well.”

PCPC Beefs Up Environmental Program

Breslawec counts improvements to PCPC’s environmental science and safety program among her top accomplishments at the trade group.

When she arrived at PCPC, “we had incredible strength in the human safety arena … but there seemed to be a bit of a gap in environmental safety,” the exec said.

By tapping into and pooling member resources, the group has shored up its environmental platform and now is better equipped to tackle ecological policy issues, according to Breslawec.

Environmental safety for personal-care products – which largely relates to their environmental impact after consumers use them and rinse them off – has been a growing concern among policymakers. Plastic microbeads, for example, have come under scrutiny in 2014, with at least six states introducing bills that would ban their use in personal-care products due to environmental concerns Also see "States Scramble To Legislate Against Cosmetic Microbeads, Triclosan" - HBW Insight, 7 April, 2014..

Breslawec said the group’s strengthened environmental arm has enabled it to approach that legislation with a firm grasp of the science involved.

The exec cited modernization of the International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient (INCI) system as another accomplishment.

PCPC oversees the INCI program, and during Breslawec’s tenure the trade group updated it to reflect recent developments and improved the application process for new ingredients, while retiring obsolete names and adopting nomenclature rules for new types of chemicals.

While considerable work remains to be done, Breslawec also believes PCPC made progress during her tenure in its mission “to educate consumers about how scientifically sophisticated our industry is, and everything that goes into making a safe product.”

Looking Ahead

Breslawec said she looks forward to retirement and the opportunity to spend more time with her family.

For the industry she’s leaving, the exec hopes to see modernized FDA regulation of cosmetics come to fruition. An update to the current framework has been a priority of PCPC’s over the past few years.

Specifically, Breslawec would like for FDA to formally acknowledge the CIR program and the group’s safety assessments. She pointed out that the agency has devoted significant time to CIR despite its limited resources, going to meetings, reviewing materials and even requesting that the group review certain ingredients for safety.

“What frustrates me a bit is FDA has never expressed an agreement or disagreement with CIR’s decisions,” Breslawec said. “In light of all the time and effort they’ve spent over the past 35 years, it is a little puzzling.”

The exiting science chief is confident that whoever is selected as her successor will find gratification in the job. PCPC’s “science staff is a top-notch group of people, with expertise and passion for the industry,” she said. “My advice would be to appreciate the resources you have available.”

PCPC’s search for a new science chief is currently underway.

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