Beauty ingredient · pH adjuster
Monoethanolamine (MEA)
An ethanolamine used in hair dyes and cleansers.
- Ethanolamine (MEA/DEA/TEA)
- Expert review pending
Concern level
A minor or very limited concern, such as being an ultra-processing marker only. The concern level sets how many points monoethanolamine (MEA) costs on a product’s receipt.
What the evidence says
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Nitrosamine formation (cosmetics)Regulatory
The EU caps its secondary amine content at 0.5% and bars it from products with nitrosating agents (Annex III). [1]
Evidence tiers say how sure the evidence is, separately from how much it matters. About evidence tiers.
Rules around the world
| Where | Status | Details | Date | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| European Union | Restricted | Monoalkanolamines: maximum secondary amine content 0.5% (Annex III, entry 61). | — | [1] |
“Banned” means explicitly prohibited or withdrawn after review; “not permitted” means never authorized there. We use each regulator’s own words.
Popular products that list monoethanolamine (MEA)
2 of the 17,000 most-scanned products in the US with a GoodSwap page list monoethanolamine (MEA).
Names GoodSwap recognizes on labels (8)
- mea
- cocamide mea
- ethanolamine
- cocamide mipa
- lauramide mea
- ethanolamine mea
- monoethanolamine
- monoethanolamine mea
Sources
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Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 of 30 November 2009 on cosmetic products
“cosmetic products shall not contain any of the following: (a) prohibited substances — prohibited substances listed in Annex II”
eur-lex.europa.eu