Is carmine (ci 75470) safe on skin (left on)?

Under the app's default Cautious lens, carmine (ci 75470) on skin (left on) rates Watch: worth watching; the app would list a cleaner alternative type. 1 sourced concern counts (irritant · allergen, consensus tier). This is research with sources, not medical advice.

What do the Clean, Low, Watch and Swap levels mean?

They are cut from a continuous concern level the app computes from the sourced claims that the chosen evidence lens shows: each claim counts its concern class, tier weight, confidence and dose relevance, combined worst-first with a decay so one serious finding outweighs many small ones, then scaled by how much of the substance reaches you in this use. Clean is below 0.35, Low below 1.1, Watch below 2.0 and Swap above that, on a 0 to 3 scale.

Is Carmine (ci 75470) safe in food and drink?

Q: Is carmine (ci 75470) safe in food and drink?

Under the app's default Cautious lens, carmine (ci 75470) in food and drink rates Watch: worth watching; the app would list a cleaner alternative type. 1 sourced concern counts (irritant · allergen, consensus tier). This is research with sources, not medical advice.

Cosmetics2 uses researched2 sourced claims

Where it turns up: natural red pigment, allergy concern, common. Detox My Life researched carmine (ci 75470) under 2 different uses, because the same substance means something different in each. Every claim below carries its evidence tier, how sure the research is that it applies here, and the sources it cites. The level is computed by the app's own deterministic engine, so the page says exactly what the app would.

Level by use and lens

Use	Mainstream	Cautious (default)	Based	Concerns · favour · fringe
Eaten or drunk	Watch	Watch	Watch	1 · 0
On skin, left on	Watch	Watch	Watch	1 · 0

Mainstream shows consensus claims only; Cautious adds emerging research; Based adds fringe claims, labelled as such. The last column counts, under Cautious, the sourced concerns, the findings in its favour and the fringe claims Based would add.

Safer swaps: the app's swap catalog has no entry tied to this ingredient yet. When you scan a product that contains it, the app suggests cleaner alternative types for that product; the swap categories list what the catalog covers today.

Eaten or drunk Watch

Under the default Cautious lens carmine (ci 75470) in food and drink rates Watch: worth watching; the app would list a cleaner alternative type. Mainstream (consensus only) rates it Watch; Based (adds the fringe) rates it Watch. Researched 2026-09-03.

Sourced concerns (1)

ConsensusIrritant · allergenconfidence 90%

Ingestion of carmine (CI 75470) can cause allergic reactions, ranging from mild symptoms like hives, rhinitis, and asthma to severe anaphylaxis, in a subset of sensitive individuals.

Why here: Carmine is widely used as a food colorant in various ingested products, leading to direct exposure through the digestive system.
What would have to be true: Allergic reactions can occur in sensitized individuals upon ingestion of foods, beverages, or drugs containing carmine, even at low levels (e.g., 1.3 mg in yogurt). While the EFSA has established an Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) of 5 mg/kg body weight per day, allergic reactions can occur below this threshold.

Sources the engine cites:

FDA Requires Identification of Carmine and Cochineal Extract on Food Labels — foley.com (2009) · regulator or public body
Listing of Color Additives Exempt From Certification; Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Labeling: Cochineal Extract and Carmine Declaration - Federal Register — federalregister.gov (2009) · regulator or public body
Carmine allergy in urticaria patients - PMC - NIH — nih.gov (2022) · regulator or public body
Carmines - International Association of Color Manufacturers — iacmcolor.org (2015) · review
6 web articles (ingredicheck.app, kidsadvisory.com, iawpwellnesscoach.com, …), linked in the app.
2 community or commercial pages, not counted here.

On skin, left on Watch

Under the default Cautious lens carmine (ci 75470) on skin (left on) rates Watch: worth watching; the app would list a cleaner alternative type. Mainstream (consensus only) rates it Watch; Based (adds the fringe) rates it Watch. Researched 2026-09-03.

Sourced concerns (1)

ConsensusIrritant · allergenconfidence 90%

Carmine (CI 75470) can cause skin irritation and allergic reactions, including contact dermatitis, redness, itching, and swelling, particularly in individuals with sensitive skin or known sensitivities to insect-derived substances.

Why here: Carmine is widely used as a colorant in dermal leave-on cosmetic products such as lipsticks, blushers, and eyeshadows, leading to direct and prolonged skin contact.
What would have to be true: Dermal application of cosmetics containing carmine.
The other side: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the EU Cosmetics Directive consider CI 75470 safe for use in cosmetics when used within approved concentrations and consistent with good manufacturing practices.

Sources the engine cites:

FDA Requires Label Declaration of Cochineal Extract and Carmine on All Foods and Cosmetics — thefdalawblog.com (2009) · regulator or public body
1 web article (allergylosangeles.com), linked in the app.
1 community or commercial page, not counted here.

Not researched here

The engine has no dossier for carmine (ci 75470) when cooked with heat, in cold food, as a finishing ingredient, in heated food packaging or other uses. The app researches an ingredient for the use it infers from your product, so a scan fills these in; this page only shows what has already been researched and source-verified.

This is research, not medical advice. Detox My Life shows sourced claims sorted by evidence tier. It does not diagnose, treat, or tell you to start or stop anything. Talk to a qualified professional about your health.

Scan your own. The app reads any product label with your camera, works out how you are about to use it, and researches every ingredient for that use with live sources. Every scan adds to a Detox Score for your home, where 50 is a typical home in your region, and a plan of next swaps.

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