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 Mica safe when breathed in?

Q: Is mica safe when breathed in?

Under the app's default Cautious lens, mica when breathed in rates Watch: worth watching; the app would list a cleaner alternative type. 1 sourced concern counts (suspected carcinogen, consensus tier). This is research with sources, not medical advice.

Cosmetics1 use researched1 sourced claims

Where it turns up: shimmer, filler, pearlescent effect, common. Detox My Life researched mica under one use, because the same substance means something different in each use. 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
Breathed in	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 covers the products this turns up in: Perfume or cologne. Alternatives are always types, never brands.

Breathed in Watch

Under the default Cautious lens mica when breathed in 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)

ConsensusSuspected carcinogenconfidence 80%

Natural mica can contain crystalline silica as an impurity, which the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classifies as Group 1 (carcinogenic to humans) when inhaled in the form of quartz or cristobalite from occupational sources.

Why here: If natural mica, potentially containing crystalline silica, is used in a product that can be inhaled by consumers, there is a potential for exposure to this impurity.
What would have to be true: Inhalation of natural mica dust that contains crystalline silica impurities.
The other side: Cosmetic-grade mica is often processed to ensure purity, and synthetic mica, which does not carry the same risk of crystalline silica contamination, is available. Regulatory bodies like the FDA and EMA consider mica-based pigments safe in cosmetics when free of harmful impurities.

Sources the engine cites:

Agents Classified by the IARC Monographs, Volumes 1–142 — who.int (2026) · regulator or public body
2 web articles (ariadne-hces.com, aoramakeup.com), linked in the app.

Not researched here

The engine has no dossier for mica 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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