“Lemongrass Essential Oil?”Here!lemongrass oil
Appears in 1 scanned product.
In household products
A steam-distilled oil from lemongrass leaves, largely composed of citral, an aromatic compound with a strong lemony smell.
Why it’s used
It gives cleaners, candles, and wax melts a bright citrus-herbal scent, often used because it is potent enough to work at a low usage rate.
What the evidence says
Citral is one of the better-studied fragrance allergens; patch-test and cosmetic-panel data show it can sensitize skin at higher concentrations, which is why regulatory bodies cap and require disclosure of it in leave-on cosmetics. Its relevance to a rinsed-off or aired-out household product is considerably lower than to skin-applied leave-on products.
Context
Exposure in candles and wax melts is mostly inhalation of the scent when heated; in a cleaner it is brief skin contact with diluted product on surfaces.
Rumors
Its citral content causes allergic skin sensitization at higher concentrations.
Supports — suggestivehealth and safety evidence
Studied in: dermatitis patients with suspected allergic contact dermatitis undergoing patch testing.
Measured as an outcome.
- Contact allergy to citral and its constituents geranial and neral, coupled with reactions to the prehapten and prohapten geraniol. (Peer-reviewed) · Foundation-funded