Testing for what touches the body

ISO 17025 accredited lab
Lowell, Massachusetts

Eight tests

A technician applies a patch test to a volunteer's upper arm, marked with a grid of eight drawn squares

A single patch, read for skin irritation

Repeated patches, a rest, then a challenge patch, read for irritation and sensitization

Use under a dermatologist's supervision, for a dermatologist tested claim

Toxic metals in pigments, color cosmetics and raw materials

p-Phenylenediamine in permanent hair dye

Hydrogen peroxide strength in developers and bleach

Ammonia in permanent color and lighteners

Bacteria, yeast and mold counts

3–8business days

Our lab in Lowell

A scientist in a white lab coat fills a sample tube with a pipette
A gloved hand pipettes a sample into a pink petri dish
Blue-gloved hands load an orange rack of sample tubes into a lab fridge