Gateway on Pesticide Hazards and Safe Pest Management

Sodium lauryl sulfate

Sodium dodecyl sulfate

Lauryl sulfate salts: sodium lauryl sulfate, magnesium lauryl sulfate, ammonium lauryl sulfate, and triethanolamine lauryl sulfate. According to EPA these four active ingredients have no independent pesticidal activity when included in antimicrobial products, and thus are properly classified as inert ingredients in those products. Antimicrobial products that contain these active ingredients are not subject to registration review.

General Information

• Product Names:

  Kleenex Brand Anti-Viral Tissue (Kimberly-Clark Global Sales) formulated with Citric Acid

• Chemical Class: Detergent/surfactant
• Uses: Flea and tick repellant. Sodium lauryl sulfate also is a widely used component of many nonpesticidal consumer products currently marketed in the U. S., including shampoos and fruit juices.
• Beyond Pesticides rating: Least-toxic

Health and Environmental Effects

• Cancer: Not documented
• Endocrine Disruption: Not documented
• Reproductive Effects: Not documented
• Neurotoxicity: Not documented
• Kidney/Liver Damage: Not documented
• Sensitizer/ Irritant: Yes (27)
• Birth/Developmental: Not documented
• Detected in Groundwater: Not documented
• Potential Leacher: Not documented
• Toxic to Birds: Not documented
• Toxic to Fish/Aquatic Organisms: Yes*
• Toxic to Bees: Not documented

Additional Information

• Regulatory Status:
  • EPA Reregistration Eligibility Decision (RED) signed (9/1993)
  • Minimum Risk Pesticides FIFRA 25(b) Exemption
• Supporting information:
  • PAN Pesticides Database: (Pesticide Action Network)
• Studies:
  • Final Report on the Safety Assessment of Sodium Lauryl Sulfate and Ammonium Lauryl Sulfate International Journal of Toxicology, Dec. 1983 2: 127-18
  • Sodium Lauryl Sulfate-Induced Irritation in the Human Face: Regional and Age-Related Differences Marrakchi S and Maibach,H.I. 2006. Skin Pharmacol Physiol
  • *Toxic action of several lethal concentrations of an anionic detergent on the gills of the brown trout (Salmo trutta L.). Abel, P.D. 1976. J. of Fish Biology
  • *Effects of a sublethal concentration of sodium lauryl sulphate on the morphology and Na+/K+ ATPase activity in the gill of the ornate wrasse (Thalassoma pavo). Brunelli, E. at al. 2008. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety