Calling all TikTok and Olaplex users: If you’ve scrolled down your FYP in the past couple of days, you have probably seen Olaplex’s No.3 Hair Perfector come under fire for its ingredient list.
The ingredient in question? Butylphenyl Methylpropional, more commonly known as Lilial — a chemical substance used to add a floral scent to beauty products.
From March 1st 2022, cosmetic products containing Lilial are to be pulled from EU markets. Classified as a “reprotoxic” substance in EU legislation, the ingredient can cause infertility and have harmful effects on fetuses. Many expect a ban in Great Britain to follow.
With the EU’s new classification, Olaplex users have taken to TikTok in a panic, urging others on the platform to check their bottles for the ingredient.
@georgiajw26 OF COURSE MY ONE WOULD CONTAIN IT! #olaplex #olaplexno3 #infertility #ohno #badluck #fyp #viral #olaplextreatment #olaplex3
♬ Oh No (Instrumental) – Kreepa
@connieeewalker That ingredient is what you need to look out for this is supposed to be linked with infertility my new bottles do not have this in!!! No way are we stopping using N°3🥲🙌🏻🙌🏻 #olaplex #olaplexno3 #hairtrend #hairproducts #blondehair #fyp
♬ Forever – Labrinth
Meanwhile, other TikTok users have come forward hoping to quell the spread of misinformation and concern across the app.
LA-Based cosmetic chemist Javon Ford shared a recent screenshot of the Hair Perfector’s ingredient list from Sephora’s website. With Lilial nowhere on the list, Javon explains that “it doesn’t look like the ingredient is currently in the formula.”
He went on to share the product overview from 2018, where Lilial was among the listed ingredients.
With Olaplex reformulating and seemingly phasing out Lilial over the past few years, newer releases of the No.3 Hair Perfector do not contain the fragrance.
Olaplex took to Twitter to clarify the rumours around their best-selling product.
“[Lilial] is not an active or functional ingredient. While this phase out is limited to the EU, out of an abundance of caution, Olaplex proactively removed lilial from our No.3 Hair Perfector globally,” the account posted. “Since January 2022, Olaplex no longer sold products using Lilial in the UK or EU.”
In September 2020, the EU regulatory authority announced their intent to Butylphenyl methylpropional commonly referred to as "lillial" phased out by March of 2022. At Olaplex, lilial was previously used in small amounts as a fragrance in No. 3 Hair Perfector.
— Olaplex (@olaplex) February 28, 2022
It is not an active or functional ingredient. While this phase out is limited to the EU, out of an abundance of caution, Olaplex proactively removed lillial from our No.3 Hair Perfector globally. Since January 2022, Olaplex no longer sold products using Lillial in the UK or EU.
— Olaplex (@olaplex) February 28, 2022
With Olaplex’s No.3 Hair Perfector safe to use, we can all breathe in a collective sigh of relief. But as panic and misinformation spread across TikTok, the EU’s Lilial ban reminds us just how quickly false narratives can run wild.
For our own peace of mind, we must remember to constantly interrogate information, rumours and sources presented to us online.