Is It a Cosmetic, a Drug, or Both? (Or Is It Soap?)

FDA, 9 min read

This lesson is a guide published by FDA.

What you'll get

FDA explains that a product's intended use, shown by its label claims, advertising, website copy, ingredients and what buyers expect, decides whether it is a cosmetic or a drug, with examples such as a scent sold to help you sleep, and that in the law the word soap means something narrow that falls to a different agency. Read it before you write any label or web copy, because a claim about treating or changing the body can move a product into the drug rules.

Do this week

Print your label and product page, circle every sentence that says what the product does for the body, and sort each one as cleans or beautifies versus treats or changes how the body works.