Musk is a fragrance ingredient used in perfumery to help "fix" aromas and ensure persistence in a range of consumer products. There are different types of musks, including animal musk, which was one of the animal raw materials used in perfumery, along with civet, castoreum, ambergris, and hyraceum. However, animal musk is now banned in perfumery, and there are many alternatives to avoid using it. Synthetic musks are also used as fragrance ingredients in personal care and cleaning products. The most common types of musks used in consumer products are nitro-musks (e.g., musk ketone and musk xylene) and polycyclic musks (e.g., galaxolide and tonalide) .
Here are some positive and negative aspects of musk:
Positive:
- Musk is a significant ingredient for fragrance formulation, helping to "fix" aromas and ensure persistence in a range of consumer products.
- Natural musk has been associated with numerous positive effects on the human body.
Negative:
- Animal musk is now banned in perfumery due to ethical concerns.
- Synthetic musks bioaccumulate in the environment and have been detected in human breast milk, body fat, blood, and umbilical cords. Studies show that these compounds can disrupt cell functioning and hormone systems.
- Musk, which is very interesting from a lucrative point of view, was the object of numerous falsifications. Skilful hands opened the pouch and emptied the precious product by filling it with falsifying agents (earth, dried blood, liver, dried hairs, manure, pieces of lead, infused tea leaves...) .
- Synthetic musks such as musk ketone have been linked to health concerns.
There are different ingredients and materials used in musk compositions, depending on the specific product. For example, a patent for musk compositions lists polystyrene, activator, emulsifying agent, gelatin, microtubules, nylon, organic acids, and organic solvents as some of the substances used.
