{"id":4614,"date":"2022-01-11T06:00:47","date_gmt":"2022-01-11T06:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.star-k.org\/articles\/?p=4614"},"modified":"2026-02-25T21:44:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-25T21:44:10","slug":"pesach-cosmetics-and-personal-care","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.star-k.org\/articles\/articles\/seasonal\/4614\/pesach-cosmetics-and-personal-care\/","title":{"rendered":"Halachos of Using Cosmetics and Personal Care Items on Pesach"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Updated February 2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-file\" align=\"right\"><a class=\"button\" style=\"background: #057594; color: #ffffff;\" href=https:\/\/www.star-k.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/halachos-of-cosmetics-on-pesach.pdf download=\"\">Download PDF of Article<\/a><\/div><br>\n\n\n\n<p>In addition to pharmaceutical companies, Rav Gershon Bess also contacts many cosmetic companies and bases the following chometz-free list on his research. <i>L\u2019halacha<\/i>, all non-food items not fit for canine consumption \u2013 <i>nifsal mei\u2019achilas kelev<\/i> (i.e., something that one would not feed his dog) \u2013 may be used on Pesach. This includes all <a id=\"_idIndexMarker000\" class=\"mce-item-anchor\"><\/a>cosmetics, soaps, ointments, and creams.<span id=\"footnote-000-backlink\"><a href=\"#footnote-000\">1<\/a><\/span> Nonetheless, people have acted stringently with regard to these items.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Below are several reasons why people are strict:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Many products<\/strong>, including shaving lotion and perfume, contain denatured alcohol which can be restored to regular alcohol (see <i>Igros Moshe O.C.<\/i> 3:62). According to some opinions, one should not use such products if chometz-based. (<i>Sefer Kovetz Halachos <\/i><em>Pesach, <\/em>Chapter 12, footnote 7 has a brief discussion regarding the different opinions). The <em>STAR-K Pesach Guide<\/em> lists products which do not use chometz-based alcohols.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The <em>Biur Halacha<\/em> <\/strong>(326:10 <i>B\u2019shaar<\/i>) writes in the name of the Gra that one should be strict and not use non-kosher soap all year (<i>sicha k\u2019shtiya<\/i>). Although we are not accustomed to this stringency, many individuals have adopted this <i>chumra<\/i> during Pesach and do not permit the use of chometz items even if they are used externally.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Some are of the opinion<\/strong> that we do not say <i>&#8216;nifsal<\/i>&#8216; (i.e., the food is unfit for canine consumption) applies to a chometz item that has a good fragrance even if it is a non-food item, since the purpose of having a good fragrance is still being fulfilled. According to this, deodorants, etc., that contain a chometz derivative could not be used on Pesach even if it is inedible. See <i>Maharam Shick, Orach Chaim<\/i> 242.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Lipstick <\/strong>is often inadvertently ingested when eating food. If it contains chometz, it is <i>halachically<\/i> permissible to apply to the lips since the lipstick is unfit for canine consumption. Nevertheless, most women prefer not to consume even a trace of anything prohibited. The <em>STAR-K Pesach Guide<\/em> lists chometz-free lipsticks.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Oral Care: Mouthwash and toothpaste<\/strong> contain sorbitol and other ingredients which may be derived from chometz. Although, <i>l\u2019halacha,<\/i> these items are permissible to use since they are <i>nifsal mei\u2019achilas kelev<\/i>, many prefer not to use them since they are taken orally (<i>Sefer Kovetz Halachos Pesach<\/i> 12:11). The <em>STAR-K Pesach Guide<\/em> lists chometz-free brands of such products.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Historically<\/strong>, it has been the custom to follow stringent opinions regarding <i>Hilchos Pesach<\/i>. In addition, it seems to have been a prevalent custom to restrict the use of items which may contain chometz, even when they are clearly <i>nifsal mei\u2019achilas kelev<\/i>. The <em>STAR-K Pesach Guide<\/em> provides accurate information for those who wish to continue to follow the more strict opinion and prevailing custom when using such products.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"#footnote-000-backlink\">1<\/a>. There are numerous <em>halachos<\/em> beyond the scope of this article regarding which personal care items and cosmetics may or may not be used on any Shabbos or Yom Tov. For a full discussion, see \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.star-k.org\/articles\/kashrus-kurrents\/353\/the-kashrus-shabbos-and-pesach-guide-to-cosmetics\/\">The <em>Kashrus<\/em>, Shabbos, and Pesach Guide to Cosmetics<\/a>\u201d or call STAR-K for assistance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Updated February 2026<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"button\" style=\"background: #057594; color: #ffffff;\" href=https:\/\/www.star-k.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/halachos-of-cosmetics-on-pesach.pdf download=\"\">Download PDF of Article<\/a><\/p>\n<p>In addition to pharmaceutical companies, Rav Gershon Bess also contacts many cosmetic companies and bases the following chometz-free list on his research. <i>L\u2019halacha<\/i>, all non-food items not fit for canine consumption \u2013 <i>nifsal mei\u2019achilas kelev<\/i> (i.e., something that one would not feed his dog) \u2013 may be used on Pesach. This includes all <a id=\"_idIndexMarker000\" class=\"mce-item-anchor\"><\/a>cosmetics, soaps, ointments, and creams.<span id=\"footnote-000-backlink\"><a href=\"#footnote-000\">1<\/a><\/span> Nonetheless, people have acted stringently with regard to these items.<\/p>\n<p>Below are several reasons why people are strict:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Many products<\/strong>, including shaving lotion and perfume, contain denatured alcohol which can be restored to regular alcohol (see <i>Igros Moshe O.C.<\/i> 3:62). According to some opinions, one should not use such products if chometz-based. (<i>Sefer Kovetz Halachos <\/i>Pesach, Chapter 12, footnote 7 has a brief discussion regarding the different opinions). The STAR-K Pesach Guide lists products which do not use [&#8230;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[136,539,7,331,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4614","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-app","category-passover-cosmetics","category-pesach","category-pesach-in-app","category-seasonal"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Halachos of Using Cosmetics and Personal Care Items on Pesach | STAR-K Kosher Certification<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Updated February 2026 Download PDF of Article In addition to pharmaceutical companies, Rav Gershon Bess also contacts many cosmetic companies and bases\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, 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