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Caveats Regarding Our Data
The Relative Performance of Products and Companies
GoodGuide is a comprehensive database of information on the performance and impacts of products and companies. However, GoodGuide does not cover all environmental, social, or health issues, or all possible sources of information. The system’s analyses and ratings are limited to issues tracked by the most authoritative, credible national and international data sources. Nonetheless, existing data sources may have data gaps when raw information is not available, companies have not yet reported on their performance, government reporting requirements are limited, or scientists and experts disagree over how to measure performance. As a result, GoodGuide’s assessment of environmental, social, and health impacts of products and companies may have gaps.
GoodGuide’s research team is committed to gathering and delivering the most current and complete data available, and regularly revises the data in our system as our sources are updated. The research team also works with companies and data providers to improve data availability and data quality over time. It is in all of our best interest for companies to disclose their product information publicly, and to have their products tested or verified by independent, certified laboratories.
GoodGuide welcomes the submission of product ingredients, life cycle data, and social monitoring results – and will update our database to reflect this information. If information is missing, or data appears to be incorrect or outdated, please contact the research team directly at data@goodguide.com. An important mission of this endeavor is to work collaboratively with other stakeholders to improve the quality and coverage of product information.
GoodGuide does not endorse, promote, sell, or derive revenue from any particular brand or product. This is an information system designed to empower people to choose between products in a more informed way. The data analysis and ratings are blind to products and brands. Companies and products are evaluated based on a scoring algorithm that combines health, social, and environmental concerns.
GoodGuide Ratings
GoodGuide rates products and companies using various environmental, social and health attributes. GoodGuide’s ratings are relative: they indicate how a product or company ranks compared to other products or companies in the same product category or industry sector. GoodGuide’s ratings cannot tell you whether a product or a corporation is ultimately environmentally sustainable, socially responsible, or beneficial to your health For example, if a company scores well on environmental performance, this does not mean that a product the company produces will not damage the environment.
GoodGuide uses information from government agencies, leading rating agencies, independent scientific databases, academic researchers, NGOs, international organizations, and other authoritative sources that are expert in different impact categories. However, significant uncertainties exist regarding the impacts of products and companies. Certain impacts may not be reported fully, accurately, or in a timely way.
For example, the treatment of workers in factories outside the United States, may be hard to track. Companies may contract their work out to a series of suppliers, and it may not be possible to determine who they are. Independent observers may find it challenging to gain entry to factories to monitor company performance. Companies may not report all of their actions and trends. Our data sources may use assumptions to overcome these gaps, leading to under-estimates or over-estimates of performance.
The health scores for a significant number of products in our system are currently provided by one of GoodGuide’s partners, the Environmental Working Group (EWG). EWG has been conducting research on the toxicity of personal care products for over five years, and has developed a scoring system to assess product safety as part of their Skin Deep database. When an EWG score is not available, we provide our own assessment of the product ingredients and associated hazards. GoodGuide is evaluating chemical ingredients against over 40 international hazard lists. GoodGuide’s lists of suspected health hazards are based on an extensive review of the scientific literature and regulatory agency sources.
All GoodGuide health scores are based on a screening-level assessment of potential health risks and are subject to important uncertainties. These include a lack of monitoring of exposures, uncertainties regarding the causes of diseases, a lack of data on exposure pathways (notably for indoor air and using multiple consumer products), the time that it may take for health effects to appear in people, and differences in the biological responses of people when exposed to chemicals. Most importantly, there is a lack of available scientific data for many chemicals. Approximately 90% of chemicals used in personal care products have not been screened adequately for their human health risks. Risk assessment methods use assumptions to fill gaps in scientific data, which may result in under-estimates or over-estimates of health risks.
GoodGuide’s health estimates are useful for rating purposes only. They are not predictive of any actual individual’s risk of getting cancer or other diseases. If a product scores well on toxic hazards, this does not mean that the product will not damage (or enhance) your health. For a particular person suffering from a particular health effect, it is often very difficult to tell whether environmental pollution or product ingredient exposures were the cause or one of the causes. GoodGuide’s information should not be considered as medical advice and it is not a substitute for care by a licensed health professional.
GoodGuide’s information also should not be considered as financial or business advice, and should not be used to make investment or business decisions. If anyone wishes to make decisions on ethical investing, a licensed investment adviser should be seen.
Continuous Improvement
We are committed to continually improving GoodGuide’s database and tools. The current data in GoodGuide’s system is the first iteration of the GoodGuide ontologies and algorithms. Over time, as new data sources are added, weightings are adjusted (based on expert feedback), and as the data team expand its quality assurance system, the ratings in GoodGuide are likely to evolve.
