Most Purportedly Natural Grapefruit Seed Extracts Are Adulterated With Antimicrobials

Grapefruit seed extracts have been marketed for three decades as natural antimicrobial treatments – used both topically and internally – for eczema, acne, cold sores, athlete’s foot, sore throats, etc. But the nonprofit American Botanical Council has published a review of recent scientific literature that finds most products that contain grapefruit seed extracts are adulterated  with synthetic additives, including the antimicrobials benzalkonium chloride, benzethonium chloride, triclosan, and methyl p-hydroxybenzoate. The researcher who wrote the review concluded that most of the products on the market are “adulterated, and any observed antimicrobial activity is due to synthetic additives, not the grapefruit seed extract itself.