Water is a great solvent. It’s neutral and doesn’t provide any strong positive or negative effects. It just helps components to mix better and to transport active components.
Glycerin is one of the most outstanding and helpful skincare components. It's used in many skincare products because it works and provides notable results. It's one of the best moisturizers. Molecules of Glycerin can absorb water and deliver it into deep layers of the skin making it hydrated.
C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate is mostly used as formulation component. It gives the product a soft and silky but non-greasy feeling. As for the skin benefits, it's an emollient – it makes the skin softer and more hydrated. It also helps to kill bacteria and increase the product’s shelf life.
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Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Roles: Skin conditioning, Fragrance
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride is an emollient that also hydrates the skin without leaving a fatty film. When applied, the component feels smooth and light. In haircare products, it’s also used for hydrating purposes. It makes hair silky, lowers tangling, and makes hair smooth.
It’s safe for most people, except for people with allergic reactions to coconut or palm oil because these oils are usually used for producing the component.
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Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Esters
Roles: Skin conditioning, Emollient, Moisturising
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Retinol (Vitamin A)VitaminsAntioxidant
Roles: Skin conditioning
Nutrifying
Hair structure improvement
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Isopropyl Jojobate
Roles: Skin conditioning, Emollient
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Polysorbate-20
Roles: Emulsifying, Fragrance, Surfactant
Nutrifying
Malassezia unsafe
Polysorbate 20 doesn’t have any notable skin benefits but is used in cosmetics quite often. Manufacturers use it for formulation purposes. It improves the scent, texture, and feel of the product.
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Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe Vera) Leaf Juice
Roles: Skin conditioning
UV Protection
Moisturizing
Soothing
Healing
Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe Vera) Leaf Juice is a natural juice received from Aloe leaves. It has been used in cosmetics for hundreds of ages. Scientists have discovered that it contains more than 200 nutrients: minerals, amino acids, vitamins, and so on. It’s a good component for calming irritated skin. It also helps to heal wounds, helps the skin regenerate faster, improves collagen syncretization, tones up, and moisturizes the skin. It also provides a slight UV-filtering effect.
Cetearyl Alcohol is used mostly for formulation purposes. It’s a very good emulsifier and emulsion stabilizer. It helps the ingredients mix better and it makes the product spread on your skin evenly. It also makes the product thicker. It doesn’t belong to harmful alcohols and it will not dry your skin.
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PPG-12/Smdi Copolymer
Roles: Skin conditioning, Emollient, Film former, Hair conditioning, Hair fixative
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Dimethicone
Roles: Skin conditioning, Antifoaming, Emollient
Silicones
Dimethicone is the most popular silicone. It makes the skin softer and forms a film adding smooth and silky feeling. This film not only improves how the skin feels but also works as a protective barrier. It also improves the visual appearance of your skin by filling small wrinkles. That's why some people think dimethicone removes wrinkles. Actually, it does not. It's just a visual effect.
One of the most important characteristics of this component is that it helps to spread other ingredients evenly on the surface to provide good coverage. It's very important because you want all your skin cells to receive an equal proportion of the components.
Dimethicone is considered as safe, but remember that it is rather difficult to wash off! This may lead to clogged pores and acne if you use it too often and don't wash off quite well.
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Sodium Hyaluronate
Roles: Skin conditioning, Humectant
Moisturizing
Softening
Anti-aging
Rejuvenation
Good for dry skin
Sodium Hyaluronate is an amazing component! It plays very important role in skin hydration process. It helps to maintain water balance and lower water loss. Scientists have found a direct dependence between the level of Sodium Hyaluronate in cells and skin aging. That's why this component is so much important. It must be in your routine if you want to have a healthy and fresh looking skin.
Some people think that Sodium Hyaluronate and Hyaluronic acid are different names of the same component, but it is not entirely correct. Hyaluronic acid is a different chemical but with similar effects. Actually, Sodium Hyaluronate is used in cosmetics much more often because it’s more stable and has much better resistance to oxidation.
Phospholipids help to hydrate the skin and recover the lipid balance. If the skin lacks this component it can become dry. The component makes cell membranes more difficult to damage and this affects the overall health of the skin.
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TocopherolAntioxidant
Roles: Skin conditioning, Fragrance
UV Protection
Anti-aging
Regeneration
Comedogenic rating [ 3 ]
Good for dry skin
Tocopherol is one of the most popular active ingredients in cosmetics. It’s a brilliant component. It's a form of Vitamin E and it does help the skin and hair a lot. It conditions the skin, strengthens its barrier, protects it against harm, and makes the tone even. It also helps your skin and hair to resist the sun. It’s safe but can irritate sensitive skin sometimes. Pay attention to concentration!
Triethanolamine is a pH adjuster. It is a toxic component that can be absorbed by the skin and detected in blood later. It can be a dermal irritant. Though it's considered safe, you should think before using it in skincare. There are many products on the market without Triethanolamine.
Caprylyl Glycol is a vey popular skincare ingredient. It makes the product spread better and feel better on your skin. It’s a preservative and it improves the effect of other preservatives. It’s also a humectant which helps to retain water. It’s good for keeping your skin in good shape. But manufacturers use it as a supporting component rather than the main one.
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Ethylhexylglycerin
Roles: Skin conditioning, Deodorant
Moisturizing
Softening
Antiseptic
Deodorant
Ethylhexylglycerin makes the skin softer, smoother and more hydrated. It acts deeply but without any heavy or sticky feeling. In haircare products, it works as a conditioner and scalp cleanser. It is safe but only in concentration below 8% in rinse-off products and below 2% in leave-on products. Can be an irritator in higher concentrations. In general, this component is great if you see it somewhere at the bottom of the list.
Hexylene Glycol is mostly used for formulation purposes. It’s a good surfactant, emulsifier, and viscosity-reducing agent. It maintains the density of the formulation of the product preventing it from separating. It also makes the product feel better.
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Phenoxyethanol
Roles: Fragrance, Preservative
Antiseptic
Phenoxyethanol is one of the most popular preservatives. It kills bacteria and makes the product live longer. Manufacturers like this ingredient because it can dissolve in any liquid, even in oils.
Another purpose of this component is the fixation of aromas in perfumery. Phenoxyethanol is also used as a strong antiseptic and a good antibacterial agent. It is widely used in dermatological cosmetics alongside natural antiseptics such as chamomile, sage, and calendula.
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Carbomer
Roles: Emulsion stabilizer, Gel forming, Viscosity controlling
Moisturizing
Carbomer is used for formulation purposes. It helps to control the viscosity and flow of a product. It’s considered safe but only if it’s well purified. Poorly purified carbomers may contain benzol which may lead to irritation.
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Polyacrylamide
Roles: Antistatic, Binding, Film former, Hair fixative
Antistatic
Protection
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C13-14 Isoparaffin
Roles: Emollient, Solvent
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Laureth-7
Roles: Emulsifying, Surfactant
Cleansing
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Disodium EDTA
Roles: Chelating, Viscosity controlling
Disodium EDTA is an emulsion stabilizer and chelating agent. It deactivates the metal ions preventing them from reacting with other active ingredients. It improves the stability of a cosmetic formula and keeps the product’s consistency, texture, and pH unchanged. It doesn’t have any skincare effects and is used for formulation purposes only.
