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.
Stearic Acid doesn’t belong to aggressive acids. It’s a fatty acid that can be found in Shea Butter, Cocoa Butter, and many natural butters and oils. The component is mostly used for formulation purposes. It makes the product spread and feel better. It’s one of the most important fatty acids in our skin cells.
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.
Glyceryl Stearate SE is a nice moisturizing ingredient. It hydrates the upper layers of the skin and fills small wrinkles. In haircare products, it's used for making hair softer.
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.
Sweet Almond Oil is rich in Vitamin D, Vitamin E, and different minerals. It’s a very effective soothing component known from ancient times. It helps to protect the skin from the sun, make it softer and heal small wounds.
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PEG-100 Stearate
Roles: Cleansing, Surfactant
Moisturizing
Softening
Malassezia unsafe
PEG
Peg-100 Stearate is a good emulsifier that makes the ingredients mix nicely. It also makes the skin soft and moisturized. Peg-100 Stearate is also known for its cleansing effect. CIR Expert Panel marked this ingredient as safe.
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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.
Propylene Glycol is a useful componet with many positive effects. It’s a very good moisturizer. It helps to deliver ingredients into deeper layers of the skin. It creates a protective layer on the skin preventing water loss. The component is researched very well and doesn’t have notable side effects. It’s used even for making food.
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Fragrance
Roles: Deodorant, Fragrance, Masking
Fragrances
Fragrance is a mix of chemical ingredients (usually 20-30 chemicals but up to 200 sometimes) that help the product to smell better. It can hide many bad things. Synthetic fragrances may contain many different chemicals, but manufacturers don’t want to reveal each of them for some reason and hide them behind the word "Fragrance".
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.
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Methylparaben
Roles: Fragrance, Preservative
Parabens
Methylparaben is an effective preservative. It is a controversial ingredient in terms of safety. In 2006 there was a laboratory test showed that this component can increase the sun sensitivity of the skin cells. That’s why it’s a good idea to use sunscreen after you use this component.
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Tocopheryl AcetateVitaminsAntioxidant
Roles: Skin conditioning
Softening
Nutrifying
Tocopheryl Acetate is a form of Vitamine E. It’s used as an alternative to Tocopherol because it is more stable in the formulation. It has all the positive effects of Tocopherol plus better stability. It’s a brilliant component. It conditions and nourishes the skin helping it to resist aging. It also helps to protect the skin from the sun. High concentrations of Tocopheryl Acetate can lead to irritation and allergic reactions.
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Ethylparaben
Roles: Fragrance, Preservative
Antifungal
Antiseptic
Parabens
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Limonene
Roles: Fragrance
Antiseptic
Allergens
Limonene provides a nice and fresh citrus scent. It can be found in many plants. It's used in cosmetics because of its low price and pleasant smell.
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Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone
Roles: Fragrance, Masking
Allergens
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Hydroxycitronellal
Roles: Fragrance, Masking
Allergens
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Citronellol
Roles: Fragrance, Masking
Allergens
Citronellol makes the product smell better. It’s one of the most frequently used fragrance ingredients in the world. It smells like a fresh cut of apple peel mixed with a citrus scent. It’s also used to enhance flower scent. It has slight anti-bacterial activity.
Beware! This component is in the list of potential allergens and can cause allergic contact dermatitis.
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Lilial
Roles: Fragrance, Masking
Allergens
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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.
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Geraniol
Roles: Fragrance, Masking
Allergens
Geraniol is a fragrance ingredient that gives product a nice rose scent. That’s why it’s used by many manufacturers. In addition to its pleasant scent, it also provides an antifungal effect increasing the shelf life of a product. There are several ways of obtaining this ingredient but all of them are chemical.
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Isoeugenol
Roles: Flavoring, Fragrance, Masking
Allergens
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Potassium Sorbate
Roles: Fragrance, Preservative
Antifungal
Antiseptic
Potassium Sorbate is a preservative that increases the shelf life of the product. It’s a great alternative to parabens. That's why manufacturers like to use this component. It is safe in concentration of up to 10% but it is used in cosmetics in amounts of 1% or even lower.
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Sodium Benzoate
Roles: Fragrance, Masking, Preservative
Antifungal
Antiseptic
Sodium Benzoate doesn’t have any great skincare effects and is used for formulation purposes. It’s a corrosion inhibitor, fragrance ingredient, and preservative. It is not a broad-spectrum preservative and it’s used with other preservatives for good efficiency. It’s safe, but people with eczema or a history of skin allergies should use this component with attention.
