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.
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.
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.
Cyclopentasiloxane is a fluid silicone. It’s non-greasy and doesn’t have any scent or color. It evaporates pretty fast which makes this ingredient essential when it comes to making products that have to dry quickly. It also gives a nice silky feeling when you apply the product to the skin and hair. It leaves a thin film that protects the skin after evaporation.
Cyclopentasiloxane is chemically neutral, meaning it doesn’t react with other components.
5
Acrylates/Dimethicone Copolymer
Roles: Skin conditioning, Anticaking, Binding, Film former
6
Isohexadecane
Roles: Skin conditioning, Emollient, Solvent
Softening
Protection
7
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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Retinol (Vitamin A)VitaminsAntioxidant
Roles: Skin conditioning
Nutrifying
Hair structure improvement
9
Ceramide 3
Roles: Skin conditioning, Hair conditioning
10
Spilanthes Acmella Flower Extract
Roles: Skin conditioning, Hair conditioning
11
Ribes Nigrum (Black Currant) Seed Extract
Roles: Emollient, Humectant
12
Eryngium Maritimum Callus Culture Filtrate
13
Avenanthramides
14
Silica
Silica is used for improving texture of the product. It helps the product to spread out evenly. Very often it’s used in different exfoliants as an abrasive. It's safe and non-toxic.
Betaine is used a lot in “organic” skincare products. It is a good moisturizer that not only hydrates the skin but also strengthens the cell membrane. This helps to lower the water loss over time. It also softens the skin and reduces irritation and redness. It’s often used at a 3-5% concentration depending on the product.
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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.
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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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.
Behenyl Alcohol is an emulsifier. It makes the product feel softer and more pleasant to touch. It also provides an anti-inflammation effect. Made of natural ingredients and can be seen in organic products a lot.
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Arachidyl Glucoside
Roles: Emulsifying, Surfactant
23
Trideceth-6 Phosphate
Roles: Emulsifying, Surfactant
24
Laureth-23
Roles: Cleansing, Surfactant
Softening
Comedogenic rating [ 3 ]
Bad for oily skin
25
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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Polysorbate 80
Roles: Emulsifying, Fragrance, Surfactant
Malassezia unsafe
Polysorbate 80 is a formulation component. It helps the components to mix better and makes the product feel smooth on the skin.
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Hydroxyethylcellulose
Roles: Binding, Emulsion stabilizer, Film former, Stabilising, Viscosity controlling
Hydroxyethylcellulose doesn’t provide any notable skincare benefits. It’s used for formulation purposes. It’s a very effective emulsifier and thickening agent. It also improves the product’s texture and feel. It allows manufacturers to use less surfactant making the product safer for your skin.
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.
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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Chlorphenesin
Roles: Antimicrobial, Biocide, Preservative
Chlorphenesin is a popular preservative. It doesn’t provide any skin-related positive effects and is used to prevent bacterial growth inside a product. It’s a weak preservative but works much better with silicones.
Allowed concentration: no more than 0,3% for European Union countries.
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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.
