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Cetearyl Alcohol

Fatty alcohol blend

Well toleratedEmollientemollientemulsion stabiliserthickener

No meaningful concern for most people; irritation is possible but rare.

Also written as: Cetostearyl alcohol · Cetyl Stearyl Alcohol

What it is

Cetearyl alcohol is a mixture of two long-chain fatty alcohols, cetyl (C16) and stearyl (C18), usually made from coconut or palm oil. Despite the word 'alcohol' it is a solid, waxy material with nothing in common with ethanol or alcohol denat.: it does not evaporate, does not sting and does not dry the skin. Formulators use it to give creams and mask bases body, to stop oil and water separating, and to leave a soft after-feel.

What it does well

  • Softens skin and helps hold a cream together

    Fatty alcohols are standard emollients and co-emulsifiers: they thicken the water phase and stabilise the oil droplets, which is why they appear near the top of most cream-mask ingredient lists.

    Strong evidence

  • It is not a drying alcohol

    This is a naming coincidence rather than a chemical similarity. Fatty alcohols have a long greasy chain and behave like a soft wax; the volatile alcohols people worry about (Alcohol Denat., Isopropyl Alcohol) are small, evaporate quickly and can degrease skin. Cetearyl alcohol does the opposite.

    Strong evidence

Worth knowing

  • One of the more frequently identified emulsifier allergens in patch-test clinics

    Allergic contact dermatitis to cetearyl alcohol is uncommon in the general population but well documented, especially in people using medicated ointments on already-broken skin. A 2024 audit found cetearyl alcohol to be the most common potential contact allergen in products marketed as hypoallergenic.

    Matters most toPeople with chronic eczema, leg ulcers or long-term topical medication use, and anyone who has reacted to an ointment base.

Where the EU stands

No specific restriction

No EU restriction on use or concentration in cosmetics.

Sources (3)

Every link goes to the original: a journal, a PubMed record or an EU document.

  1. [1]
    Allergic contact dermatitis from cetearyl alcohol in Thrombocid ointment

    Dermatology Online Journal · 2016 · doi:10.5070/d3227031656

    Cetearyl alcohol was confirmed by patch testing as the culprit allergen in patients reacting to a topical ointment.

  2. [2]
    Do hypoallergenic skincare products contain fewer potential contact allergens?

    Clinical and Experimental Dermatology · 2024 · doi:10.1093/ced/llad436

    Most products labelled hypoallergenic still contained at least one known contact allergen, with cetearyl alcohol among the most frequently present.

  3. [3]
    Seven cases of contact dermatitis due to stearyl alcohol contained in topical medications

    The Journal of Dermatology · 2022 · doi:10.1111/1346-8138.16325

    Stearyl alcohol, one half of cetearyl alcohol, caused confirmed allergic contact dermatitis in seven patients using topical medicines, with some also reacting to cetyl alcohol.

Masks that contain Cetearyl Alcohol