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Parfum

Fragrance

Worth knowingFragrancefragrancemasking

EU-restricted, a common contact allergen, or subject to live debate.

Also written as: Fragrance · Aroma · Perfume · Fragrance (Parfum)

What it is

Parfum is not one substance. It is the EU-approved collective name for a fragrance composition, which may be a blend of anywhere from a handful to well over a hundred aroma chemicals and natural extracts. Article 19(1)(g) of the Cosmetics Regulation lets manufacturers hide that blend behind the single word Parfum to protect trade secrets, with one important exception: substances on the EU fragrance-allergen list must be named individually once they exceed a set threshold. Formulators use it to mask the smell of raw materials, which can be waxy, fishy or sulphurous, and because scent strongly influences whether people enjoy and keep using a product.

What it does well

  • Masks the natural smell of raw cosmetic ingredients

    Many functional ingredients (clays, sulphur, plant extracts, some surfactants and preservatives) have odours most people dislike. A small amount of fragrance is the standard and effective way to cover them.

    Strong evidence

  • Improves how pleasant a product feels to use

    Sensory studies consistently show scent shapes how people rate texture, efficacy and value. That is a genuine benefit for adherence, but it is a benefit to the experience, not to the skin.

    Moderate evidence

Worth knowing

  • Fragrance is one of the most common causes of cosmetic contact allergy

    In European dermatitis clinics roughly 7% of patch-tested patients react to fragrance mix I and around 4% to fragrance mix II. In the general European population the figure is lower but still substantial, at around 1.9%.

    Matters most toAnyone with eczema, rosacea, perioral dermatitis or a history of reacting to scented products.

  • The word Parfum tells you very little about what is actually in the product

    Only listed allergens above the threshold have to be named. Everything else in the blend stays anonymous, so someone who has reacted before cannot reliably screen a label unless their specific allergen happens to be a declared one.

    Matters most toPeople with a diagnosed fragrance allergy who need to avoid a specific molecule.

  • "Unscented" is not the same as fragrance-free

    Products marketed as unscented sometimes contain a masking fragrance to neutralise a base odour, and that masking blend is still declared as Parfum. Look for Parfum in the ingredient list rather than trusting front-of-pack wording.

    Matters most toAnyone actively avoiding fragrance.

Where the EU stands

Labelling required

A fragrance blend may be declared collectively as "Parfum", but individual allergens on the Annex III list must be named once they exceed 0.001% in a leave-on product or 0.01% in a rinse-off product. Regulation (EU) 2023/1545 expanded that list from the original 26 substances to roughly 80, adding Annex III entries 327 to 371. Products that do not comply may no longer be placed on the EU market after 31 July 2026, and stock already on shelves may only be sold until 31 July 2028.

Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009, Article 19(1)(g) and Annex III entries 67-92; as amended by Regulation (EU) 2023/1545 (Annex III entries 327-371) · source ↗

Sources (2)

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

  1. [1]
    Patch test results with fragrance markers of the baseline series - analysis of the European Surveillance System on Contact Allergies (ESSCA) network 2009-2012

    Contact Dermatitis (ESSCA network) · 2015 · doi:10.1111/cod.12420

    Across 12 European countries, 6.9% of patch-tested dermatitis patients reacted to fragrance mix I and 3.8% to fragrance mix II, making fragrance one of the leading causes of cosmetic contact allergy in Europe.

  2. [2]
    Prevalence of fragrance contact allergy in the general population of five European countries: a cross-sectional study

    British Journal of Dermatology (EDEN Fragrance Study) · 2015 · doi:10.1111/bjd.14151

    In a random sample of the general population across five countries, fragrance contact allergy was conservatively estimated at 1.9%, with women affected about twice as often as men, far lower than clinic figures, but not negligible.

Masks that contain Parfum