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Sodium Dehydroacetate

Well toleratedPreservativepreservative

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

Also written as: Sodium 3-Acetyl-6-methyl-2H-pyran-2,4(3H)-dionate · DHA sodium salt

What it is

Sodium dehydroacetate is simply the sodium salt of dehydroacetic acid, used when a formulator needs a water-soluble form. It falls under exactly the same EU entry and the same 0.6% ceiling, calculated as the free acid. Like the acid, it is mainly antifungal and is usually blended with benzyl alcohol or benzoic acid.

What it does well

  • Easier to dose into water-based masks than the free acid

    Its solubility makes it practical for sheet-mask essences and gels, where the poorly soluble free acid is awkward to disperse.

    Moderate evidence

Worth knowing

  • Occasional allergic contact dermatitis

    Described in Dermatitis in 2012 as an emerging allergen on the basis of case reports; still an uncommon cause of cosmetic dermatitis.

    Matters most toPeople with known preservative allergy.

Where the EU stands

Approved preservative (Annex V)

Permitted preservative, maximum 0.6% expressed as dehydroacetic acid. Not permitted in aerosol dispensers (sprays).

Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009, Annex V entry 13 · source ↗

Sources (1)

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

  1. [1]
    Sodium dehydroacetate: an emerging allergen

    Dermatitis · 2012 · doi:10.1097/DER.0b013e31826f5b86

    Identifies sodium dehydroacetate as a newly recognised, uncommon cause of allergic contact dermatitis.

Masks that contain Sodium Dehydroacetate