Sodium Salicylate

What it is

Sodium salicylate is the water-soluble salt of salicylic acid. At the low levels permitted for preservation it contributes mild antimicrobial and antifungal activity rather than meaningful exfoliation. The EU treats salicylic acid and its salts carefully: they have their own preservative entry, a separate entry covering other uses, and an age restriction.

What it does well

• Mild antimicrobial action with a small keratolytic bonus

  At preservative levels it helps control bacteria and fungi in acidic formulas; any exfoliating effect at 0.5% or below is slight.

  Moderate evidence

Worth knowing

• Not for children under three, and a consideration in pregnancy

  EU rules bar salicylic acid and its salts from products for children under three (except shampoos). Salicylates are also the group most often flagged for caution in pregnancy, though the risk from a rinse-off or short-contact mask at 0.5% is very small.

  Matters most toParents of young children, and people who are pregnant and prefer to avoid salicylates.

Where the EU stands