Glycol Distearate

Irritancy: unknownComedogenicity: unknownEmollient

Fungal-acne trigger

The details

Glycol Distearate is an emulsifier and emollient that adds a "pearly" appearance to formulations. That lustrous look you see in many shampoos is due to this ingredient: when cooled, it crystallizes into small platelets that reflect light to give products that rich, shimmering look. This ingredient is considered safe at present practices of use and concentration and repeated insult patch test with 50% Glycol Distearate on 125 subjects found no evidence of skin irritation, hypersensitivity, or acute toxicity. Typical use concentrations range from 0.1-10%. Because it's an ester of stearic acid , it falls into the range that Malassezia likes to metabolize. This ingredient may not be fungal acne safe.