LAWS & REGULATIONS
This federal agency is responsible for reviewing and regulating cosmetics, including safety and labeling under the FD&C Act.
Answer: What is the FDA (Food and Drug Administration)?
These ingredients do most of the actual work of cleaning, spreading, and keeping products stable, making up the bulk of a cosmetic product.
Answer: What are functional ingredients?
These compounds reduce surface tension between the skin and the product, acting as cleansing agents and emulsifiers.
Answer: What are surfactants?
These oil or fatty substances lubricate and physically coat the skin surface, trapping water underneath.
Answer: What are emollients?
These substances carry other ingredients into the skin to make them more effective.
Answer: What are vehicles?
Under federal law, cosmetics are legally distinguished from this category of products, which are intended to diagnose, cure, mitigate, treat, or prevent disease.
Answer: What are drugs?
Also known as active agents, these ingredients cause the actual changes in the appearance of the skin (such as hydration or exfoliation).
Answer: What are performance ingredients?
This specific type of surfactant is used in cleansers to lift oil, dirt, and makeup from the skin.
Answer: What is a detergent?
Highly effective emollient oils derived from plant, nut, or seed sources are rich in these essential building blocks for skin health.
Answer: What are essential fatty acids (EFAs)?
These closed-lipid sphere vesicles encapsulate and protect performance ingredients, releasing them deep into specific layers of the skin.
Answer: What are liposomes?
This law requires cosmetic manufacturers to list all ingredients on the label in descending order of predominance.
Answer: What is the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act (FPLA)?
This is the most frequently used cosmetic ingredient of all, serving as both a vehicle and a functional base.
Answer: What is water?
These substances act as bridges to allow oil and water to mix, creating a stable blend.
Answer: What are emulsifiers?
These substances are water-binding agents that draw moisture to the skin from the dermis or the atmosphere.
Answer: What are humectants?
These tiny, advanced delivery systems use microscopic hollow spheres or polymers to slowly and continuously release active ingredients.
Answer: What are microsponges (or polymers)?
This term refers to cosmetic products and ingredients that are not tested on animals at any stage of production.
Answer: What is cruelty-free?
Ingredients that are beneficial to skin that is prone to breakouts are rated on a scale of 0 to 5 for this property (meaning they do not clog pores).
Answer: What is non-comedogenic?
This type of emulsion mixes water droplets into oil (often heavier and richer creams).
Answer: What is a water-in-oil (W/O) emulsion?
This extremely popular humectant can hold over 1,000 times its weight in water and is naturally found in the skin.
Answer: What is hyaluronic acid?
This method of encapsulation involves using nanotechnology to create extremely small particles for deeper product penetration.
Answer: What are nanoparticles?
While the FDA does not require approval for cosmetics before they are sold, this group of independent experts reviews and assesses the safety of cosmetic ingredients.
Answer: What is the Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR)?
This term describes ingredients derived from plants, herbs, and flowers, though they are not automatically safer or more effective than synthetic chemicals.
Answer: What are botanicals?
This type of emulsion disperses tiny oil droplets throughout water (typically lighter weight and preferred for oily skin).
Answer: What is an oil-in-water (O/W) emulsion?
Emollients prevent moisture loss by slowing down this process, abbreviated as TEWL.
Answer: What is transepidermal water loss?
Unlike standard vehicles that sit on the surface, advanced delivery systems are designed to improve product stability and enhance this key metric of efficacy.
Answer: What is penetration/bioavailability?