Guides, page 3
The full archive of our chemists' formulation notes and ingredient science, newest first.
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Skin barrier and hydration: cosmetic active ingredients for healthy skin
What the stratum corneum lipid matrix is made of, what damages it, and the actives that repair it: ceramides, niacinamide, glycerin, hyaluronate and allantoin.
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Soothing skincare regimen: gentle ingredients to nourish and calm irritated skin
What skin irritation is, the actives that calm it (niacinamide, panthenol, allantoin, bisabolol, licorice), and the routine that lets skin recover.
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Stress relief via sunbathing
What sunlight does for mood, sleep and blood pressure (vitamin D, serotonin, melatonin and nitric oxide), and where the popular claims outrun the evidence.
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Sun filters, sunscreen and sun protection
What a UV filter is, why sunscreens blend several of them, and how patent status and country-by-country approval lists shape what a formulator can use.
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Sun protection and what you need to know about UV rays?
Five things sunscreen does for skin, what the Nambour trial found about daily use and ageing, and why the "titanium dioxide reflects UV" line is wrong.
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Sunbest-MBT (bisoctrizole): an overview
Bisoctrizole (MBBT) profiled: a particulate organic filter that works mainly by absorbing UV, with safety data, use levels and market-by-market approval status.
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Sunscreens for various skin types
Choosing a sunscreen for dry, sensitive, oily, acne-prone or normal skin: which base ingredients and filter types suit each, and which common advice to ignore.
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The benefits of using FD&C colors
What certified FD&C colours offer over uncertified alternatives: verified identity, batch traceability, reproducible shade, and clear permitted-use boundaries.
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The chemistry behind hair dyes and hair treatments
How oxidative hair colour works (alkalisers, developer, primary intermediates and couplers) and why PPD allergy makes patch testing non-negotiable.
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The importance of safety and efficacy testing for cosmetic active ingredients
How cosmetic ingredients are proven safe and proven to work: the test batteries, the EU animal testing ban, and what claim substantiation requires.
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The science behind cosmetic ingredients and skin benefits
Reading a skincare label by mechanism (humectants, emollients, antioxidants, exfoliating acids, retinoids and UV filters) and why pH decides whether they work.
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Understanding the role of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) in drug formulations
What an API is, how it differs from the finished drug product, the GMP and DMF framework behind it, and why the global API supply chain looks the way it does.
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Cosmetics as self-esteem boosters
What the research does and does not show about cosmetics and self-esteem: the enclothed cognition findings, the social effects, and the limits worth stating.
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UV light, sunblocks and SPF
What SPF measures, why the number is not a time multiplier, and why "sunblock" is a term US labels are no longer allowed to use.
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UV-A, UV-B and UV-C: the impact of each UV band on humans
The three ultraviolet bands by wavelength: which reach the ground, which damages DNA directly, which ages skin, and why UV-C only matters near artificial sources.
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What are cosmeceuticals?
Where the term came from, why no major regulator recognises it, and what it usefully signals about a product even without legal standing.
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What are the basic components of cosmetics?
The functional building blocks of any cosmetic: surfactants, emollients, humectants, occlusives, emulsifiers, thickeners, preservatives, fragrance and pH adjusters.
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What is a cosmetic active ingredient?
The difference between an active and a functional ingredient, where the cosmetic/drug line falls, and the ingredient categories a formulator works with.
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What is good sunscreen?
Six things worth checking on a sunscreen label: broad-spectrum cover, SPF 30 or higher, water resistance, the filter list, market approval and how it feels to wear.
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Photostability of bemotrizinol and iscotrizinol ensures long-lasting sun protection
What photostability means for a UV filter, how it is measured, and the retained-absorbance figures for bemotrizinol, iscotrizinol and ethylhexyl triazone.
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Popular ingredients to enhance skin tone and reduce hyperpigmentation
The actives with evidence for hyperpigmentation (vitamin C, niacinamide, alpha arbutin, licorice, azelaic acid, retinoids), how each works and why SPF is non-negotiable.
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Specific benefits of active ingredients commonly used in cosmetics
Actives grouped by the job they do: brightening, exfoliation, antioxidant defence, hydration, barrier repair, oil control, firming and soothing.
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Understanding the role of bemotrizinol and iscotrizinol in broad-spectrum protection
How two triazine UV filters divide the work across the UV spectrum, their absorption peaks and use levels, and where each belongs in a broad-spectrum formula.
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Use sunblock on vacation for post-vacation good looks
Holidays concentrate a lot of UV into a short period. What to pack, how often to reapply, and why "sunblock" is a word that no longer appears on US labels.