Active Ingredient: Dimethicone 5% ●
TL;DR. At 5%, this ingredient primarily acts as a skin protectant and film-former, creating a breathable occlusive layer that reduces water loss and improves slip. It is also used as a conditioning agent for skin and hair feel.
What does Active Ingredient: Dimethicone 5% do in a cosmetic formula?
At 5%, this ingredient primarily acts as a skin protectant and film-former, creating a breathable occlusive layer that reduces water loss and improves slip. It is also used as a conditioning agent for skin and hair feel.
Is Active Ingredient: Dimethicone 5% clean?
This ingredient is generally low-irritation and well tolerated, including in barrier-focused products. Clean-beauty friction comes from its synthetic polymer status and its presence on many restricted lists tied to environmental persistence rather than skin sensitization.
Is Active Ingredient: Dimethicone 5% sustainable?
This material is made from non-renewable or mineral-derived industrial feedstocks through energy-intensive processing. It is not readily biodegradable and can persist in wastewater and sediment, which gives it a weaker sustainability profile than biodegradable emollients or plant-derived oils.
Is Active Ingredient: Dimethicone 5% COSMOS-approved?
This ingredient is not permitted under COSMOS-natural or COSMOS-organic standards. Its fit with Green Chemistry is limited because it is not renewable, is not readily biodegradable, and requires industrial processing rather than low-impact conversion.
How does Active Ingredient: Dimethicone 5% work chemically?
The molecule is a linear organosilicon polymer with a flexible Si-O backbone and methyl side groups, which explains its low surface tension, slip, and water-repellent film formation. It is commonly used from below 1% for sensorial slip up to 1-30% as an OTC skin protectant, is broadly pH-stable, and needs appropriate emulsifiers or dispersion systems in water-based formulas.
Last updated 2026-08-20