Film Forming humectants

A new category has been added to the Is it CG? database: Film Forming Humectants. These ingredients are excellent moisturizing ingredients because they form a film over the hair and resist dehydration. They differ from simple humectants like glycerin and sorbitol because they do not release the water/moisture as easily. Learn more about the science behind film forming humectants here.

There are two categories of film forming ingredients: Plant gels and Hydrolyzed proteins (source: Science-y Hair blog)

Plant gels:

• flax seed gel (linseed)
• okra gel (made from okra seed pods)
• aloe vera
• hydroxyethylcellulose
• pectin
• xanthan gum
• guar gum
• marsh mallow root
• slippery elm
• carrageenan (also known as irish moss or seaweed extract, sea emollient, sea algae, sea vegetable)
• nettle leaf tea or nettle extract
• panthenol*
• Hydroxypropyltrimonium honey

Hydrolyzed proteins:

• Hydrolyzed ________(source of protein) protein 
• Peptides (wheat, oat, soy…)
• Amino acids (wheat, oat, soy) or glycine, alanine, proline, etc.
• Cocodimonium hydroxypropyl hydrolyzed _________ (source of protein, i.e. keratin, silk, rice, soy)
• Cocoyl hydrolyzed ________ (source of protein)
• Potassium cocoyl hydrolyzed ________ (source of protein)
• Hydrolyzed oat flour

We try to capture all of the possible ingredients that fall into this category, but it can be difficult with ingredient name variations. If you notice an ingredient that should be in this category but is not, please contact us.

Products with Film Forming Humectant Ingredients