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Ingredient on hair labels

Benzophenone-4

TheWashDay editorial · Updated · From the EU ingredient register and the makers’ own labels · How we match names

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Benzophenone-4 is on 2 of the 177 hair-product labels we compare, from 2 makers. Its uses in the EU ingredient register are light stabilizer, UV absorber and UV filter. None of these labels names it among its first five ingredients.

See it on each label Products without it

What it is

In the register’s words: “Benzophenone-4 is a benzophenone derivative.”

EU register name (INCI)
BENZOPHENONE-4
CAS number
4065-45-6
EC number
223-772-2

What the register lists it for

These are the uses the European Commission’s CosIng register lists for Benzophenone-4 in any cosmetic, hair roles first. They say why a maker might add it, not what it does in one formula, and they aren’t a safety rating.

Light stabilizer

Protects the product itself from damage by light in a clear bottle.

Register definition: “Protecting the cosmetic product from deterioration effects of light.”

UV absorber

Protects the product in the bottle from UV light. It isn’t sun protection for your hair.

Register definition: “Protecting the cosmetic product from the effects of UV-light.”

UV filter

Filters UV light. EU law allows only the filters on its own list for this role.

Register definition: “Exclusively or mainly intended to protect the skin and/or hair against certain UV radiation by absorbing, reflecting or scattering UV radiation. All authorised UV filters are substances in the positive list of Annex VI to the Cosmetics Regulation 1223/2009.”

Where it sits on each label

US labels list ingredients from most to least, except that those at 1% or less may follow in any order. A name near the top is a large part of the formula. A label doesn’t mark where the 1% point falls, so further down, the order says little about how much is in it.

Every label, product by product (2)

Each line runs from the first name on a label to the last; a dot is where this ingredient sits. Makers change formulas now and then; if the list on your bottle differs, go by your bottle.

Your next step

Find products without Benzophenone-4 Check every name on your own label All ingredients on the labels we compare

Other light stabilizer ingredients on these labels

Updated · The name, numbers and uses come from the European Commission’s CosIng entry (CC BY 4.0); we write the uses in US spelling and put the hair ones first. The labels are each maker’s own. The order rule is the FDA’s Cosmetics Labeling Guide. All our sources are on the Sources page.