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Ingredient on hair labels

Lauryl Lactyl Lactate

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

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Lauryl Lactyl Lactate is on 2 of the 177 hair-product labels we compare, all of them shampoos, from 2 makers. Its uses in the EU ingredient register include foam-boosting surfactant, viscosity controlling and opacifying. 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: “Propanoic Acid, 2-Hydroxy-, 2-(C10-16-Alkyloxy)-1-Methyl-2-Oxoethyl Ester.”

EU register name (INCI)
LAURYL LACTYL LACTATE
CAS number
910661-93-7
EC number
-

What the register lists it for

These are the uses the European Commission’s CosIng register lists for Lauryl Lactyl Lactate 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.

Foam-boosting surfactant

Makes a shampoo foam more or keeps the foam from collapsing. Foam on its own says nothing about how clean hair gets.

Register definition: “Increasing foaming capacity and/or stabilize foams in general.”

Viscosity controlling

Makes a product thicker or thinner, so a gel holds its shape or a shampoo pours. Gums, cellulose and some salts carry this role.

Register definition: “Increasing or decreasing the viscosity (thickness) of cosmetics.”

Opacifying

Makes a product less see-through, which is why some shampoos and conditioners look creamy.

Register definition: “Reducing transparency or translucency of cosmetics.”

Skin conditioning

The register’s broad role for ingredients that keep skin in good condition. On a hair label it often sits beside a hair role, or marks a plant oil or extract.

Register definition: “Maintaining the skin in good condition.”

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 Lauryl Lactyl Lactate Check every name on your own label All ingredients on the labels we compare

Other foam-boosting surfactant 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.