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Ingredient on hair labels

PEG-150 Distearate

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

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PEG-150 Distearate is on 6 of the 177 hair-product labels we compare, all of them shampoos, from 6 makers. Its uses in the EU ingredient register are emulsifying surfactant, cleansing surfactant and viscosity controlling. 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: “Poly(oxy-1,2-ethanediyl), .alpha.-(1-oxooctadecyl)-.omega.-[(1-oxooctadecyl)oxy]- (150 mol EO average molar ratio).”

EU register name (INCI)
PEG-150 DISTEARATE
CAS number
9005-08-7
EC number
-

What the register lists it for

These are the uses the European Commission’s CosIng register lists for PEG-150 Distearate 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.

Emulsifying surfactant

Lets oil and water mix into one cream or lotion and stay mixed. Conditioners and creams rely on them.

Register definition: “Helping suspensions or dispersions of liquids in a second liquid by reducing the surface tension of the substances to be emulsified.”

Cleansing surfactant

The washing ingredients: they let water lift oil, product and dirt off hair and scalp. Shampoos list them near the top; some conditioners hold a little.

Register definition: “Wetting body surfaces, emulsifying or solubilizing oils, and suspending soil (generally, such ingredients contribute to the foaming and lathering properties of cleansing products).”

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.”

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 (6)

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 PEG-150 Distearate Check every name on your own label All ingredients on the labels we compare

Other emulsifying 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.