PROPYLENE GLYCOL MONOSTEARATE

📋 Quick facts

Description: PROPYLENE GLYCOL MONOSTEARATE — EMOLLIENT, EMULSIFIER.

All Functions: EMOLLIENT, EMULSIFIER

Quick Facts:

• Category: emollient
• Comedogenic Rating: 4/5

Proven Benefits At A Glance:

• PROPYLENE GLYCOL MONOSTEARATE (PGMS) is an ingredient that can reduce ice crystal size in frozen products
• It works by interacting directly with ice crystals and interfering with how they grow
• It has some emulsifying properties, though weaker than traditional emulsifiers used in ice cream
• Research on PGMS in skincare is limited; most available studies focus on its use in frozen foods

⚗️ Chemical Overview

2-Hydroxypropyl stearate is a fatty acid ester. The CIR Expert Panel concluded that the following ingredients are safe in the present practices of use and concentration described in this safety assessment in cosmetics when formulated to be non-irritating…Propylene Glycol Stearate…

Source(s): Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR), ChEBI, via PubChem

📊 Comedogenicity

4/5

🛡️ Safety rating

Safety tier is a starting heuristic from regulatory status and comedogenic rating, not a dermatological verdict — see our Terms for the full disclaimer. Research confidence reflects how many real cited studies back this ingredient, not the strength of their findings.

🌍 Regulatory Status

💧 Skin Type Compatibility

Derived from this ingredient’s irritancy potential and comedogenicity rating against the needs of each skin type — e.g. oily and acne-prone skin are marked down for pore-clogging ingredients, sensitive skin for irritants. A starting heuristic, not a dermatological verdict.

⚠️ Don’t Combine With

📚 Research & Evidence

🔬 The Science

Propylene glycol monostearate is a compound that has been studied primarily in food science rather than skincare applications. Here’s what the research actually shows: #1: PGMS can reduce ice crystal size in frozen products when there is mechanical action during freezing (Journal of Food Science, 2008). In ice cream and frozen sugar solutions processed in a scraped-surface freezer—which involves constant stirring during freezing—PGMS at 0.3% concentration dramatically reduced ice crystal sizes. However, this effect disappeared in solutions that were simply frozen without mechanical action, suggesting the ingredient needs help being distributed evenly. #2: The mechanism appears to involve direct interaction with ice crystals themselves (Journal of Food Science, 2008).

Rather than working indirectly, PGMS appears to attach to growing ice crystals and interfere with their normal growth patterns, creating irregular crystal shapes instead of the typical organized structures. #3: PGMS has limited emulsifying ability compared to conventional emulsifiers (Journal of Food Science, 2008)—meaning it can help keep fats finely dispersed in products, but not as effectively as ingredients specifically designed for this purpose. The available research is restricted to frozen food applications. No skincare-specific studies of PGMS efficacy or safety were found in the provided abstracts, so claims about its benefits for skin would require additional research to substantiate.

📄 Related Research

Matched by search — not necessarily verified support for every statement above.

• Aleong JM et al. (2008). Ice recrystallization inhibition in ice cream by propylene glycol monostearate. J Food Sci.

🧴 Products Containing PROPYLENE GLYCOL MONOSTEARATE