STEARYL ALCOHOL

📋 Quick facts

Description: STEARYL ALCOHOL — fatty alcohol — emollient, thickener, emulsion stabilizer.

All Functions: fatty alcohol — emollient, thickener, emulsion stabilizer

Quick Facts:

• Category: emollient
• Comedogenic Rating: 2/5

Proven Benefits At A Glance:

• Stearyl alcohol is a widely used ingredient in cosmetics and topical medications
• In animal studies, stearyl alcohol showed potential to reduce psoriasis-like skin inflammation
• Allergic contact dermatitis to stearyl alcohol is rare but has been documented in clinical cases
• Stearyl alcohol can be used as a lipid component in delivery systems for skincare actives

⚗️ Chemical Overview

Octadecan-1-ol is a long-chain primary fatty alcohol consisting of a hydroxy function at C-1 of an unbranched saturated chain of 18 carbon atoms. It has a role as a plant metabolite, a human metabolite and an algal metabolite. It is an octadecanol and a long-chain primary fatty alcohol. stearyl alcohol has been reported in Camellia sinensis, Apis, and other organisms with data available. See also: Lipotox (FDA NDC: 43857-0636) (component of); Chemstat (FDA NDC: 44911-0556) (component of); Moringa oleifera leaf oil (part of) … View More …

Source(s): LOTUS – the natural products occurrence database, ChEBI, PubChem, via PubChem

📊 Comedogenicity

2/5

🛡️ 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

Stearyl alcohol is a common excipient—a supporting ingredient—found in many skincare and topical medication formulations. Here’s what the research shows:

#1: Anti-inflammatory potential in psoriasis models. In a 2024 study published in Basic Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology, stearyl alcohol (at 20% concentration in vaseline) significantly reduced psoriasis-like skin inflammation in mice exposed to an inflammatory trigger. The treatment lowered disease severity scores and reduced epidermal thickening. Notably, the effect was dose-dependent, meaning lower concentrations (1%, 5%, 10%) also showed benefits, though the higher dose was more effective. Interestingly, similar ingredients like hexadecanol, stearic acid, and plain vaseline did not produce the same effect, suggesting stearyl alcohol’s specific molecular structure matters.

However, this research was conducted in mice, so translation to human skin requires further study. #2: Delivery system application. A 2021 study in the Journal of Basic Clinical Physiology and Pharmacology explored stearyl alcohol as a lipid carrier for delivering coenzyme Q10 into skin. The ingredient helped create stable nanoparticles smaller than 1,000 nanometers—tiny enough to potentially penetrate skin layers. While tristearin (another lipid) performed somewhat better in this particular formulation, stearyl alcohol showed comparable skin penetration depths, suggesting it can serve as a functional component in advanced skincare delivery systems. #3: Rare allergic risk. A 2022 report in the Journal of Dermatology documented seven cases of allergic contact dermatitis caused by stearyl alcohol in topical products between 2013 and 2019.

The authors emphasize that while stearyl alcohol is generally regarded as safe, it’s important to recognize it can occasionally trigger allergic reactions—especially since it’s found in numerous products. The sources note this is rare but warrants patch testing when investigating reactions to topical medications.

📄 Related Research

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

• Dai YH et al. (2024). Effect of stearyl alcohol on imiquimod-induced psoriasis-like skin inflammation in mice. Basic Clin Pharmacol Toxicol.
• Aryani NLD et al. (2021). Development, characterization, molecular docking, and in vivo skin penetration of coenzyme Q10 nanostructured lipid carriers using tristearin and stearyl alcohol for dermal delivery. J Basic Clin Physiol Pharmacol.
• Nishioka K et al. (2022). Seven cases of contact dermatitis due to stearyl alcohol contained in topical medications. J Dermatol.
• Yesudian PD et al. (2001). Allergic contact dermatitis from stearyl alcohol in Efudix cream. Contact Dermatitis.
• Shore RN et al. (1974). Contact dermatitis from stearyl alcohol and propylene glycol in fluocinonide cream. Arch Dermatol.

🧴 Products Containing STEARYL ALCOHOL

• Nivea Lait corps sous la douche nourissant
• Nivea Body Beruhigende After Shave Creme for women, Mit Panthenol
• BRYNILD GRUPPEN AS Nivea Men Body & Face Cream 150ml
• Nivea Sun kids Lait protecteur Protect & Sensitive
• Nivea Baby sun Crème solaire très haute protection FPS 50+
• Nivea crème solaire visage nivea
• Nivea Sun Kids Lait Protecteur Format Voyage
• Nivea Sun Protect & Moisture, SPF15
• Palmers
• AgeDefy, P&G, Pantène, Pantène Pro-V, Pantène Pro-V Expert Collection, Pantène Pro-V expert, Procter & Gamble AgeDefy soin après-shampoing
• Wella Ultimate Repair Mask
• Nivea, Nivea Sun Protect & Moisture solkrem, SPF30
• Nivea sun NIVEA Sun Protect & Hydrate Pocket Size SPF30 Zonnebrandcrème
• Nivea sun Protection Solaire Visage UV FPS30 Hydratante
• Alterra Naturkosmetik Deocreme Bio-Sheabutter
• Skintec Advance Incorporated KERATIN plus Gold
• Hair System by Watsons Micellar Botanical Purifying Shampoo
• John Frieda FRIZZ esse Traumlocken
• Santé Verte Nature & care permanent colour chocolate
• epimax
• Wild Wild natural deodorant refill
• Procter & Gamble Norge AS Hårkur 3 minute Miracle 225 ml
• L’OREAL NORGE AS Preferance 4.15 Caracas
• L’OREAL NORGE AS Excellence 10 Ekstra Lys Blond
• L’OREAL NORGE AS Excellence 9 Meget Lys Blond
• Ryana, Verona Precious argan oil Cerise noir
• Rexona Invisible Aqua
• PROCTER & GAMBLE NORGE AS Aussie Hårkur 3 min. Miracle Reconstructor 75ml
• V. V LOVE SHINING LOVE BODY LOTION PACK
• BRYNILD GRUPPEN AS Nivea Q10 Day & Night Cream Gavepakke
• Head & Shoulders 2 en 1 suave y manejable
• Renova Bálsamo Humectante
• Dody’s Crema con avena
• Sun Look Protect SF30
• PROCTER & GAMBLE NORGE AS King C Gillette Beard Balm 100ml
• Lubridem
• Body lotion
• Shampoo
• Unilever, Dove Powder soft anti perspirant
• Nivea Men NIVEA Men Active Energy Hydraterende Dagcrème