Moisturizers are cosmetic preparations used for protecting, moisturizing, and lubricating the skin. They are used to add moisture to the skin, reduce skin dryness, scaling, and relieve skin symptoms such as itch. Moisturizers can be in the form of lotions, creams, ointments, bath oils, or soap substitutes. The three main groups of moisturizer ingredients are occlusive agents, emollients, and humectants.
Occlusive agents create a physical, protective film on the skin that keeps water in. Examples include petroleum jelly, oils like mineral oil or coconut oil, and waxes like beeswax.
Emollients contain oily substances such as lanolin, glyceryl stearate, and soy sterols that soften and smooth skin by filling cracks in the skins outermost layer. Other popular emollients include cetyl alcohol, cetearyl alcohol, cocoa butter, isopropyl myristate, isopropyl palmitate, lanolin, liquid paraffin, polyethylene glycols, shea butter, silicone oils, stearic acid, stearyl alcohol, and castor oil.
Humectants modify the rate of water loss and include ingredients like glycerin, urea, and alpha-hydroxy acids.
Moisturizers may also contain other ingredients such as surfactants (cleansers), fragrances, preservatives, antioxidants, ceramides, emulsifiers, penetration enhancers, and solvents. Some products are marketed as having anti-wrinkle and skin enhancement effects.
However, some moisturizer ingredients can actually harm the skin. For example, fragrances, synthetic dyes, and parabens are ingredients to avoid. It is important to read the ingredients list on different products and look for moisturizers marketed for "dry skin" specifically.
