An ester of lactic acid with fatty alcohols, used as a foam booster, opacifier and skin-conditioning ingredient.
What it is
Lauryl lactyl lactate is an ester of lactyl lactate (a lactic acid dimer) with C10–16 fatty alcohols. CosIng lists it as a foam-boosting surfactant and an opacifying, skin-conditioning and viscosity-controlling ingredient.
Where it is used
Found in shower gels, shampoos, facial cleansers and creams.
Limits of interpretation
The INCI list shows which ingredients are present, not how much of each. Above 1%, ingredients are listed in descending order of weight; below 1% the order is free.
The alkyl part covers a range of chain lengths, so the raw material is not a single compound.
Functions
- Surfactant – foam boosting
- Increasing foaming capacity and/or stabilize foams in general.
- Opacifying
- Reducing transparency or translucency of cosmetics.
- Skin conditioning
- Maintaining the skin in good condition.
- Viscosity controlling
- Increasing or decreasing the viscosity (thickness) of cosmetics.
EU regulation
This ingredient is not listed in the annexes of Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 in the CosIng data.