PEG compounds
Never allowed
Polyethylene Glycol · PEG-100 Stearate · PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil · PEG-8 · PEG-12
Emulsifiers and thickeners made by reacting an alcohol with ethylene oxide.
- What it does
- Emulsifiers, Thickeners & film
- Our take
- PEGs themselves aren't especially hazardous. The problem is how they're made: ethoxylation can leave behind 1,4-dioxane, a probable human carcinogen, and ethylene oxide, a known one. Residue levels vary by supplier and are never disclosed on a label. We'd rather not depend on someone else's purification step.
- Can it clog pores
- Moderate. Some people on blemish-prone skin react to it. This flag is for the face only, it does not apply to body, hair or home care.
where we disagree
PEG-40 hydrogenated castor oil and PEG-16 lanolin are also on the acne clinics' pore-clogging lists, two unrelated bodies of evidence pointing at the same ingredient.
What we read
- IARC; US NTP · reviewed Sep 2026
Every other ingredient, with the same treatment.
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