Ingrédient · Ingrédient
Cinnamyl alcohol
A common fragrance ingredient that smells pleasant but can trigger skin allergies in some people.
Cinnamyl alcohol is a naturally occurring aromatic alcohol used to give cosmetics and perfumes a sweet, balsamic-cinnamon scent. It's one of the 26 EU-recognized fragrance allergens that must be labeled, because it's a known cause of allergic contact dermatitis in a subset of users. For most people it's harmless at normal cosmetic concentrations, but it's a well-documented sensitizer.
Affiché en anglais — la traduction arrive.
Why it matters
Cinnamyl alcohol is a fragrance chemical found naturally in cinnamon bark, balsam, and some other plants. It's added to perfumes, lotions, soaps, and other cosmetics purely for scent - it doesn't preserve or do anything functional to the product. In the body, its main relevance is to skin: it's absorbed on contact and can trigger an immune response in people who become sensitized to it. Most users never notice any effect. People with fragrance allergies or sensitive skin are the ones who should care.
Sources (3)
- 1.Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 on cosmetic products (Annex III, fragrance allergens)(eur-lex.europa.eu)
- 2.CosIng - Cinnamyl alcohol
- 3.SCCS opinions on fragrance allergens
