Roll Call

“Carbomer?”Here!

EmulsifierThickenerSynthetic

Appears in 2 scanned products.

In personal care

A synthetic polymer made from acrylic acid, used in powder or liquid form that swells into a clear gel when mixed with water and neutralized.

Why it’s used

It thickens liquids, stabilizes emulsions, and gives gels their characteristic smooth, non-greasy texture.

What the evidence says

We haven’t found a source for this one that you can open and check, so we’re not summarizing the evidence.

Look it up yourself

We would rather point you at the shelf than summarize something you can’t check. These are the same places we search:

  • PubChem — what the substance is, chemically — names, synonyms and structure
  • PubMed — every paper indexed by the US National Library of Medicine that names it

These are starting points, not our findings — we haven’t run them for you. A substance whose name is also an ordinary word (“Heart”, “Alanine”, “Water”) will return papers that are not about the ingredient at all.

Rumors

  1. Carbomer is a toxic, petroleum-derived ingredient whose manufacture creates toxic by-products.

    Not gradedhealth and sourcing evidence

    Sources cited — no verdict reached.

    What was measured is not yet noted.

    Who’s saying this

    • Kahina Giving Beauty — a brand: sells argan oil-based skin and body care
      How we know who this is
      • “Kahina Giving Beauty was born with the mission to connect women across the world through a shared beauty ritual.” (their page)
      • “What started with argan oil, has since grown into a complete skin and body care line.” (their page)

  2. Carbomer is hazardous to the aquatic environment.

    Supports — suggestivehealth and safety evidence

    Measured as an outcome.

    Who’s saying this

    • Beat the Microbead — an advocacy group: campaign against microbead pollution in personal care products; started by the Plastic Soup Foundation
      How we know who this is
      • “Since the beginning of Beat the Microbead campaign, 19 countries have taken steps to ban microbeads.” (their page)
      • “The Beat the Microbead campaign was init i ated by the Plastic Soup Foundation i n 2012 to bring on the map the issue of microbead pollution through personal care products.” (their page)

  3. Carbomer is gentle and non-irritating, suitable for sensitive skin.

    We haven’t found evidence strong enough to support this or rule it out.

    What was measured is not yet noted.

    Who’s saying this

    • Nuebiome — a brand: sells probiotic/bioferment skincare
      How we know who this is
      • “Nuebiome has created a triple bioferment medley of pre-, pro-, and post-biotics to calm dry and overwashed hands.” (their page)

  4. Carbomer can be contaminated with benzene.

    Sources cited — check not cleared.

    What was measured is not yet noted.

    Who’s saying this

    • Medical News Today — a publisher: health information; trademark of Healthline Media, an RVO Health company
      How we know who this is
      • “The Medical News Today team is committed to bringing you accurate, trustworthy, and unbiased health information.” (their page)
      • “Healthline Media is an RVO Health Company.” (their page)

  5. Carbomer is a microplastic ingredient in cosmetics and personal care products.

    Sources cited — check not cleared.

    What was measured is not yet noted.

    Who’s saying this

    • Beat the Microbead — an advocacy group: campaign against microbead pollution in personal care products; started by the Plastic Soup Foundation
      How we know who this is
      • “Since the beginning of Beat the Microbead campaign, 19 countries have taken steps to ban microbeads.” (their page)
      • “The Beat the Microbead campaign was init i ated by the Plastic Soup Foundation i n 2012 to bring on the map the issue of microbead pollution through personal care products.” (their page)

Where it shows up