Natural water-based thickeners

Pure natural and nearly natural cosmetics managed to see growth in the German Market in 2018, whereas the development of traditional cosmetics was characterised by stagnation. Only facial masks managed to drive growth in facial care.

The success of natural cosmetics does not mean to say, however, that formulating these products is easy.
Obtaining a thickening effect in water-based natural products is a challenge. The need to formulate without synthetic polymers or sulphate-based surfactants leads to the search for new, high-performance, natural rheology agents for natural cosmetics. Thickeners can have a significant impact on product stability, efficacy, suspension properties and skin feel. Tolerance of electrolytes, high/low pH values and ethanol need to be considered, as well as the transparency of gels and rinse-off products, the use level, the workability (hot or cold), and the rheological profile. Shear-thinning flow characteristics and thixotropy are favourable.  
Industry expert George Deckner stated in 2018: “In general, the best water-based thickener to use in a formulation is the most efficient one, since levels greater than 0.5 % in leave-on formulations can result in poor skin feel”*. He recommended using the best-in-class products and to combine thickeners with different functionalities, thus combining soluble and swellable polymers.

About 877 thickeners and stabilisers with a natural origin are listed in the ingredients database of In-Cosmetics 2019. Many of these are oil-binding additives, co-emulsifiers or secondary surfactants. With our selection of commercial ingredients, we are featuring different groups of water-based thickeners.