The Truth About Fragrance in Skincare: Part 1

Fragrance in skincare...where to begin? It has unexpectedly become one of the hottest topics on social media among everyone from dermatologists to “skinfluencers,” brand founders, and beauty retailers. In addition to the “free-from” (think, formulated without sulfates/parabens/etc. labels) trend propelled by the clean beauty movement, there has been unprecedented focus on fragrance as an allergen and fragrance transparency. In 2007, the American Contact Dermatitis Society (ACDS) designated fragrance as “allergen of the year.” Since then, a debate has raged on fragrance in skincare, leading to tag lines such as “think before you stink.”

While the ideology of clean beauty and preference for “natural” ingredients such as essential oils has unequivocally amplified the controversy around fragrance, a science-based backlash aimed at dispelling myths from that movement has contributed to fear-mongering on fragrance in its own way. Brands like Paula’s Choice, social media influencers like Dr. Dray, and professionals have taken firm stances on fragrance in skincare. Hyram, too; his new brand ‘Selfless by Hyram’ is entirely fragrance-free.

Here’s the thing — the devil doesn’t wear fragrance, and the skincare industry isn’t out to get you because some products contain it, or the fact that companies are not legally required to share the ingredients in their “fragrance mixtures.” We’re here to set the record straight with a two-part series on fragrance in skincare. Once you know what the real deal is, you can decide for yourself whether there is yet another ingredient you need to cancel (or not). 

Let’s start with the basics...

Fragrance, which is a mix of ingredients employed for its odorous, odor-enhancing, or blending properties, has historically played an important role in the sensorial and aromatic experience of many cosmetic and personal care products. Consumer research indicates that it is one of the key factors that affect people’s preferences for cosmetics or personal care products. Not to mention fragrance can enhance our well-being and satisfy important emotional needs.

Fragrance appears in product ingredient lists as fragrance/parfum, fragrance essential oils (i.e., lavender oil), and or fragrance components (i.e., limonene, linalool, and geraniol, which are also known as aroma chemicals). Most cosmetics (which includes fine fragrance and skincare), household (cleaning products), laundry (detergents), personal care (deodorant), and lifestyle (candles) products contain some type of fragrance. There are two basic types:

• Synthetic fragrance: Synthetic aromatic raw materials are either chemically created or processed, or started as natural and have had their chemical structure modified.

• Natural fragrance: Contain natural raw materials obtained from any natural source (including plants) using distillation, expression, and extraction.  

We know what you’re thinking so let’s just get this out of the way —  the clean beauty sphere often suggests that anything synthetic is unsafe. Not only does this myth ignore the fact that most fragrances contain a combination of natural and synthetic materials, research indicates that there is no significant difference between natural and synthetic fragrances in terms of potential adverse effects on the skin. It is also important to remember that allergens are often present in combination with other irritants, which may induce a response in allergic individuals greater than exposure to any single ingredient. There are also safety guidelines for all types of fragrance ingredients with no distinction whether they are synthetic or natural. 

Formulating with fragrance 

Fragrance development is complicated. There are over 2500 ingredients to choose from and there are intricate environmental interactions that create unique aesthetic and physical properties. Factors driving the development process include chemical stability of the formula, cost, performance (i.e., on skin, hair, etc.) and translation (i.e., how well the fragrance can be used across product categories). Other factors considered in formulating with fragrance look at whether a product will be “rinse-off” or “leave-on” and the acceptable levels of fragrance for each product type. We’ll address this in more detail soon, but the International Fragrance Association (IFRA) outlines clear standards for each category as well as format (i.e., a product applied to the lips vs. a product applied to the body). 

This is important because the risk of becoming sensitized to fragrance chemicals becomes higher with exposure to high-concentration products applied to small areas of skin versus low-concentration products spread over larger areas (even if the total amount of fragrance allergen is the same). Dose-exposure is critical, and it means that fine fragrances (such as perfumes), which are highly-concentrated and applied to small areas, have significant higher potential for causing contact allergy compared to, say, your moisturizer or serum which is spread across a larger surface area. Stay tuned for more on this in Part 2. 

So — why use fragrance in skincare at all? Fragrance is most often used for aesthetic purposes (either to enhance or mask an unfavorable scent) and concentrations are quite low compared to products like perfume. Most skincare contains fragrances at less than 0.5% of the total formula, while shampoos and conditioners may contain concentrations of up to 3-4% (makeup generally does not contain fragrance, and when it does, it is often at even lower levels). 

Experienced perfumers and formulators do not arbitrarliy choose a fragrance level in a product. They determine the lowest level necessary to mask the base odor of the product or use a level just enough to provide a good sensorial experience. And contrary to the idea that fragrance doesn’t serve an important function in skincare, there are a variety of reasons for which it is used. Fragrance sells, and it sells safely — here are a few examples.

First, a unique scent might be created to match the positioning of the product (i.e., a beach product might require a fresh smell, while a nighttime product might include calming notes). Fragrances are also developed to distinguish franchises within a parent brand, in effort to craft their unique identity, which aligns with the positioning, package and end-user.

Fragrance might also be used to enhance a product’s ingredient story. For instance, if a product highlights cucumber or pineapple as a key ingredient, the formulator will aim to make it smell like that. Fragrances are also used to differentiate between men’s and women’s products and to enhance product positioning generally, such as with products marketed as “herbal/natural” (i.e., by including essential oils). Lastly, essential oils may also impart some functionality in terms of having anti-bacterial or cooling properties. To top it off — there are some very well-established products in the market that are fragranced, and even considered baby-safe, that have been used safely for decades (think, Johnson & Johnson’s baby products, Vaseline, Olay, etc.).

The point is — we’ve all purchased a product for its fragrance in some shape or form, whether we realize it or not. This could be either because it was a pleasant scent and made us feel good, connected strongly with other favorable product attributes, or simply because it masked an otherwise undesirable odor. With fragrance in skincare, it’s all about the design and intent of the formulations, using ingredients held to safety standards just like any other ingredient. 

Fragrance safety guidelines are robust

There is a wealth of scientific data and risk assessment methodologies that the fragrance industry uses to ensure safety of products with fragrance. There are two main bodies that work together to do this. The Research Institute for Fragrance Materials (RIFM) typically provides toxicology and scientific data on fragrance (and flavor) raw materials and maintains an extensive database on them. At the same time, the International Fragrance Association (IFRA) creates quantitative risk assessment (QRA) methodologies based on RIFM data. 

These methodologies take into account established benchmarks for dermal sensitization and apply something called sensitization assessment factors (SAFs) to calculate consumer exposure through product use. IFRA has also created a universal approach to safety assessment that refers to the establishment of a level of exposure for all chemicals (the Threshold of Toxicological Concern, or TTC) and something called the Cramer Classification Scheme, which organizes ingredients by level of toxicity. IFRA guidelines also address the evolving regulatory landscape (like Prop 65 and VOCs in California, as well as religious observances like Halal/Kosher). 

If you didn’t think fragrance materials were rigorously and frequently vetted enough — IFRA published its most comprehensive 49th Amendment in May 2020. The updates include a revised methodology of Quantitative Risk Assessment (QRA) for fragrance ingredients (now known as QRA2) and a new way to assess systemic toxicity based on an “aggregate exposure model.” 

Now that we’ve established some of the basics on the science of fragrance, you’ve got to be wondering — what’s all the fuss about, really? Well, it’s not exactly much ado about nothing. So, we’re digging deeper. Stay tuned for Part 2 where we will be exploring the somewhat vague FDA labeling requirements and its role in fragrance transparency, fragrance as an allergen, and the future of fragrance in skincare, so stay tuned!

Reviewed by Janice Hart & team of Bell Flavors & Fragrances.

Photo by Fulvio Ciccolo on Unsplash.