Allantoin

CAS No-97-59-6

Allantoin is a white odorless powder. Other Allantoin containing compounds that may be used in cosmetics and personal care products, include the Allanotin salt of vitamin C, Allantoin Ascorbate, and the Allantoin salt of vitamin B7, Allantoin Biotin. Allantoin complexes that may be used in cosmetics and personal care products include Allantoin Galacturonic Acid, Allanotoin Polygalacturonic Acid, Allantoin Glycyrrhetinic Acid and Allantoin Panthenol. Among the Allantoin containing ingredients, Allantoin itself is most likely to be used in cosmetics and personal care products. It is used in the formulation of bath products, eye makeup, hair care products, oral hygiene products and skin care products.

• Moisturizes: Allantoin acts as an emollient that keeps your skin moisturized and prevents dryness and irritation.1

   

• Soothes skin: Allantoin has the additional functionality of being a calming agent. It soothes and protects the skin by forming complexes with irritant and sensitizing agents, according to Herrmann.
• Improves skin-healing: Herrmann says it has been noted to help soothe injured skin and promote wound healing and is often used to treat skin irritation and rashes.
• Exfoliates: Herrmann adds that allantoin is also keratolytic, which means it exfoliates dead skin cells. As explained by Shamban, it helps desquamation, the shedding of the outermost membrane or layer of tissue from the inside out.
• Hydrates: Shamban says its keratolytic property can increase the water contents of cells, therefore, fighting against the damage of transepidermal water loss (TEWL) in the dermis, which keeps the skin looking plump and youthful. “Think of it as almost the expansion of a sponge when wet, holding the maximum amount of liquid,” she says.
• Improves skin dullness: Allantoin promotes cell proliferation and supports overall “remodeling,” as Shamban puts it. “If the skin is stressed by the usual and customary list of offenders, then the skin is going to try to repair itself as opposed to having more cells turn over,” she explains. “What we want to do with the epidermis is to have it constantly exfoliating itself and having more cells be produced because that’s how you get a faster transit time of the epidermal cells. As people get older, then that transit time from the base layer of the epidermis to the top layer takes longer, and also the skin is stressed, and those are some of the causes of dull, dry skin, too. This is going to help with that cell proliferation.”
• Smoothes skin: Herrmann says removing surface dead skin cells (stratum corneum), also helps keep the skin smooth and soft.
• Rejuvenates the cells: Although it’s gentle, it can still be an effective anti-aging ingredient. “Allantoin is highly beneficial in facilitating collagen synthesis,” Shamban says. “As it stimulates the fibroblasts (cells responsible for producing collagen), it also boosts extracellular matrix synthesis, which is why it is a strong rejuvenator.”