BIO - TERMS - COSMETIC INGREDIENTS TB Flashcards
Acrylic resin
Resins composed of polymers or copolymers of acrylic and methacrylic acids.
Active ingredient
Active ingredients are substances that are the main pharmacologic components in medicines that function to treat a specific condition. Active ingredients added to shampoos for patients with dandruff and psoriasis include tar, selenium, zinc, ketoconazole, and steroids.
Amphoteric surfactant
Detergents that behave as cationic agents at lower pH and anionic agents at higher pH are very mild and are often used with anionic surfactants to form a complex, reducing the tendency for the anionic to adsorb onto hair; betaines, sultaines, and imidazolinium derivatives.
Anionic surfactant
Detergents with a negatively charged polar group are outstanding cleansing agents that produce rich lather; ammonium and sodium lauryl sulfates and ammonium and sodium laureth sulfates.
Bimodal acrylic
Newer resin copolymer composed of two different acrylic molecules, one with anionic and the other one with cationic functionalities. These have good affinity for the hair surface and are easily washed out.
Block copolymer
Linear heteropolymers composed of homopolymer “blocks” of different monomers.
Bodying agents and thickeners
Improve thickness and creaminess of the formulation. This is usually achieved by using salt, fatty alcohols, waxes, or gums. Gums have the advantage of acting as foam stabilizers and suspending agents able to keep insoluble particles like pigments or zinc pyrithione in suspension.
Bridging agent
Added to enhance adsorption of hydrophobic ingredients like silicones to damaged (hydrophilic) hair.
Cationic conditioning polymer
Modified “quats” with many positively charged quaternized fatty acid groups per molecule and improved rinsability.
Cationic surfactant
Detergents with a positively charged polar group increase the ease of combing and reduces static electricity but are relatively poor detergents and do not lather well; amino esters, long chain amino acids, and quaternary ammonium compounds.
Conditioning polymer
Polymers designed to deposit, adhere, or adsorb to the surface of the hair to improve combability. Most often these are polyquaterniums, cationic conditioning polymers, protein hydrosylates, emollients, silicones, and film forming resins. These are found in conditioning shampoos, conditioners, and some hair fixatives.
Cosurfactant
Secondary detergent in a shampoo or conditioner. Often added to the primary detergent to improve conditioning, enhance foam production, and improve viscosity.
Emollient
Natural or synthetic oils, esters, waxes, and silicones that spread onto hair leaving transparent, water-repelling films; includes argan, coconut, jojoba, olive, or grapeseed oils, and silicones.
Emulsifier
An ingredient that when added to a combination of two unblendable substances allows them to become stable in their blended state.
Foaming agent
Introduces gas bubbles into water and cause shampoo to form suds, which spread the detergent over the scalp and hair. This does not enhance the cleansing of the hair. This may be achieved by the primary surfactant but also by the addition of gums (guar or xanthan) or modified fatty acids.
Fragrance
Impart a pleasing odor and mask the odor of other ingredients. These may be essential oils or artificial fragrances.
Long chain fatty alcohol
High-molecular-weight, straight-chain primary alcohols originally derived from naturally occurring wax esters, as in sperm whale oil, jojoba oil, rapeseed, and mustard seed. These are now prepared from petroleum products. As nonionic surfactants, they are creamy and are often used as conditioners, emulsifiers, emollients, and thickeners; cetyl alcohol, lauryl alcohol, stearyl alcohol.
Natural polymer
Proteins like collagen, keratin, silk, as well as polysaccharides like chitin, cellulose, pectin, xanthum gum, hyaluronic acids, and guar gum.
Nonionic surfactant
Detergents with no polar group are the second most popular group of detergents behind the anionic surfactants. They are very mild and are often combined with anionics or amphoterics for very mild shampoos; polyoxyethylene fatty alcohols, polyoxyethylene sorbitol esters, and alkanolamides.
PH adjuster
Most shampoo systems are alkaline, leading to swelling of the cuticle and increased friction. The addition of a mild acid (citric or glycolic) is designed to alter pH usually to 3.5–4.5.
Polyquaterniums or “quats”
Hydrophobic and positively charged quaternized copolymers with various oily “tails” (coconut oil, castor oil, canola oil, or others). As the most important active ingredients in hair conditioners, these are substantive and resistant to rinsing, but may leave the hair lank and greasy; polyquaterniums 1–47. Also found in hair fixative gels to maintain style in high humidity.
Preservative
Protect against bacterial contamination and are vital in any product made with water. These are usually organic compounds with acidic properties; parabens and urea derivatives.
Primary surfactant
Principal detergent (usually in a shampoo).
Quaternary ammonium
Positively charged molecule with a central ammonium (N+) with four hydrophobic chemical groups attached.
Resin
Sticky natural or synthetic film-forming polymers used in hair fixatives to enhance cohesion.
Sequestering agent
Prevents film on the hair and chelates magnesium and calcium ions so that other salts or insoluble soaps are not formed; polyphosphates and ethylenediamineetetraacetic acid.
Short chain alcohol
Low molecular weight alcohols used mostly as solvents. These are flammable, volatile, and quickly evaporate; ethanol, SD alcohol, SD alcohol 40, isopropyl alcohol, propyl alcohol, and alcohol denat.
Silicone
Versatile polymers derived from sand and silicon-containing minerals used as conditioners, pearlizers, thickeners, foamers, to reduce irritation from surfactants, and non-ionic emulsifiers to help to incorporate sunscreens, fragrances, proteins, pigments, and natural waxes into hair products. Due to hydrophobic nature, these work best with healthy or only mildly damaged hair.
Sorption
The process by which one substance becomes attached to the hair via adsorption, ion exchange, and/or absorption; depends on the charge of the substance, its molecular size, the pH of the hair, the amount of sebum and soil on the surface of the hair, the pH of the medium, ingredients already adsorbed to the hair fiber, duration of contact, temperature, and other components in the formulation.
Substantivity
Persistence of a topically applied substance; determined by the degree of physical and chemical bonding to the surface of the hair and resistance to removal.
Sunscreen
UV absorbers are added for products with clear packaging.
Surfactant
A blended word from the base words “surface acting agent”; usually organic detergents that contain lipophilic (oil attracting) and hydrophilic (water attracting) agents allowing the compound to combine with free lipids and soil and wash them away.
Synthetic polymer
Commonly used petroleum based viscosity modifiers, humectants, emulsifiers, surfactants, and preservatives; polyethylene glycols and acrylic acids.
Visual effect
Improved by coloring agents like D&C or FD&C.
