Removes dirt to leave surfaces clean or polished through rubbing/ brushing
Helps to absorb fluids like water or oil
Added to a product to improve one or more important properties
Helps bind surfaces to each other
Increases the alkalinity of the product to help in the washing away of dirt.
Helps prevent the removed dirt in washing water from reattaching to a surface
Helps to prevent the formation of lumps in the product.
Helps to relieve or control the symptoms of dandruff
Prevents excessive foam or bubbles forming when a product is used
Helps to reduce the amount of bacteria on a surface or body (part)
Helps to prevent reactions promoted by oxygen in the product, which can cause product spoilage.
Helps to reduce sweating
Helps protect against plaque
Helps control sebum production
Helps to make you hair, skin, clothes, kitchen ware or hard surfaces feel better by reducing static charge
Creates a tighter skin or scalp feeling
Helps materials to bind or stick together
Boosts the performance of bleach to make it more effective at low temperatures
Becomes a bleaching substance during washing
Ingredients from herbs, roots, flowers, fruits, leaves or seeds
Maintains the right acidity / alkalinity balance of a product
Reduces water hardness, makes cleaning products more effective
Diluant. Dilutes solids or liquids to allow for more accurate dosing
Helps to keep the body surface clean
Colours the product, your hair or skin
Provides a cool and fresh sensation
Prevents corrosion of packaging
Changes the taste of a product to prevent ingestion. Typically used in alcohol-containing products.
Helps to reduce or mask unpleasant body odours
Prevents colour rinsed out from clothes into wash water being deposited on to your other clothes during the wash
Softens and smooths the skin
Helps two or more liquids, that don't usually combine to form a single solution; often referred to as an 'emulsion'
Prevents a mixture from separating and helping to increase a product's shelf life
Boosts the cleaning properties of a product to help remove specific stains at lower temperatures e.g. fats, egg, blood.
Makes an enzyme last longer in liquid detergent
Helps a product dry faster
Helps to remove dead skin cells from the surface of your skin
Helps to soften and improve the feel of a fabric
Lubricates the fibres of fabrics to gives benefits such as helping to make ironing easier.
Helps provide a smooth, consistent coverage when applied
Helps to maintain the hold of your hair style
Improves the taste of oral or lip care products, such as tooth paste or lip balm
Provides a distinctive, pleasant smell
Gives the consistency of a gel to a liquid
Helps you to style or straighten your hair
Helps to improve the gloss, sheen and texture of your hair
Colours hair
Helps to retain water in a product, in hair or the top layers of skin
Allows cleaning agents to be uniformly dispersed within a product.
Improves the cosmetic characteristics of the nail
Makes the product appear more opaque or pearly
Provides additional brightness to the surface to which product is applied.
Helps to clean, protect or remove/cover an unpleasant smell in the mouth/teeth/gums
In laundry and household care products stains are removed by oxidation (bleaching).
Helps to give products a shimmery appearance
Makes materials more flexible and resilient
This prolongs the shelf-life of the product, even once it has been opened, protecting it from bacteria, yeasts and moulds
A secondary component/ingredient which is created when making the product
A compressed gas that helps expel product from a can
Controls the acidity / alkalinity balance of products
Changes the nature of another ingredient by adding hydrogen or removing oxygen.
Regenerates the water softener in a machine dishwasher.
Helps prevent impurities from water from causing adverse effects on product performance, appearance, or stability.
Helps to make your skin feel soft, smooth and supple.
Helps to lighten the shade of your skin
Helps to temporarily protect minor cuts, scrapes, burns or skin irritation
Helps a product spread more easily
Makes a softening agent more effective and last longer
Helps an ingredient in the product dissolve better
Dissolves substances or ingredients
Seeks to achieve an even skin surface by decreasing roughness or irregularities
Changes the characteristics of a spray; for example: makes it thicker, thinner or more foam-like
Helps maintain the stability of a product's formulation, appearance and texture
Gives a product form or shape
Helps prevent sunburn.
Changes the look and feel of an object's surface in home care products
An ingredient which helps to clean or remove dirt and oil, creating foam when used with water
Helps keep solids separated and evenly dispersed within a product
Makes products taste sweeter
Helps tablets break up so the product works faster
Darkens the skin without exposure to UV or sunlight
Produces a feeling of well-being on skin and hair
Helps to protect the product formulation from UV rays
Controls the density or thickness of a product