Skincare ingredients can turn a simple trip down the beauty aisle into a weird little trust exercise.
The front label promises gentle, clean, and calming results. Then you flip the bottle over, and the ingredient list looks like it belongs in a chemistry lab.
You don’t want to fall for slick marketing, but you don’t want to overreact either. You stand there trying to decide: Is this a good product or a skin disaster waiting to happen?
Let’s temper the confusion. The good news is that you don’t have to decode every ingredient on that list. If you learn a small set of skincare ingredients to avoid and a few to look for, you can make cleaner, safer choices fast.
In this guide, we’ll keep it simple. You’ll learn five ingredient categories that tend to cause the most trouble, and five that are usually supportive and calming, especially for sensitive or reactive skin. That’s eight total. Knowing these will take you a long way toward choosing products you feel genuinely good about using.
Note: At CV Skinlabs, we know ingredients matter. We are well-known for our high standards of safety, quality and efficacy. Every ingredient in our formulas has been screened by a toxicologist to make sure they are free of any links to health issues, hormone disruption, irritants, or allergens, to provide truly safe, nourishing formulas that really work.
The Troublesome Skincare Ingredients: What to Avoid
Step 1: Skincare Ingredients to be Cautious With—Fragrance and Parfum
On labels, “fragrance” or “parfum” sounds harmless, but it can be a mix of many chemicals. Brands usually don’t have to list every ingredient in that blend for proprietary reasons, which means you won’t know exactly what you’re putting on your skin.
Fragrance is also one of the most common triggers for irritation and allergic reactions, especially if your skin is already stressed, dry, or sensitive. If you deal with redness, stinging, or random flare-ups, fragrance-free products are often a safer bet.
Phthalates are a group of chemicals sometimes used to help fragrances “stick” and last longer. Sometimes you’ll see one named directly (like DEP), but sometimes you won’t because it can be bundled into that one vague word, “fragrance.”
If your goal is cleaner products with fewer question marks, this is one reason fragrance-free skincare can be easier to shop for. You’re reducing a whole category of hidden extras in one move.
(Even some essential oils can be problematic, potentially irritating the skin. Some might even have the potential to mimic the action of estrogen. All CV Skinlabs products are fragrance-free and use only non-hormone altering plant extracts that may impart a light scent.)
Step 2: Skincare Ingredients to Avoid—Formaldehyde and Formaldehyde-Releasing Preservatives
Formaldehyde is a known irritant and allergen. In skin care, you might not see formaldehyde written plainly, but you may see preservatives that release small amounts of overtime. People with sensitive, reactive skin should avoid these because they can trigger irritation.
Common examples include DMDM hydantoin, quaternium-15, diazolidinyl urea, and imidazolidinyl urea. The FDA also warns about hair smoothing products that can release formaldehyde when heated, which shows how important this category can be.
Step 3: Skincare Ingredients to Minimize—PFAS “Forever Chemicals”
PFAS are sometimes used to create a smoother feel, longer wear, or water resistance, especially in long-wear makeup. They can appear in other beauty products too. These are often called “forever chemicals” because they don’t break down easily in the environment. If you’re trying to choose cleaner products overall, many people feel more comfortable minimizing PFAS when possible.
On labels, PFAS may show up as PTFE or ingredients with “perfluoro-”or “polyfluoro-”in their name
Step 4: Skincare Ingredients to Watch For—Parabens
Parabens are preservatives that have been used in beauty products for decades to keep them from growing bacteria and mold. They show up on ingredient lists with names like methylparaben, propylparaben, and butylparaben.
So what’s the problem? Research has shown that parabens can mimic estrogen in your body, which means they can mess with your hormones. Studies have even found parabens in breast tissue samples, raising concerns about their long-term safety. While the beauty industry insists that small amounts are safe, many people prefer to avoid them altogether, especially since there are perfectly good alternatives available.
The good news is that CV Skinlabs products are completely non-toxic and paraben-free, so you never have to worry about these questionable preservatives sneaking into your routine.
Step 5: Skincare Ingredients to Avoid—Sulfates
You know that satisfying lather you get from your shampoo or face wash? There’s a good chance sulfates are responsible for it. Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) and sodium laureth sulfate (SLES) are harsh detergents that strip away oil and dirt, but they often strip away too much.
While sulfates aren’t necessarily dangerous in the same way as some ingredients are, they can really irritate your skin, especially if it’s already sensitive or dry. They can damage the protective barrier, leading to redness, dryness, and even breakouts. For people dealing with conditions like eczema or rosacea, sulfates can make things significantly worse.
The good news is that gentler cleansers work just as well without the harsh side effects. Look for products from conscientious brands that care about their ingredients.
The Hero Ingredients: What to Look For
Now for the other half: the skincare ingredients that are usually a good sign, especially when your skin is sensitive, irritated, or easily inflamed.
Step 6: Skincare Ingredients to Look For—Glycerin for Steady Hydration
Glycerin is one of the most reliable hydrating ingredients out there. It pulls water into the skin and helps keep it there, which supports softness and comfort without feeling greasy. It’s a “quiet hero” ingredient: not trendy but extremely useful.
You’ll find glycerin and many gentle formulas, including all CV Skinlabs products. Try our Rescue + Relief Spray, where it supports hydration alongside other common ingredients.
Step 7: Skincare Ingredients to Look For—Ceramides for a Stronger Skin Barrier
If your skin feels tight after cleansing, stings when you apply products, or gets irritated easily, your skin barrier may need support. This is the outer layer of your skin that usually helps keep moisture in and irritants out. But over time it can become cracked and leaky, which increases the risk of irritation and redness.
Ceramides are fats (lipids) that help hold your skin barrier together and prevent moisture loss. When a product includes ceramides, it’s often designed to help your skin recover and stay resilient. On ingredient labels, you might see ceramide NP, ceramide AP, or ceramide EOP. Each of CV Skinlabs’ moisturizers contains ceramides to help repair and rebuild the skin barrier.
Step 8: Skincare Ingredients to Look For—Beta-Glucan, an Underrated Star
This is one of the under the radar ingredients that deserves way more attention. Beta-glucan is a natural sugar molecule derived from sources like oats or mushrooms, and it’s absolutely amazing for calming irritated skin.
What makes this ingredient so beneficial? It has strong anti-inflammatory properties, which means it can reduce redness and soothe angry skin. It also helps boost your skin’s natural healing processes and strengthens your skin barrier.
Beta-Glucan is actually considered more hydrating than hyaluronic acid because it can hold more moisture and can penetrate deeper into the skin, providing long-term hydration and barrier repair.
For people dealing with conditions like eczema, psoriasis, or skin that’s been damaged by medical treatments, beta-glucan can make a real difference.
CV Skinlabs’ products include beta-glucan specifically because of these calming and healing properties. It’s a perfect example of a clean ingredient that delivers real results.
Step 9: Skincare Ingredients to Look For—Soothing Helpers Like Oat and Bisabolol
When skin is stressed, certain soothing ingredients can make a big difference in how it feels day today. Colloidal oatmeal and oat extracts are commonly used to calm and comfort. Bisabolol (often associated with chamomile) is also widely used for calming.
This is one reason CV Skinlabs products are a good fit for sensitive or compromised skin. Their proprietary Tri-Rescue Complex highlights ingredients like turmeric, alpha-bisabolol, and reishi mushroom, and is included in the entire product line.
Step 10: Skincare Ingredients to Look For—Natural Oils
When your skin needs moisture, natural plant oils can be incredibly effective. And unlike mineral oil or petroleum-based ingredients, they actually nourish your skin with vitamins and fatty acids.
CV Skinlabs formulas all include many natural plant oils. Jojoba oil is particularly interesting because it’s very similar to your skin’s natural sebum (skin oil), which means it absorbs easily without clogging pores. Argan oil is packed with vitamin E and essential fatty acids that help repair damage and fight signs of aging. Rosehip oil contains vitamins A and C, which brighten skin and encourage cell turnover.
The key is finding products that use high-quality, cold-pressed oils that haven’t been stripped of their beneficial properties. These oils work with your skin instead of just sitting on top of it, providing real nourishment that synthetic ingredients can’t match.
Bonus Step: Ingredients to Look For—Antioxidants
Think of antioxidants as your skin’s personal bodyguards. They protect your skin cells from damage caused by free radicals, which are unstable molecules created by things like UV radiation, pollution, and stress.
Without antioxidants, free radicals can break down collagen, create dark spots, and speed up the aging process. Vitamin C is a powerhouse antioxidant that brightens skin, evens out tone, and boosts collagen production. Vitamin E works alongside it to strengthen your skin barrier and provide deep moisturization. When these two team up in a formula, they’re even more effective than they are alone.
CV Skinlabs incorporates powerful antioxidants throughout its product line to help protect and repair skin, especially for those whose skin has been compromised by medical treatments or environmental damage.
Final Takeaway: Keep Your List Short and Your Choices Confident
You don’t have to know what every ingredient is on an ingredient label. When you focus on a few high impact red flags—like fragrance, phthalates, formaldehyde releasers, PFAS, and parabens—and you start looking for a few steady green flags—like glycerin, ceramides, Bisabolol, and soothing ingredients like beta glucan—you’ve already made the ingredient list dramatically less confusing.
Which ingredients make you want to leave a product behind?
Featured image by RDNE Stock project via Pexels.
