It’s a moment we’ve all experienced: we turn over the bottle, read a few impossible-to-pronounce Latin words, and put the product back, none the wiser. Or worse, we buy it anyway, because the packaging is green and it says "natural" in big letters on the front.
Except that "natural," in the legal sense of the word, means absolutely nothing. No European law defines this word as applied to cosmetics. A brand can label a product "100% naturally inspired" when it contains 80% synthetic ingredients, without breaking any rules.
This is where the INCI list comes in, your best ally, provided you know how to read it. No need to be a chemist. You just need to know a few simple rules and learn to spot the traps that competitors are careful not to tell you about.
What exactly is the INCI list?
INCI stands for International Nomenclature of Cosmetic Ingredients. It is a standardized language, common to all European Union countries, which lists all ingredients present in a cosmetic product. Mandatory in Europe since 1998, this list is always found on the back or under the packaging, often in very small print.
Its basic principle is simple: ingredients are listed in descending order of concentration. What is present in the largest quantity appears first. Specifically, if your cream starts with Aqua (water), then Glycerin, then Dimethicone (a silicone), you know that the bulk of the formula consists of these three ingredients and that the natural active ingredients touted on the front of the bottle probably appear much later in the list.
The first 5 to 6 ingredients generally represent between 70 and 80% of the finished product. This is where everything happens.
The code for deciphering names: Latin or English?
The first concrete tip, the one that changes everything: the language used in the INCI list is not random.
- A name in Latin (italicized or not) designates an ingredient of natural origin. It corresponds to the botanical name of the plant. Rosa damascena = Damask rose oil. Cocos nucifera = coconut oil. Butyrospermum parkii = shea butter.
- A name in English or chemical terms most often designates a transformed or synthetic molecule. Phenoxyethanol (synthetic preservative), Dimethicone (silicone), Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (harsh surfactant) – these names have nothing plant-based about them.
This is not an absolute rule, as some natural ingredients also have English names, but it is a useful benchmark for a quick first read.
The 1% trap: the trick no one tells you about
This is probably the most important point of this article, and one of the least publicized.
The descending order rule has one major exception: below a concentration of 1%, the manufacturer is free to list ingredients in any order they wish. This means that a precious essential oil dosed at 0.002% can legally appear before a chemical preservative dosed at 0.8%.
The result? It is entirely possible — and common — to see a product featuring a star ingredient like Rosa damascena or Centella asiatica in 4th or 5th position, even though this ingredient is present in a symbolic quantity, well below the threshold of real effectiveness.
This is called INCI marketing: the glamorous ingredient is highlighted in the list, written on the label, and the trick is done. The formula is nonetheless synthetic.
Remember: a natural ingredient found after the 6th or 7th position in a long formula is likely there for appearances. It won't be what nourishes your skin.
Red flag ingredients to spot at a glance
No need to memorize hundreds of names. Here are the most common synthetic ingredient families, identifiable by their ending or name:
Silicones: recognizable by their ending in -cone, -conol, -siloxane, or -xane. Examples: Dimethicone, Cyclopentasiloxane. They give a silky texture but form an occlusive plastic film that prevents the skin from breathing. Non-biodegradable, they accumulate in aquatic environments¹.
Sulfates: Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) and Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES). Found in shampoos, shower gels, and toothpastes, these are surfactants that foam but degrade the skin barrier with prolonged use.
Parabens: anything ending in -paraben: methylparaben, propylparaben, butylparaben. These chemical preservatives are potential endocrine disruptors, identified in several scientific studies as likely to interfere with the hormonal system².
Synthetic fragrances: listed under the terms Parfum, Fragrance, or Aroma. These generic terms can mask dozens of allergenic or irritating molecules not individually declared. This is different from natural fragrances like essential oils, which are listed by name.
Denatured alcohol at the top of the list: Alcohol denat. is a powerful drying agent when it appears among the first ingredients. In small quantities and in the middle of the list, it is less problematic.
Mineral oils: Mineral Oil, Paraffinum Liquidum, Petrolatum. Derived from petrochemicals, they moisturize the surface without nourishing the skin, and their production is particularly polluting.
What the INCI list cannot tell you
Let's be honest: the INCI list is a valuable tool, but it has its limitations, and knowing them will help you go even further in your reading.
It does not reveal exact concentrations (below 1%). Two products can list the same ingredients in the same order and have radically different formulas.
It says nothing about the quality of raw materials. A Rosa damascena can come from conventional cultivation treated with pesticides or from artisanal organic distillation. In both cases, the INCI list is identical.
It does not specify the extraction method. A cold-pressed vegetable oil retains all its fatty acids and vitamins. A hot-refined oil loses most of its active properties. Same INCI name, very different efficacy.
It does not provide information on the overall organic percentage of the product. A cosmetic can contain 10% organic aloe vera and 90% conventional or synthetic ingredients — and state it without lying.
Labels: the shortcut when the list is too complex
Faced with the complexity of reading INCI, independent certifications are your second line of defense.
Cosmos Organic and Cosmos Natural (formerly Ecocert) are the benchmark European labels. Cosmos Organic requires that the product contain a minimum of 95% ingredients of natural origin and at least 20% of the total formula in certified organic ingredients (95% for plant ingredients)³. Controls are carried out by independent bodies.
Cosmébio is the French professional association that certifies according to the Cosmos standard. It brings together brands committed to transparency and traceability.
BDIH (German standard) and Natrue are also reliable labels, recognized at a European level.
Caution: the AB (Organic Farming) logo only applies to food products. Its use on a cosmetic has no regulatory value and can be misleading⁴.
One last important point: the absence of a label does not mean the product is bad. Certifications are expensive, inaccessible to many small artisan brands that were formulating naturally long before labels existed. In this case, INCI reading takes precedence — and a short composition, dominated by recognizable Latin names, remains a strong positive signal.
Tools to make your daily life easier
You don't always have time to dissect 25 ingredients on the shelf. A few tools can help you:
INCI Beauty: the reference application in France for scanning cosmetic products and getting an ingredient-by-ingredient analysis. Particularly useful for identifying controversial ones.
Yuka: very popular, but its algorithm sometimes simplifies reality. A high score is not always a guarantee of complete naturalness, and an average score can hide an overall healthy formula.
Rita Stiens' website (The Truth About Cosmetics): a dense educational resource for understanding each ingredient in detail, written by a specialized journalist.
These tools are aids, not oracles. They give you a first orientation; your discernment sharpens over time.
In practice: your 5-step checklist
Next time you pick up a product, ask yourself these five questions before buying it:
- What are the first 5 ingredients? These make up the bulk of the formula. Are they natural or synthetic?
- Are the "star" active ingredients touted on the front of the bottle well placed in the list? If they appear after the 6th position in a long list, they are present for symbolic purposes.
- Are there any visible red flags? Silicones, sulfates, parabens, fragrance/parfum, mineral oil — spot them quickly.
- Is the list short or long? A list of 8 to 12 ingredients is generally a sign of a cleaner and more transparent formula than a list of 30 components.
- Is there a certified label? Cosmos, Cosmébio, Natrue — their presence exempts you from a detailed analysis and guarantees independent control.
The INCI list doesn't lie. It's the rest — the packaging, the slogans, the forest-colored wrappers — that can lead you astray. Take the time to turn the bottle over. Your skin, and your critical thinking, will thank you.
Sources and references:
¹ Silicones and environment — European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), assessment of cyclic siloxanes, 2018. ² Parabens and endocrine disruptors — ANSES, expert report on parabens, updated 2022. ³ Cosmos Organic standard — COSMOS-standard AISBL, version 3.0, available on cosmos-standard.org. ⁴ AB label and cosmetics — INAO (National Institute of Origin and Quality), regulatory FAQ on the use of the AB logo outside of food.
To go further: the INCI Beauty app and Rita Stiens' reference website The Truth About Cosmetics.
