The ingredient, explained

Eugenol

A published expert safety assessment covers the exact ingredient in the specified exposure context.

DenaturantPerfumingTonic

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Ingredient guide

What it is and what it does

Phenol, 2-methoxy-4--2-propenyl--

About this ingredient: EU CosIng ingredient registry (via Open Beauty Facts taxonomy) ↗

Denaturant: Makes a product unpalatable, often in alcohol-containing formulas.
Perfuming: A formulation role for perfume and aromatic raw materials that give a product its scent.
Tonic: Provides a pleasant sensation on skin or hair.

Function definitions: European Commission ingredient function definitions (SCCNFP/0299/00, pages 16 to 20) ↗ · Danish Environmental Protection Agency: Cosmetic fragrance functions ↗

Registry functions describe possible formulation roles, not results for a finished product. A dictionary entry is not an approval or a safety assessment.

A closer look

What the research shows

Safety assessment

RIFM assessment supported eugenol use under the fragrance exposure conditions assessed.

What this does not tell us

Fragrance safety assessment includes suitable-analog reproductive read-across and sensitization assessment, not antibacterial clinical efficacy or universal allergy tolerance. A 2022 update is indexed but its substantive findings were not accessible in the bounded abstract review.

Sources for this summary. PubMed 26702986 ↗

Research review checked Oct 1, 2026

Bounded review of local candidates, exact-name indexed primary journal/PubMed safety and topical searches; not a systematic review.

Ingredient research is not proof that a product containing this ingredient works.

Read the 1 selected study

Safety assessment
RIFM fragrance ingredient safety assessment, Eugenol, CAS Registry Number 97-53-0. ↗
Food and chemical toxicology : an international journal published for the British Industrial Biological Research Association · 2016

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