Calcium stearate can often be found in spray hair styling products.
Calcium Stearate is a non-toxic white powdery substance. It is a calcium salt derived from stearic acid and widely used in cosmetics, plastics, and pharmaceuticals. This salt is used as a plasticizer, stabilizer and surfactant. It is a substance that the US Food and Drug Administration has generally recognized as safe when used as a food additive.
Most of the calcium stearate used in the United States is derived from plant material, such as palm oil, rather than animal sources.
When certain types of fatty acids are heated with an alkaline substance, the resulting salt is known as soap. Stearic acid is one of the most used components of soaps. Calcium stearate is a synthetic ingredient formed by a reaction when stearic acid and calcium oxide are heated together. It is the most important type of calcium salt, but due to its lack of solubility, it is not used much in soaps in modern times, having been replaced by synthetic water-soluble substances.
Calcium stearate is used in many cosmetics.
This substance is often found in cosmetics, especially spray hair styling products. It is also found in powders, ointments, and cosmetic packaging. Despite the very low risk of skin irritation, topical contact can cause redness, itching, and eye irritation.
Calcium stearate was first used in 1924 to improve the texture of bread dough and reduce dust levels in flour, and its unique properties have also made it useful in many non-food industries. The substance reduces friction when added to other materials, increasing flow rate and preventing agglomeration. It can also be used in gels or to add volume to cosmetic powders. In addition to its insolubility in water, it is also insoluble in acetone, ether, and cold alcohol.
Calcium stearate has several uses in the industrial bakery.
Vegetarians and vegans can avoid cosmetics that contain this salt because it can be derived from stearic acid from animal sources. Virtually everything produced in the United States is derived from stearic acid made from vegetable oils like coconut oil or palm oil, but beef tallow can sometimes be used. Other countries may obtain stearic acid from cottonseed, soybeans, or other vegetable oils.
Some countries obtain stearic acid from cottonseed oil.
Calcium stearate is responsible for the foam that forms when some soaps are used in hard water. When a soap containing sodium stearate is used in hard water, it reacts with the calcium ions in the water to form this suds. This substance is responsible for the formation of rings in bathtubs and leaves an undesirable film on the hair and skin after bathing.