Ingredient glossary
Sodium Lactate
On your shelf ✓What Sodium Lactate does for your skin, who it suits, and what to watch for.
INCI: Sodium Lactate
In short: Sodium Lactate delivers hydration and pH buffer, suits most skin types, and the evidence behind it is moderate. One thing to know: needs the right pH to work.
- What it does
- Hydration, pH buffer
- Best for
- Most skin types
- Watch out
- Needs the right pH to work
- Evidence
- Moderate
- How long
- Straight away
how it was measured
Measured on Corneometer stratum corneum hydration; on contact, by mechanism.
The molecule
The two pieces are meant to be apart. Sodium Lactate is a salt, and its parts are held to each other by opposite charges rather than by a bond.
The Glow take
Genuinely worth a spot in your routine.
When your goal is deep, lasting hydration, Sodium Lactate pulls genuine weight, with a solid amount of evidence behind it. It only performs at the right pH, so it is worth buying from brands that get the formulation details right.
— Maya
What it does
- hydration
- pH buffer
moderate evidenceStudies on natural moisturizing factor components support sodium lactate as an effective water-binding agent that enhances hydration at modest levels.
Why we say this
- CIR safety review 40th Anniversary Overview and Rereview Summaries From 2011 to 2015
- CIR safety review Final Report on the Safety Assessment of Glycolic Acid and related ingredients
On a label: usually effective at 1-5%.
The niacinamide-class active family, at a glance
14 niacinamide-class active entries in the base, Sodium Lactate among them. 13 of the 14 are a humectant.
- Urea60 Da
- Glycine75 Da
- Alanine89 Da
- Serine105 Da
- Sodium Lactate112 Da
- Proline115 Da
- Valine117 Da
- Threonine119 Da
- Isoleucine131 Da
- Aspartic Acid133 Da
- Sodium PCA151 Da
- Histidine155 Da
- Phenylalanine165 Da
- Arginine174 Da
Who it's for, and who should skip it
Tends to suit
- dry
- dehydrated
- all
Approach with care
- very sensitive if high pH
- Clogs poresLow
- Irritation riskLow
- pH-dependentIts effect depends on the product's pH
How it fits each skin type
- DrySuits
- CombinationSuits
- OilySuits
- SensitiveSuits
Take extra care if any of these apply to you: very sensitive (if the formula is high pH).
Where it fits in your routine
This one works on contact — there is nothing to wait for.
What that covers, and what it does not
- Measured on: Corneometer stratum corneum hydration.
- Lactate is a native component of natural moisturising factor and one of the more strongly water-binding small solutes in the stratum corneum, so added sodium lactate raises surface hydration from the application itself; the bucket is a physics call, since no vehicle-controlled single-ingredient trial reports the onset.
- A caution against borrowing evidence: the well-known 3-week barrier and ceramide-synthesis findings for 4% L-lactic acid (Rawlings et al., Archives of Dermatological Research, 1996) were obtained with the free acid at low pH, which is a different molecule state from neutral-pH sodium lactate, and that result does not transfer to this row.
- The pH-buffer function is an in-bottle job with no skin outcome at all.
Mechanism plus the NMF composition literature. Rawlings et al., Arch Dermatol Res 1996, lactic acid isomers and stratum corneum ceramides, cited only as a non-transferable contrast (no PMID quoted).
Plays well with
- humectants
- emollients
Sodium Lactate, answered
Is Sodium Lactate safe during pregnancy?
Yes. Sodium Lactate is considered safe to use during pregnancy and breastfeeding. As with anything, if you are unsure it is worth a quick word with your doctor or midwife.
Who should avoid Sodium Lactate?
Approach Sodium Lactate with care if any of these apply to you: very sensitive (if the formula is high pH).
What concentration of Sodium Lactate actually works?
Sodium Lactate tends to do its job in the 1 to 5% range. Much lower and it is likely underdosed.
This, for every label you own
One ingredient is easy. A full label is where it gets confusing. The Ingredient Decoder reads any product and tells you the honest truth, ingredient by ingredient.
Sources & how we reviewed this
- CIR safety review 40th Anniversary Overview and Rereview Summaries From 2011 to 2015summary page only, the document itself was not read
- CIR safety review Final Report on the Safety Assessment of Glycolic Acid and related ingredientssummary page only, the document itself was not read