All of our ingredients play a key role in making products that are 100% gentle for your baby's sensitive skin, hair, and eyes.
It's important for you to know exactly what's in the products you're choosing for your little one, so we made an ingredient glossary just for you.
Our Promise
For over 100 years, we've dedicated ourselves to understanding babies and the special nurturing that their eyes, skin, and hair require. This requires constant research, upgradation, and innovation as new information in constantly brought to light.
We use our knowledge to provide mothers with safe, clinically proven mild, and 100% gentle care products. Our products engage the senses and, when used with baby’s routines can help evoke positive emotions and ultimately enhance the loving bond between a mother and her baby.
But we don't stop there. We listen – to every concern, every thought, every apprehension expressed about our products. We monitor feedback and also conduct real-world evaluations with moms and healthcare professionals.
You’ve told us that the trust you have in JOHNSON’S® products means going beyond the testing — that it’s more than science measuring the safety of our products. It's a responsibility we take seriously as we continue to apply our knowledge and research to bring you safe, innovative products that live up to our pure, mild, and 100% gentle care promise.
Innovation
We aim to progress with – if not before – the times when it comes to research and product innovation. In this day and age, we are constantly trying to update, and improve on existing product formulations, so your baby’s protection is never compromised.
While we are proud to be the first major organization to set and meet a public commitment, we also promise to continue making further enhancements to our baby products in step or ahead of evolving needs of parents so as to bring 100% gentle care for babies always.
After all, as a parent, you're committed to providing the very best care for your baby. And so are we.
Johnson's® continues to raise its Best For Baby™ standards to better meet the changing needs of babies, preferences of parents and to be gentler on the environment.
JOHNSON'S® reformulated to have fewer, essential
ingredients which brings 100% gentle care for your baby
ngredients | Some Common Consumer Perceptions/Questions | Clinical Evidence in JOHNSON’S Products | Actions |
Sulfates – Cleansing Agent | Is it mild enough for baby skin? | Demonstrated safety profile | Removed based on preference of consumers |
Dye – Colorant | Can artificial ingredients be harmful to baby? | Demonstrated safety profile | Removed based on preference of consumers* |
Phenoxyethanol – Preservative | Can it be irritating to baby skin? | Demonstrated safety profile | Kept − without preservatives there is a much greater risk of microbial contamination |
Fragrance | Can it cause rashes or an allergic reaction on baby skin? | Demonstrated safety profile | JOHNSON’S formulas were already free of known allergens, but we pushed further, keeping potential and an expanding list of allergens out of our formulas ** |
*Global - Except some bar soaps, most colognes and some toddler washes.
**List of fragrance allergens as identified by the Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety of the European Commission. 2012.
After all, we are here because children, yours and ours, are our top priority. So, please do not hesitate to contact us in case of any query. Here’s to their happy, healthy development!
To get things started, here are a few questions we have received recently.
Q: What are essential oils and are they okay to use on my baby?
A: An essential oil is a thick liquid that contains the base aroma of a plant. It is used as a fragrance in many consumer products. While essential oils are natural and may sometimes be safe for adults, they also contain allergens and can be irritants to baby’s skin, so they don’t pass JOHNSON’S® safety requirements or testing. JOHNSON’S® does not support the use of essential oils in baby products.
Q: I noticed that some of the natural baby care products I was looking at in the store were different colors and sort of different textures, too. Why is that?
A: What you’re talking about is “shelf life” and it’s important because sometimes a shampoo or baby wash can sit at a store for a few weeks before you take it home and use it. The products that look separated, appear discolored, or have an unusual odor generally indicate an unwanted or unexpected ingredient interaction. Why take the risk? We do not recommend that you use them on your baby.
Q: I assume if something costs more it must be better and have better ingredients. Is this true?
A: Unfortunately, cost does not necessarily mean that a product has better or safer ingredients. At JOHNSON’S®, we believe in charging fair prices to continue to make safe products available for all moms and babies.
What questions do you have? Submit your questions here & we will get back to you with the answer.
Each of the ingredients in JOHNSON’S® products is included for a specific purpose. We use the legally required INCI (International Nomenclature of Cosmetic Ingredients) nomenclature to describe each ingredient on the label, but we realize they’re not all household names. If you’re curious about what each ingredient does or why it’s included, take a look at our color coded ingredient list.
Ingredient Glossary
Yellow – helps cleanse skin and/or hair
Blue – PROVIDES FRAGRANCE TO MAKE THAT UNIQUE JOHNSON'S BABY SCENT
Green – helps maintain product thickness
Red – adds moisture to skin and hair
Dark Blue – helps maintain product freshness
Gold – helps adjust ph levels
Pink – helps keep the product mixed together
Grey – helps absorb moisture
Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Carbomer
Cetearyl Alcohol
Cetyl Alcohol
Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Extract
Citric Acid
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Coco-Glucoside
Cocoglycerides
Copper Gluconate
Decyl Glucoside
Dimethicone
Ethylhexylglycerin
Fragrance/Parfum
Glycerin
Glyceryl Oleate
Glyceryl Polyacrylate
Glyceryl Stearate
Glycol Distearate
Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride
Honey
Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides
Hydrolyzed Rice Bran Protein
Isopropyl Palmitate
Lauryl Glucoside
Magnesium Aluminum Silicate
Magnesium Aspartate
Mineral Oil
p-Anisic Acid
Panthenol
PEG-150 Distearate
PEG-150 Pentaerythrityl Tetrastearate
PEG-80 Sorbitan Laurate
Phenoxyethanol
Polysorbate 20
Potassium Cetyl Phosphate
PPG-2 Hydroxyethyl Cocamide
Silk Amino Acids
Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate
Sodium Benzoate
Sodium Chloride
Sodium Citrate
Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate
Sodium Hydroxide
Sodium Palm Kernelate
Sodium Palmate
Stearic Acid
Stearyl Alcohol
Talc
Tetrasodium EDTA
Tocopheryl Acetate (Vitamin E)
Water
Wheat Protein
Xanthan Gum
Zea Mays (Corn) Starch
Zinc Gluconate
Think of preservatives as ingredients that prevent spoilage—just like with some foods, we need them to help keep products fresh, preventing mold or bacteria from growing in them. In fact, without some type of preservative system, you’d have to throw away your product after only a few weeks to prevent it from getting moldy or risk bacterial infection.
JOHNSON’S® takes a lot of care in figuring out the best way to preserve our products so they stay safe. There are lots of preservatives approved for use by regulatory agencies worldwide (estimated more than 60), but only a small number meet all of our strict requirements for babies.
Every preservative ingredient we use must pass a five-level safety assurance process as well as the JOHNSON’S® BEST FOR BABY Standard for safety. When selecting preservatives, we also adhere to other safety steps, including:
Ongoing review of the most up-to-date research and available data on preservative ingredients
Identifying potential factors that may have an impact on the effectiveness and safety of the product's use, including how it will be used and where it will be stored
Evaluating all suppliers of our ingredients to ensure they conform to our high standards for quality and safety.
Moms around the world trust JOHNSON’S® to care for their babies
We are committed to working with moms, healthcare experts and scientists to ensure our products continue achieving the highest standards in safety, quality and care.
Learn how love and science come together to make every JOHNSON’S® product better for your baby
