Hand creams are among the most popular cosmetic products. In addition to helping improve skin texture and replace lost moisture, they also effectively protect against harmful environmental effects. Their nourishing and soothing effects contribute to a healthy appearance of the hands, which is especially noticeable in colder months when the skin needs extra protection and care due to external factors. The most common issue we face is dry and sensitive skin on the hands. It is important to choose a cream that meets the needs of the skin type. Besides proper selection, safety is also crucial, especially when the skin is already damaged. The purpose of this thesis was to review the ingredients in hand creams and assess their safety. We included both certified and non-certified products in our review, so we were also interested in the differences between them. We analyzed a total of 81 hand creams, which we categorized into four groups based on skin type and certification status, and then compared them. The first group consisted of non-certified creams for dry skin, the second group included certified creams for dry skin, the third group was for non-certified sensitive skin creams, and the fourth group was for certified sensitive skin creams. Among these, we reviewed 41 non-certified hand creams, of which 21 were intended for dry skin and 20 for sensitive skin. The remaining 40 certified creams were evenly divided, with 20 for dry skin and 20 for sensitive skin. Despite finding a comparable number of certified and non-certified products, we found that physical stores still offer a greater selection of non-certified hand creams. In determining the safety of the selected creams, we paid special attention to potentially allergenic substances such as dyes, fragrances, and preservatives. The most common fragrance was linalool (49,4 %), the most frequent dye was CI 14700 (Red 4) (2,5 %), and the most common preservative was phenoxyethanol (32,1 %). Certified products have a narrower range of fragrances, dyes, and preservatives, as these must be mostly of natural origin or present in smaller concentrations. Nevertheless, we found that they usually contain similar ingredients to non-certified creams. In reviewing the toxicological data, we found that all the used ingredients are safe at recommended concentrations. Based on our results, we can say that hand creams are safe for use, although the possibility of allergic reactions in individuals cannot be excluded. We also found that certified products are not a guarantee that their ingridients won't cause hypersensitive reactions, but only confirm that they mostly contain natural ingredients.
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