Actives glossary
Ceramides
One of three lipid classes in the skin barrier, and the one brands name on the front of the box.
- INCI name
- Ceramide NP
- Also called
- ceramide 3, ceramide NP, ceramide AP, ceramide EOP
- Family
- Lipid
- Range seen on labels
- Rarely published, and almost never as a ratio
- Sits well with
- niacinamide, retinol, zinc-oxide
- Needs care with
- No common conflict note
The stratum corneum’s lipid matrix is made of three classes: ceramides, cholesterol and free fatty acids. Ceramides are the largest fraction and the one with the marketable name, which is why they appear on packaging and the other two usually do not.
The ratio nobody publishes
The work on barrier repair that brands lean on is about the ratio between the three, not about ceramides alone. An incomplete mixture applied to damaged skin can slow recovery rather than help it, which is the finding that makes the ratio interesting in the first place.
Not one product in this site’s barrier ranking publishes its ratio. Several name all three classes, which is a step further than naming ceramides alone, and that difference is scored.
Reading the INCI entry
“Ceramide NP” is a specific molecule. “Plant ceramides” and various polyglycerides are not the same entry and are not interchangeable with it. A front-of-box ceramide claim backed by an INCI list with no named ceramide is a difference worth noticing.