Pu
Pullulan
Pullulan
A fermented sugar that dries into a thin, flexible film — a smooth, momentarily taut feel on the skin.
What it does
A sugar-based ingredient made by fermenting starch. As it dries it forms a thin, flexible film on skin that feels smooth and briefly tight, and it can hold other ingredients in place.
The evidence, graded
expert consensusUS safety reviewers (2016) assessed 34 polysaccharide gums made by microbes; their index lists biosaccharide gum-1, dextran, sclerotium gum and pullulan under that report, and its conclusion list names dehydroxanthan gum, made by dehydrating xanthan gum. They say these gums are used in cosmetics to form films, bind, thicken, steady emulsions and condition skin. Having reviewed animal and clinical data, they judged all 34 safe as used.Fiume 2016 · International Journal of Toxicology ↗
Graded per the methodology: strong · moderate · emerging · expert consensus. A weak source on a strong claim gets the weaker label.
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