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NIVEA Creme ingredients: is it worth it?
This is a basic, old-school occlusive moisturizer that hydrates well but does not do much beyond that.
This is a basic, old-school occlusive moisturizer that hydrates well but does not do much beyond that.
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The efficacy score is driven by a strong barrier-sealing base of mineral oil, waxes, lanolin alcohol, and emollient esters, plus useful humectants like glycerin and panthenol, but it loses points because the formula is fragrance-heavy and contains no meaningful treatment actives or modern barrier-lipid blend.
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DemythSkin rates NIVEA Creme 3.6/5 for efficacy and 3.3/5 for safety.
CONTAINS COMMON SENSITISERS⌄
Fragrance components and essential oils that more often cause reactions in sensitive skin: Limonene, Geraniol, Hydroxycitronellal, Linalool, Citronellol, Benzyl Benzoate, Cinnamyl Alcohol, Parfum. Most people tolerate them; patch test if your skin reacts easily.
ACTIVE INGREDIENTS BY TIER
Gold Standards
High clinical proof | Skin-transformativeReliable
Proven resultsPotent
Developing evidenceOverhyped | Marketing
Hype | Limited dataDocumented Irritants
Evidence-backed flagFORMULATION BASE (2)⌄
FULL INGREDIENT LIST⌄
Aqua, Paraffinum Liquidum, Cera Microcristallina, Glycerin, Lanolin Alcohol (Eucerit), Paraffin, Panthenol, Magnesium Sulfate, Decyl Oleate, Octyldodecanol, Aluminum Stearates, Citric Acid, Magnesium Stearate, Limonene, Geraniol, Hydroxycitronellal, Linalool, Citronellol, Benzyl Benzoate, Cinnamyl Alcohol, Parfum
WHAT EACH INGREDIENT DOES (21)⌄
- Aqua
- solvent / water base
- Paraffinum Liquidum
- occlusive emollient
- Cera Microcristallina
- texture thickener
- Glycerin
- humectant
- Lanolin Alcohol (Eucerit)
- emollient / emulsifier
- Paraffin
- occlusive wax
- Panthenol
- soothing humectant
- Magnesium Sulfate
- viscosity modifier
- Decyl Oleate
- emollient ester
- Octyldodecanol
- emollient solvent
- Aluminum Stearates
- thickening agent
- Citric Acid
- pH adjuster
- Magnesium Stearate
- texture enhancer
- Limonene
- fragrance component
- Geraniol
- fragrance component
- Hydroxycitronellal
- fragrance component
- Linalool
- fragrance component
- Citronellol
- fragrance component
- Benzyl Benzoate
- fragrance component
- Cinnamyl Alcohol
- fragrance component
- Parfum
- fragrance blend
EXTERNAL CITATIONS
Glycerin: Well-established humectant that increases stratum corneum hydration.
Panthenol: Supported in topical use for moisturizing and soothing benefits.
Paraffinum Liquidum: Occlusive mineral oil reduces transepidermal water loss effectively.
DISCLAIMER: THIS ANALYSIS IS FOR INFORMATION ONLY. NOT MEDICAL ADVICE. AI-GENERATED DATA BASED ON PUBLICLY AVAILABLE INGREDIENT LISTS. VERIFY WITH A MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL.
NIVEA Creme: common questions
Is NIVEA Creme worth it?
NIVEA Creme scores 3.6 out of 5.0 for efficacy (Modest) and 3.3 out of 5.0 for safety (Some Risk) on DemythSkin's independent ingredient analysis. This is a basic, old-school occlusive moisturizer that hydrates well but does not do much beyond that.
What are the key active ingredients in NIVEA Creme?
NIVEA Creme contains no gold-standard actives. Its formula is built on supporting and base ingredients rather than clinically transformative actives.
Does NIVEA Creme contain fragrance or known irritants?
DemythSkin flags these ingredients in NIVEA Creme as documented irritants: Lanolin Alcohol (Eucerit), Limonene, Geraniol, Hydroxycitronellal, Linalool, Citronellol, Benzyl Benzoate, Cinnamyl Alcohol, Parfum. This product does contain fragrance.
How is NIVEA Creme scored?
DemythSkin grades every product on two independent scores: efficacy (whether the ingredients have clinical evidence of working) and safety (irritation and sensitisation risk). Ingredients are graded S through D against a database of over 3,000 compounds. Brand and price are not part of the score, and no brand pays for one.
Free scores for every product in the database, or see them on Sephora, Ulta and Amazon with the Chrome extension.