Dermatologically tested, clinically proven, chemical-free: decoding skin care claims
Some of these phrases describe a test. Some describe a feeling. Almost none describe a result you can rely on.
Cosmetic labels in India fall under the Cosmetics Rules, 2020, which set out what must appear on a carton and require that claims not go beyond what is permitted without approval. Within that frame there is still a great deal of room for language that sounds like evidence and is not.
The claim-by-claim version
| Claim | What it usually means | Weight to give it |
|---|---|---|
| Dermatologically tested | A dermatologist supervised a skin tolerance test | Small. It speaks to irritation, not to benefit |
| Clinically proven | Some study was run; size, design and endpoint unstated | Depends entirely on details the pack rarely gives |
| Hypoallergenic | Formulated to reduce allergy risk; no mandatory standard | Low, unless it is also fragrance-free |
| Non-comedogenic | Intended not to clog pores; no required test | Low. Your own skin is the only real test |
| Fragrance-free | No fragrance added | High, if you react to fragrance |
| Unscented | May contain a masking fragrance | Not the same as fragrance-free |
| Chemical-free | Nothing. Water is a chemical | None |
| Natural / organic | Sourcing claim, not a safety or efficacy claim | Low for efficacy; check the ingredients list |
| Paraben-free, sulfate-free | Those ingredient families are absent | Useful only if you specifically avoid them |
Percentages and the games played with them
A stated percentage is more useful than a claim word - but read where it applies. Ten per cent of a complex, of an extract blend, or of a solution containing the active is not ten per cent of the active. The same goes for made with, enriched with and infused with, all of which are statements about presence rather than quantity.
Cross-check against the ingredients list. A claimed 10 per cent active listed after the preservative is not present at 10 per cent, and that inconsistency is the single most reliable tell in the category.
Before-and-after photographs are not evidence. Lighting, angle, expression, makeup and camera processing produce most cosmetic transformations you see online, and none of them are disclosed in the caption.
Claims that cross a line
A cosmetic cleanses, beautifies, perfumes or alters appearance. A product claiming to treat a disease is making a drug claim, which is a different regulatory category with different requirements.
So a cream promising to cure eczema, treat psoriasis or eliminate fungal infection is either mislabelled or contains something that belongs on a prescription. Advertising in this territory also runs into the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954, which is the law behind the long-running restrictions on fairness advertising.
A four-question test at the shelf
- What is the active, and at what concentration? No answer means no comparison is possible.
- Where does it sit in the ingredients list, relative to the preservatives?
- What does the claim actually assert - absence, presence, a test, or a result?
- Does the carton carry manufacturer or importer details, batch number, manufacturing date and net quantity, as required?
Four questions, thirty seconds, and most of the marketing in the aisle stops being persuasive. That is roughly the same job a product score does on a listing page - turning a set of claims back into a set of comparable numbers.
Every score on Filtizy is shown working
The factors, weights and thresholds behind a product's number are published in full - including the ones we consider weak.
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