QUESTIONS
ABOUT NIVEA?
GENERAL
Cosmetic testing on animals has been banned in the EU since 2004 – and all ingredients in these products since 2013. At NIVEA, we’re convinced that animal testing is unnecessary to prove how effective and tolerable our cosmetic products are on your skin. With more than 35 years of experience, we are among the global leaders in the development and application of alternative test methods. Back in 1992, our skin researchers developed one of the world’s first officially approved tests without animal testing.
NIVEA aims to abolish animal testing for cosmetic products around the globe. That’s why we support various international working groups, for example by sharing our scientific insights. We’re also working to convince authorities in China and other parts of the world who still require animal testing for specific cosmetic products that it is unnecessary, and we’re urging them to officially approve alternatives to animal testing.
For many people, animal‑derived ingredients don’t reflect the values of living in harmony with animals. That’s why they look for alternatives, such as plant‑based and vegan skin care products. We can confirm that the glycerin used in our products is vegetable‑based and comes exclusively from plants (rapeseed, sunflower, certified palm oil) and we don’t use any egg‑based ingredients.
While most ingredients used in our products are synthetic or plant‑derived (non‑animal sources), there are a handful of ingredients that are animal‑derived. As such, we don’t claim that all our products are Halal / vegan‑friendly. However, our entire Naturally Good product range consists of vegan formulations, 100% free of animal‑derived ingredients. If you’d like us to check a specific product for you, please reach out to our NIVEA Consumer Interaction Team on 00800 49 40 1911*
While most ingredients used in our products are synthetic or plant‑derived (non‑animal sources), there are a handful of ingredients that are animal‑derived. As such, we don’t claim that all our products are Halal / vegan‑friendly. However, our entire Naturally Good product range consists of vegan formulations, 100% free of animal‑derived ingredients. If you’d like us to check a specific product for you, please reach out to our NIVEA Consumer Interaction Team on 00800 49 40 1911*
NIVEA offers a variety of vegan products, so you can easily choose vegan skin care if that’s important to you. Our entire Naturally Good product range consists of vegan formulations, 100% free of animal‑derived ingredients.
The term “nuts” is very broad, but we can confirm that we don’t actively use ingredients such as hazelnut, walnut or peanut in any of our cosmetic products. However, because we use high‑quality oils, we can’t guarantee that they won’t contain traces of any of these nuts. So, although the purification during manufacture of these oils makes the risk of any nut protein in the finished product very low, it could still be a possibility.
The list of ingredients on our product packaging gives people with nut allergies the opportunity to check if the product contains substances that they may be sensitive or allergic to before they buy. This is made easier using uniform names across Europe. Ingredients of botanical origin are listed by their Latin name. A dictionary has been prepared by an international committee (INCI: International Nomenclature of Cosmetic Ingredients) that all manufacturers of cosmetic products are obliged to use. When a diagnosis has been confirmed by a medical professional, a list of these INCI names is generally given to the patient to reference against any products they are considering purchasing. Please refer to the ingredients on the product packaging or our ‘List of Ingredients’ section on each www.nivea.co.uk product page. Alternatively, you can contact our NIVEA Consumer Interaction Careline on 00800 49 40 1911* for further advice.
The list of ingredients on our product packaging gives people with nut allergies the opportunity to check if the product contains substances that they may be sensitive or allergic to before they buy. This is made easier using uniform names across Europe. Ingredients of botanical origin are listed by their Latin name. A dictionary has been prepared by an international committee (INCI: International Nomenclature of Cosmetic Ingredients) that all manufacturers of cosmetic products are obliged to use. When a diagnosis has been confirmed by a medical professional, a list of these INCI names is generally given to the patient to reference against any products they are considering purchasing. Please refer to the ingredients on the product packaging or our ‘List of Ingredients’ section on each www.nivea.co.uk product page. Alternatively, you can contact our NIVEA Consumer Interaction Careline on 00800 49 40 1911* for further advice.
While we don’t actively use any gluten ingredients in our products, the absence of gluten isn’t a special parameter that we check our raw materials for. As gluten is not excluded from our raw material specifications, it’s possible that there may be slight traces of gluten in some ingredients. If you have coeliac disease or a severe gluten allergy, we’d recommend that you speak to your GP or dermatologist, who is best placed to advise you on suitable products for your skin.
All our cosmetic products have been evaluated for safety and skin compatibility before they are introduced into the market, as required by our company policy and European law. This evaluation takes into account that most cosmetic products are used by female consumers. Therefore, all our products are considered safe for pregnant and breastfeeding women.
If a cosmetic product is to be used on the breast area, we’d recommend not using it directly before breastfeeding, but instead after breastfeeding, to avoid uptake of the cosmetic product by the baby. All our cosmetic skin care products are made to care for the skin and maintain its healthy look, but they are not designed to be ingested. As such, oral uptake of cosmetic products by babies during breastfeeding should be avoided.
As personal health circumstances vary, if you have any particular concerns about using cosmetic and toiletry products while you’re pregnant or breastfeeding, we recommend that you seek further guidance from your GP or midwife, who is better placed to provide individual advice for you.
If a cosmetic product is to be used on the breast area, we’d recommend not using it directly before breastfeeding, but instead after breastfeeding, to avoid uptake of the cosmetic product by the baby. All our cosmetic skin care products are made to care for the skin and maintain its healthy look, but they are not designed to be ingested. As such, oral uptake of cosmetic products by babies during breastfeeding should be avoided.
As personal health circumstances vary, if you have any particular concerns about using cosmetic and toiletry products while you’re pregnant or breastfeeding, we recommend that you seek further guidance from your GP or midwife, who is better placed to provide individual advice for you.
The quality, effectiveness and compatibility of NIVEA products have been held in high regard by consumers for 100 years. All products undergo evaluation by human volunteers, which is carried out within our company’s research department or by independent research institutes. The tests are overseen by a dermatologist or doctor, who examines the results before a product can be approved. However, it’s not possible for any manufacturer to totally prevent the possibility of an allergic reaction, which can be caused by individual sensitivity to one or more of the ingredients.
Although our products comply with all safety regulations set by the European Cosmetic Directive, we’re unfortunately unable to guarantee that our products will suit everyone, as everyone’s skin is unique and behaves in different ways. To begin with, we’d advise you to seek medical advice from your GP or pharmacist, who will be able to diagnose an adverse reaction and suggest any appropriate medication. Only a dermatologist can accurately determine the cause of an adverse skin reaction, though, and your GP will be able to refer you to a dermatologist if required.
Once referred, a dermatologist would apply the finished product to your skin. If a positive reaction is experienced, a second test is done with the single ingredients of the product, to determine the specific cause (ingredient or ingredients) of the skin reaction. Once this is diagnosed, you’ll then be able to identify whether any product contains any ingredient you’re sensitive to in future. This will help you choose compatible products and avoid any further adverse reactions.
Once referred, a dermatologist would apply the finished product to your skin. If a positive reaction is experienced, a second test is done with the single ingredients of the product, to determine the specific cause (ingredient or ingredients) of the skin reaction. Once this is diagnosed, you’ll then be able to identify whether any product contains any ingredient you’re sensitive to in future. This will help you choose compatible products and avoid any further adverse reactions.
The list of ingredients is detailed on the container or packaging of all our products. If you need a list of NIVEA product ingredients, please refer to the ‘List of Ingredients’ section on each www.nivea.com product page or contact our NIVEA Consumer Interaction Careline on 00800 49 40 1911*.
*Calls to this international Freephone number are free from a UK landline. Calls from a mobile phone may be subject to charges by your service provider.
The list of ingredients gives people with allergies the opportunity to check if the product contains substances that they may be sensitive to before they buy. This is made easier by using uniform names across Europe. Ingredients of botanical origin are listed by their Latin name. A dictionary has been prepared by an international committee (INCI: International Nomenclature of Cosmetic Ingredients) that all manufacturers of cosmetic products are obliged to use. The highest‑percentage ingredient is listed first. The other ingredients are listed in descending order, with colours listed last by their C.I. (colour index) number.
All NIVEA products have a proven unopened shelf life of at least 30 months from the date of manufacture unless they carry a specific expiry or use‑by date. The Period After Opening (PAO) is denoted by a symbol that looks like an open jar and a number followed by M for months. This indicates the advised period of use after first opening, for example 24M / 12M (24 / 12 months).
All NIVEA products have a proven unopened shelf life of at least 30 months from the date of manufacture unless they carry a specific expiry or use‑by date. Exposure to heat and light may, over time, lead to some instability of the basic structure of the product. Our advice would be to discard any old products that look grainy, watery or discoloured, or if the odour has changed.
For all NIVEA products, we guarantee an unopened shelf life of at least 30 months from the date of manufacture unless they carry a specific expiry or use‑by date. Although the products will not be harmful after this date of expiration, active ingredients may become less effective. For this reason, we advise you to replace any unused products after the expiration date, or if the product looks or smells different from usual.
To ensure skin compatibility, all our cosmetic products are tested on human volunteers. These tests are performed under the supervision of a dermatologist. The claim “dermatologically tested” means that the skin compatibility of the product has been substantiated by such a test.
The ingredients we use must be provably effective and at the same time tolerable for you and for the environment. This is checked during extensive studies and tests. Most of the ingredients in our products will biodegrade (for example detergents), at least slowly (such as paraffins). Silicones and inorganic compounds such as titanium dioxide or talc are of course not biodegradable. However, silicones are subject to chemical degradation.
In chemistry there is a group of substances with the general name “alcohols”. Their physical states range from liquid to solid, with very different properties. When “alcohol‑free” or ‘no alcohol’ is stated on a product, this refers to ethyl alcohol, ethanol or alcohol denat. Ethyl alcohol is also the alcohol in alcoholic drinks. In cosmetic products, ethyl alcohol has a refreshing and invigorating effect but can be over‑drying for certain people who are particularly sensitive. In the list of ingredients on the packaging, ethyl alcohol is listed as “alcohol” or “alcohol, denat”. The aliphatic alcohols (for example cetearyl alcohol or lanolin alcohol) are solid substances that don’t have this drying effect. They are used, for example, as emulsifying agents with a nourishing effect, which give the product the required consistency.
It’s thanks to preservatives that face and body creams don’t need to be stored in the fridge. Without preservatives, products would spoil within a very short period of time. Microorganisms such as bacteria and mould, which generally get into the product through contact with our skin and spread easily in aqueous cosmetics, are the cause of this. The result: products become contaminated, they lose their effective properties, and in a worst‑case scenario, sensitive skin reactions may be experienced. Preservatives hinder the spoiling of cosmetic products and in consequence help protect your skin. By using preservatives, NIVEA can ensure that the quality of its products is preserved for a longer period of time.
In accordance with the European Directive 76/211/EEC, we always ensure that the quantity named on the packaging can be extracted from the packaging. If the packaging doesn’t allow for all contents to be removed from the bottle, we overfill to some degree to ensure that you receive the quantity stated on the packaging.
With pump bottles, a small space is required between the bottom of the pump and the bottle to aid dispensing. With this packaging design, even more residue might remain in the pump bottle compared to regular bottles. Apart from ensuring that you can extract the quantity stated on the bottle, the cap can also be screwed off in most cases so that all contents can be taken from the bottle. The same trick can be used for other products in regular bottles (lotion, shower gel etc.), so you really get the most out of your NIVEA products.
With pump bottles, a small space is required between the bottom of the pump and the bottle to aid dispensing. With this packaging design, even more residue might remain in the pump bottle compared to regular bottles. Apart from ensuring that you can extract the quantity stated on the bottle, the cap can also be screwed off in most cases so that all contents can be taken from the bottle. The same trick can be used for other products in regular bottles (lotion, shower gel etc.), so you really get the most out of your NIVEA products.
The name NIVEA is derived from the Latin word “nix, nivis”, which means “white as snow”, inspired by the pure white NIVEA Creme.
Our advertising campaigns are planned for the long term and models are chosen in advance by our various agencies. So if you’d like to model for NIVEA, we’d recommend that you contact a reputable modelling agency that specialises in managing models and can add you to their books.
* Calls to this international Freephone number are free from a UK landline. Calls from a mobile phone may be subject to charges by your service provider.
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