What we don't know is that there are "good" alcohols, and "bad" ones. In benign form alcohols are glycols used as humectants that help deliver ingredients into skin and hair. When fats and oils (see fatty acid) are chemically reduced, they become a group of less-dense alcohols called fatty alcohols that can have emollient properties or can become detergent cleansing agents.
The nasty ones have low molecular weights. These include ethanol, denatured alcohol, ethyl alcohol, methanol, benzyl alcohol, isopropyl alcohol, and sd alcohol, which not only can be extremely drying and irritating to hair and skin, but may be cytotoxic.
The safe ones:
• Cetyl Alcohol
Extracted from coconut oil, it is an emollient that is included in skin care products to stabilize the formulations or to alter their consistencies, or to increase their foaming capacity. It is often included in baby lotions, hand creams, foundation, lipsticks, shampoos, mascara, deodorants, nail polish removers etc. Although generally regarded as a low hazard, there are some studies that have demonstrated that it is an irritant.
• Stearyl Alcohol
Stearyl alcohol is also derived from coconut oil. Because it is an emollient as well as an emulsifier, it can be substituted for cetyl alcohol to firm skin care formulations. It is mostly found in creams, lubricants, depilatories and conditioners.
• Cetearyl Alcohol
Cetearyl alcohol is an emulsifying wax that is used to soften thick formulas like skin ointments. Derived from natural oils and fats, it is very efficient in stabilizing skin care formulations because it imparts an emollient feel to the skin. It can be used in water-in-oil emulsions, oil-in-water emulsions and anhydrous formulations.
Source: http://truthinaging.com/ingredient-spotlight/alcohol-in-cosmetics-is-it-safe
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