About SkinDetekt

Why I Built This

A close family member of mine spent years reacting to cosmetic products without ever knowing which specific ingredient was to blame. She tried elimination diets of products, patch testing, dermatologist visits — the process was exhausting, expensive, and often inconclusive. At the end of it, she still didn't have a clear answer.

I'm a software engineer. When I looked at the problem, I saw a data problem: she was using many products simultaneously, reacting inconsistently, and had no systematic way to correlate products with reactions over time. No existing app solved this. They told you whether an ingredient was generally considered risky — but not whether it was causing her reactions specifically.

SkinDetekt is what I built to fix that.

The Problem with Existing Tools

Apps like Yuka and Think Dirty are useful for general ingredient awareness, but they answer a different question: "Is this ingredient bad in general?" That's not the same as "Is this ingredient causing my reactions?" Cosmetic allergies are highly individual — an ingredient that triggers severe contact dermatitis in one person may be perfectly safe for another.

The gold standard for identifying personal triggers is a dermatologist patch test, which tests ~80 known allergens. But patch testing is expensive, not always accessible, and still doesn't account for the full ingredient list of every product you use daily. SkinDetekt is designed to work alongside professional testing — helping you track, correlate, and narrow down suspects so your dermatologist visits are more productive.

How the Data Works

The ingredient safety database behind SkinDetekt is built from several authoritative sources:

• EU Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS) — The European Commission's scientific body that evaluates cosmetic ingredient safety. Their opinions form the basis of EU Cosmetics Regulation.
• American Contact Dermatitis Society (ACDS) — Publishes patch test series data and the annual "Allergen of the Year" designation based on clinical prevalence.
• Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR) — The US industry's independent safety assessment program, which has reviewed over 4,000 ingredients since 1976.
• Published patch testing studies — Peer-reviewed literature from journals including Contact Dermatitis (Wiley) and the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.

Risk levels, allergen classifications, and cross-reaction data are assigned based on the consensus of these sources. Where sources disagree, we note the uncertainty.

What SkinDetekt Is — and Isn't

SkinDetekt is an educational and tracking tool. The ingredient information on this site is research-based, but it is not medical advice. If you are experiencing severe or persistent skin reactions, please consult a board-certified dermatologist. We are a tool to help you prepare for those conversations — not replace them.

Free Tools

• Ingredient Checker — Paste any ingredient list to flag allergens and irritants instantly.
• 500+ Ingredient Database — Browse safety profiles with cross-reactions, EU status, and safer alternatives.
• Allergen Categories — Explore by allergen type: preservatives, fragrances, metals, UV filters, and more.
• iOS App — Track products, log reactions, and let AI surface your personal triggers.

Contact

Questions, corrections, or feedback? Reach us at support@skindetekt.com or visit our support page.