Ingredient register

Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate

Caution Skin irritant Cosmetics and personal care

Decode Label flags Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate as a low concern in cosmetics and personal care (skin irritant). It appears in 9 of the 893 published products we have analysed (1%).

The concern

Anionic surfactant — high-foaming and drying; harshness depends on what it is blended with

A high-foaming anionic detergent used as a primary or secondary cleanser. On its own it is comparably stripping to SLS. In a syndet bar it is usually the SECONDARY surfactant behind a mild primary such as Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, and the blend as a whole is far gentler than the raw ingredient suggests — so read it in the context of the full cleansing system rather than in isolation.

Most relevant to

People prone to allergies People with sensitive skin

Cited authority

SCCS; Ananthapadmanabhan et al., Dermatologic Therapy 2004

How common it is in this catalogue

Measured across every product Decode Label has analysed — not estimated, and not taken from anyone else's dataset.

9 of 893 published products 1%

By category

Bath & Body 7
Haircare 1
Baby & Kids 1

Identity

Also appears on labels as

Olefin Sulfonate Alpha Olefin Sulfonate AOS

Questions

Is Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate safe?

The concern is cited to SCCS; Ananthapadmanabhan et al., Dermatologic Therapy 2004. Why it is flagged: Anionic surfactant — high-foaming and drying; harshness depends on what it is blended with. Decode Label treats it as a low concern in cosmetics and personal care. It appears in 9 of the 893 published products we have analysed (1%).

How common is Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate in Indian packaged products?

Decode Label found Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate in 9 of 893 published products (1%), most often in Bath & Body, Haircare, Baby & Kids.

Who should be most careful with Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate?

People prone to allergies; People with sensitive skin.

Products containing Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate

9 published products, each with its own full analysis.

Related ingredients

Other entries in the register with the same kind of concern.

Method and limits

  • Prevalence counts published products whose decoded ingredient list matches this substance or one of its label synonyms, using the same matching the score itself uses. It describes our catalogue of 893 products, not the Indian market as a whole.
  • Presence is not dose. An ingredient list gives order, not quantity, unless the pack declares a percentage. Nothing here estimates how much of this substance any product contains.
  • A classification is not a verdict on a product. An agency classifies a substance under defined conditions of exposure; whether that matters in a given food or cosmetic depends on route, concentration and use.
  • No regulatory rows. This substance is not matched in our regulatory warehouse, so the concern above rests on the cited authority alone.
  • Last updated. This register entry was last changed on 28 September 2026.
  • Corrections. Every figure here is reproducible from the sources named. If something is wrong, tell us and we will correct it and say what changed.