Ceramide np
Also known as Ceramide 3, N-stearoyl phytosphingosine, N-(1,3,4-trihydroxyoctadecyl)stearamide
“CIR Expert Panel says: safe as used in cosmetics.”
Ceramide NP (N-stearoyl phytosphingosine; formerly Ceramide 3; CAS 178436-06-1) is a naturally-occurring skin lipid used as a skin-conditioning emollient and barrier-repair active. The CIR Expert Panel concluded it safe for cosmetic use in its March 2015 Final Report. Choi and Lee (Food Chem Toxicol 2015, PMID 26206496) performed a margin-of-safety analysis across cosmetic product types and confirmed no safety concerns at concentrations below 1% and assessed lipsticks with up to 10% as safe (MOS = 4111). Multiple clinical and in vitro studies confirm Ceramide NP's role in restoring skin barrier function: Lim et al. (2022, PMID 34348350) showed a Ceramide NP-enriched lipid mixture restores barrier function impaired by topical corticosteroids, and Choi et al. (2022, PMID 35262269) demonstrated barrier-gene upregulation and improved barrier metrics with plant-derived Ceramide NP. Su et al. (2025, PMID 40682399) reported significant reductions in sensitive skin symptom scores (SS-10 down 66–76% over 4 weeks) and improved transepidermal water loss in a 88-subject observational study with a Ceramide NP-containing facial cream, with only mild, self-limiting adverse events.
Key endogenous stratum corneum lipid; replenishes depleted ceramide levels in dry, sensitive, or compromised skin (Choi & Lee 2015)
Restores skin barrier function impaired by topical corticosteroids when formulated in a mixed lipid system (Lim et al. 2022)
Upregulates epidermal homeostasis genes and improves trans-epidermal water loss and skin hydration (Choi et al. 2022)
Significant improvement in sensitive skin symptoms (SS-10 score reduction 66–76%) over 4 weeks with good tolerability (Su et al. 2025)
Broad safety profile confirmed across leave-on, rinse-off, and lip product types (Choi & Lee 2015; CIR 2015)
- · No primary safety concerns identified at cosmetically-relevant concentrations; MOS values are large across all product types assessed (Choi & Lee 2015)
- · Like all lipid skin-barrier ingredients, may contribute to comedogenicity in acne-prone individuals at high concentrations — not substantiated as a clinical issue in reviewed literature
CIR Quick Reference Table (12/2017, revised 07/2018) — Ceramide NP row: Finding=S, Citation='Final report 03/2015 available from CIR'
“Ceramide NP | S | | Final report 03/2015 available from CIR”— QRT-122017revised072018.pdf, p. 22