Water is just as much an ingredient as any other in personal care products. Yes it is cheap, and yes the more water you put into a formulation the lower your costs will be. But in all but the cheapest of products this is hardly a consideration. You put in the amount of water you need for the function you require. For some applications, the amount of water is the defining feature. The best example is that the difference between a lotion and a cream is pretty much down to the amount of water. Here are the rough water contents of the big product categories.
0% – Lip balms/lipsticks
30% – Heavy duty creams for dry skin
50% – Hand creams
60% – Face creams
70% – Lotions
85% – Shampoos
95% – Gels and toners
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