Snap a skincare label and Fungalscan flags the palmitoyl peptides, plant oils, and PEG-fatty-acid esters in the C12 to C24 range that feed Malassezia. Then it suggests safer swaps.
Informational only, not medical advice. Verdicts are based on community-reported ingredient data and are not guaranteed accurate or suitable for your skin.
Generic ingredient apps optimise for clean-beauty rules of thumb. Fungal acne has a different shortlist, and the details matter.
Palmitoyl, stearoyl, myristoyl and lauroyl peptides are commonly rated as gentle hydrators by generic scanners. They are also the long-chain fatty-acid tails that Malassezia can metabolize.
"PEG = bad" rule-based scanners flag this one. PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil is heavily ethoxylated, which makes the fatty acid non-bioavailable to Malassezia. Fungalscan clears it.
After an AVOID, Fungalscan suggests branched-chain or short-chain alternatives that behave similarly on skin but aren't on the fungal-acne shortlist.
Point your camera at the back of the bottle. Fungalscan reads any INCI list, in any lighting.
Each name is parsed and cross-checked against an FA-strict database of triggers, severities and known-safe alternatives.
One clear result, with per-ingredient detail and substitution ideas when a product is flagged.
Most "skincare safety" apps treat peptides as a hero category. The catch: a palmitoyl peptide is a peptide attached to a 16-carbon fatty acid. That fatty acid is exactly the kind of food Malassezia uses.
Fungalscan reads the actual chemistry behind the INCI name, not the marketing category. The result you get is calibrated for fungal acne, not to a clean-beauty score.
Not ready to scan? Browse our database of 689 ingredients rated for fungal acne, or read the guides. No app required.
Search any INCI name for a fungal-acne verdict: 400 safe, 95 caution, 194 avoid, each with the reasoning behind it.
Browse the index →The complete guide to malassezia folliculitis: how to identify it, what triggers it, and how to build a safe routine.
Read the guide →The families that feed malassezia, the chain-length and ethoxylation rules, and the safer swaps for each one.
See the triggers →Then a Premium subscription unlocks unlimited scans, full history, and safer-swap suggestions on every flagged result.
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