If you can’t pronounce it, it must be bad for you?

Scientific names help maintain safety because they give everyone a shared, precise way to identify substances.

This avoids confusion caused by nicknames or common names and helps ensure the right substance is being talked about, tested and regulated.

This is especially important for chemicals and microorganisms. Using names that are recognised worldwide means information can be shared and understood globally, products can be traded across borders, and safety rules can be applied consistently—so everyone is on the same page.

IUPAC is the universally recognised authority on chemical nomenclature and terminology. One of IUPAC’s goals is to establish unambiguous, uniform and consistent nomenclature and terminology for specific scientific fields. IUPAC has a systematic way of naming chemicals that makes many substances sound very complicated.

For example, sucrose (table sugar) has the IUPAC name β-D-fructofuranosyl α-D-glucopyranoside. Scary? It’s still just sugar.

But wait…it gets worse…the full systematic IUPAC name for sucrose is (2R,3R,4S,5S,6R)-2-{[(2S,3S,4S,5R)-3,4-dihydroxy-2,5-bis(hydroxymethyl)oxolan-2-yl]oxy}-6-(hydroxymethyl)oxane-3,4,5-triol. Aaaaagggghhhhh!!!! Oh wait…it’s still just sweet sweet sugar.

Every chemical substance—yes, including naturally occurring chemicals and natural extracts—can also be identified by their CAS number.  A CAS number is a unique identifier assigned to a chemical substance. It's a way to unambiguously identify a specific chemical, regardless of its name or where it’s being used.

In Australia, cosmetic ingredients are listed by their INCI names. These are official ingredient names that are standardised across most countries around the world. This information helps you make informed choices about the cosmetics you buy. 

IUPAC: International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry

CAS: Chemical Abstract Service

INCI: International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient