Body & Beauty / Compounds / Cinnamaldehyde

Cinnamaldehyde on your skin: a safety profile

Moderate risk

GHS Warning classification. May cause allergic skin reaction.

What is cinnamaldehyde?

The IUPAC name is (E)-3-phenylprop-2-enal.

Also known as: (E)-3-phenylprop-2-enal, 3-Phenylacrylaldehyde, Zimtaldehyde, Cinnamal.

IUPAC name
(E)-3-phenylprop-2-enal
CAS number
104-55-2
Molecular formula
C9H8O
Molecular weight
132.16 g/mol
SMILES
O=CC=CC1=CC=CC=C1
PubChem CID
637511

Risk for people

Moderate risk

GHS Warning classification. May cause allergic skin reaction.

Regulatory consensus

1 regulatory bodyhas classified Cinnamaldehyde.

AgencyYearClassificationNotes
EPA CTX / Genetox—Genotoxicity: positive (Ames: positive, 59 positive / 13 negative reports)

Regulators apply different standards of evidence — animal-data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds — which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. The disagreement is the data.

Where you encounter cinnamaldehyde

  • Consumer Products — Cinnamon flavoring, E-cigarette liquids, Cosmetics, Fragrances
  • Fragrance — perfume, cologne, scented personal care products, household fragrance products, candles
    Identified in Fragrance Ingredient Safety Priority Research database (2,325 ingredients)

Safer alternatives

Lower-risk approaches that achieve a similar outcome to Cinnamaldehyde:

  • Fragrance-free formulations
    Trade-offs: Consumer preference for scented products
    Relative cost: Lower (ingredient elimination)
  • Essential oil-based fragrances (with disclosure)
    Trade-offs: Natural does not mean safe — many essential oils are skin sensitizers
    Relative cost: 2-5× conventional
  • Alpha-methylcinnamaldehyde (lower sensitization)
    Relative cost: 1.2-2×
  • Cassia oil (with limits)
    Relative cost: 1.2-2×

Frequently asked questions

Is cinnamaldehyde safe for you?

GHS Warning classification. May cause allergic skin reaction.

What products contain cinnamaldehyde?

Cinnamaldehyde appears in: Cinnamon flavoring (Consumer products); E-cigarette liquids (Consumer products); perfume (Fragrance); cologne (Fragrance).

See Cinnamaldehyde in the body app

Look up products containing cinnamaldehyde, compare to alternatives, and explore the full data record.

Open in body View raw API data

Sources (3)
  1. PubChem Compound CID 637511 — database
  2. EPA CompTox Chemicals Dashboard — DTXSID1024835 — epa
  3. ATSDR Toxicological Profile — CAS 104-55-2 — reference

Reference data, not professional advice. Aggregates publicly available regulatory and scientific data; not a substitute for veterinary, medical, legal, or regulatory advice. Why we built ALETHEIA →