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Ingredients Anti-inflammatory Hypochlorous Acid
84Hx
Tier · Moderate evidence
Anti-inflammatory · Anti-acne

Hypochlorous Acid

INCI: Hypochlorous Acid · Also called: HOCl, HOCL

A "molecule your own immune cells make," now bottled. Kills surface bacteria without nuking the barrier, soothes the feeling of itch and redness on reactive skin, and gives compromised or post-procedure skin a clean reset, gentle enough to spray around eyes.

For your skin

A "molecule your own immune cells make," now bottled. Kills surface bacteria without nuking the barrier, soothes the feeling of itch and redness on reactive skin, and gives compromised or post-procedure skin a clean reset, gentle enough to spray around eyes.

Want the science? Keep reading ↓

Mechanism of action

Endogenous oxidant produced by neutrophil myeloperoxidase; at cosmetic concentrations (~0.01-0.05%) it is broadly antimicrobial yet non-cytotoxic, inhibits NF-κB-driven inflammatory genes (Ptgs2, Il19, Tlr4), and blunts itch signaling in atopic models.

Why we tier this moderate

6 cited papers across 3 countries. The mechanism is well-described and there's at least one controlled trial in the literature, but we tier this Moderate rather than Strong to stay honest about how many specific papers we cite directly.

3
United States
2
European Union
1
International

Cited research

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Haralovic V, Mokos M, Spoljar S, et al. Hypochlorous Acid: Clinical Insights and Experience in Dermatology, Surgery, Dentistry, Ophthalmology, Rhinology, and Other Specialties. Biomedicines. 2025 Nov 28;13(12):2921. — Narrative review synthesizing 61 clinical studies on HOCl across dermatological indications including acne, wound care, and atopic dermatitis.

2025Positive (efficacy)PMID:41462936View source ↗
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Burian EA et al., Effect of Stabilized Hypochlorous Acid on Re-epithelialization and Bacterial Bioburden in Acute Wounds: A Randomized Controlled Trial in Healthy Volunteers, Acta Derm Venereol 2022;102():adv00727 — controlled: stabilized HOCl aided re-epithelialization

2022Positive (efficacy)PMID:35578822View source ↗
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Wentworth AB et al., Topical hypochlorous acid (HOCl) blocks inflammatory gene expression and tumorigenic progression in UV-exposed SKH-1 high risk mouse skin, Redox Biology 2021;46:102108 — topical HOCl suppressed UV-induced inflammatory genes (Ptgs2, Il19, Tlr4) and tumor burden in photocarcinogenesis model

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Dorostkar A et al., Sodium Hypochlorite 0.005% Versus Placebo in the Treatment of Mild to Moderate Acne: A Double-Blind Randomized Controlled Trial, Dermatol Pract Concept 2021;11(3):e2021046 — RCT 0.005% NaOCl vs placebo

2021Positive (efficacy)PMID:34123555View source ↗
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Gold MH, Andriessen A, Bhatia AC, et al. Topical stabilized hypochlorous acid: The future gold standard for wound care and scar management in dermatologic and plastic surgery procedures. Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology. 2020 Feb;19(2):308-313. — Clinical review supporting stabilized HOCl as wound care and scar management standard with strong tolerability and antimicrobial evidence.

2020Positive (efficacy)PMID:31904191View source ↗
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Fukuyama T et al., Hypochlorous acid is antipruritic and anti-inflammatory in a mouse model of atopic dermatitis, Clinical and Experimental Allergy 2018;48(1):78-88 — 0.05% HOCl hydrogel significantly reduced scratching, inflammatory cytokines, and itch behavior in AD model, comparably to topical steroid

2018Positive (efficacy)PMID:29028288View source ↗

Sources: 10 clinical journals and regulatory databases across the US, EU, Korea, Japan, and China. Every entry points to a specific document. See methodology for the full list and what each outcome label means.