Fragrance
What it is
"Fragrance" or "parfum" on an ingredient list is a legal umbrella term that can hide dozens of individual scent compounds without naming any of them — trade-secret protection lets manufacturers list "fragrance" as one word instead of disclosing the formula. In a diaper or baby-care product it's typically added to mask the smell of the absorbent core or the base materials, not for any functional purpose.
Why it's flagged
Because the mixture isn't disclosed, a consumer or a reviewer can't check any individual fragrance ingredient against the ingredients they're actually trying to avoid. Fragrance mixtures are a well-documented cause of contact dermatitis and skin sensitization, and regulators in both the EU and US have separately required disclosure of specific fragrance allergens (like certain aldehydes) above set concentration thresholds precisely because reaction rates are high enough to warrant it. For a product worn against skin for hours, an undisclosed mixture is a bigger unknown than most named, single ingredients on this glossary.
How concerned to be
Use with caution, and treat "unscented" and "fragrance-free" as different claims. "Unscented" can mean a masking fragrance was added to cancel out a base odor — the fragrance mixture is still present. "Fragrance-free" means no fragrance ingredients were added at all, which is the claim that actually matters if avoiding undisclosed fragrance is the goal. For skin worn against skin for extended periods, especially on infants, fragrance-free is the more conservative and more verifiable choice — not because fragrance is always harmful, but because "always" isn't answerable without knowing what's in it.
What it's called on a label
Look for any of these on an ingredient list: Parfum, Perfume, Aroma, Fragrance (undisclosed mixture), Fragrance.
Sources
- Contact Allergy to Fragrances: A Clinical Review, American Contact Dermatitis Society (2022)
- Assessment of the risks associated with corporal exposure to chemical substances present in disposable diapers for babies, French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) (2019)
- Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 on cosmetic products — fragrance allergen labeling requirements, European Commission (2023)