Stiftung Warentest: Cheap urea creams convince the experts

Urea lotions are body creams that contain synthetic urea. In the past, real horse urea had to be used for urea lotions, but nowadays the manufacturers rely on synthetic urea. The only exception is natural cosmetics, where natural urea is required. Sound gross? But it is not. In the Edition (12/2021) has ÖKO-TEST tested a total of 20 urea lotions.

Urea is not only found in our urine. The substance is also found in the top layer of skin. There he does a lot of good. It binds moisture, relieves itching, has a dandruff-removing effect and is generally very well tolerated. Therefore, it is precisely in winter, when the skin is low under temperatures and the dry heating air, it is particularly advisable to use a urea cream. However, not all creams live up to their promises. We will therefore show you which products are recommended and present the results of ÖKO-TEST.

Inexpensive test winner at Stiftung Warentest

Overall, ÖKO-TEST tested 20 creams made from synthetic urea. Natural cosmetics are not part of the test. Eleven of the tested products were rated “very good”. Here are the urea shooting stars from the supermarket, discounter or drugstore:

• Aveo Med Urea 15% 2 in 1 Nourishing Body Milk from Müller
  > to Mueller
• Balea Med 15% urea immediate care milk 2 in 1 from dm
  > to dm
• Bevola Body Lotion Urea 5% by Kaufland
• Today Bodylotion Urea 5% von rewe und Penny
  > to Rewe
• Pure & Basic Med body lotion with 10% urea from Net
• Ombia Med Intensive Body Lotion 10% Urea from Aldi
• Elkos With Body Lotion Urea 10% von Edeka
  > to Amazon
• Isana Med body milk 10% urea from Rossman
  > to Rossman

None of the above creams cost more than three euros per 200 milliliters. At 98 cents per 200 ml, the Kaufland fluid is the cheapest. The lotion from Edeka and Aldi is “the most expensive” at 2.66 euros per 200 ml. Compared to the high-priced branded creams that were also tested, these are still very cheap. After all, the most expensive urea lotion in the test costs a whopping 17 euros per 200 milliliters.

The experts advise against these creams

Four products fail. The first lotion looser is the “Body Urea Skin Smoothing Cream Milk 5%” from Garnier , which only scores “inadequate”. The reason: the laboratory was able to detect PEG and PEG derivatives and silicones in the body lotion.

But not only the Garnier cream disappoints. Three other ointments received an “unsatisfactory” due to a wide variety of critical ingredients. In the “Eucerin Urea Repair Original 10% Urea Lotion” by Beiersdorf There are also PEG/PEG derivatives – particularly disappointing for a pharmacy product.

Also the expensive branded lotion “Lipikar Lait Urea 5+ Lotion” from La Roche Posay contains the harmful substances. The laboratory was also able to detect halogenated organic compounds that are classified as possibly carcinogenic. In addition, the specified urea content of 5% does not correspond to the percentage of 4.1 percent measured in the laboratory. Therefore: point deduction.

The last expensive branded cream that does not pass the ECO test is the “Mixa Urea Cica Repair 5% Urea” from L’Oreal . This lotion also contains critical substances such as PEG/PEG derivatives, mineral oil, paraffins and silicones. The L’Oreal lotion has to make do with a grade of six.

You can take the detailed test with all the results Read at ÖKO-TEST for a fee .