Confession time: I’m OCD about washing my hands. I do it 100 30 times a day.
A good hand cream is a must for me. Without it, my hands get all dry – even to the point of cracking – within a few short days.
At the moment, I’m using Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Fragrance-Free Hand Cream. It’s the fragrance-free claim that attracted me. The last thing my dry hands need is an allergic reaction to fragrance!
Turns out, that’s the only thing I like about this hand cream. Here’s why:
What’s In Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Fragrance-Free Hand Cream?
GLYCERIN
Think of glycerin as a magnet for moisture. Literally.
When you apply it on your skin, glycerin uses its magnetic powers to attract water from the air into the skin and bind it there.
But what if there isn’t enough moisture in the air? Then glycerin takes it from the deeper layers of your skin and deposits it into the superficial layers.
It’s not as drying as it seems. Your skin is made up mostly of water – glycerin simply redistributes it. But if glycerin needs to borrow too much water, your skin can feel a little drier.
Related: What Is Glycerin & Why Is It In All My Skincare Products?
CETYL ALCOHOL
Don’t let the word “alcohol” fool you. Cetyl Alcohol is a fatty alcohol, i.e. a type of alcohol that moisturises skin. It makes skin softer and smooth to the touch.
While it’s at it, it also makes the texture of the cream easier to spread.
Related: What Does Alcohol-Free In Skincare Really Mean?
Texture
Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Fragrance-Free Hand Cream has a heavy texture that doesn’t spread easily on the skin. Make sure you use only the tiniest amount because this stuff takes 2+ minutes to soak into the skin. Until then, it’ll feel tacky.
Fragrance
It’s fragrance-free. I like that. Did you know that fragrance is one of the most irritating ingredients in cosmetics?
Related: Why Fragrance Is Bad News For Skin
How To Use It
Massage a small dollop on your hands whenever you feel like you need the extra moisture.
Need help creating the best skincare routine for you dry skin? Sign up to the newsletter below to receive the “Dry Skincare Routine Cheatsheet” (it includes product recommendations, too!).
Performance & Personal Opinion
I could put up with the tacky texture if the cream worked. But my hands are dry and Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Fragrance-Free Hand Cream is no match for them.
While it does help heal my dry skin and make it smooth, I need to reapply it religiously after two hours. That’s how long its moisturising properties last on me. After that, my hands feel dry and tight again.
Blame it on the glycerin. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great ingredient. But when your skin is dry, even the best moisture magnets aren’t enough. You also need an oil or butter that seals the extra moisture glycerin brings into your skin so it won’t evaporate out again.
This cream doesn’t have any such oils or butters. That makes it more of a maintenance cream to keep hands in good condition than a healing cream for dry and cracked hands.
Who Is This For?
- Normal skin
- Oily skin
Who Is This Not For?
- Dry skin
- Cracked skin
Packaging
It comes in a white tube that releases just the right amount of product you need.
Does Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Fragrance-Free Hand Cream?
| CLAIM | TRUE? |
|---|---|
| Delivers effective relief for dry, chapped hands. | It didn’t help my dry and chapped hands that much. |
| Hands feel soft and smooth after just one application. | Yes, but only for two hours. |
| Long-lasting. | Not on dry skin. |
Price & Availability
$3.96 at Walmart
Do You Need It?
Nope. It may work for normal skin, but if your hands are dry, it won’t cut it.
Dupes & Alternatives
- CeraVe Therapeutic Hand Cream ($10.99)
- Dove DermaSeries Dry Skin Relief Hand Cream ($8.59)
- Gold Bond Healing Hand Cream ($4.99)
Ingredients
Water, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Stearic Acid, Sodium Cetearyl Sulfate, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Dilauryl Thiodipropionate, Sodium Sulfate
This is my favorite hand cream – I love it soooooo much. I’m sorry you don’t really like it:( I’ve tried a bunch of hand creams, and I like how thick this one is, and it stays on my hands for hours without me needing to reapply it. Also, this might sound crazy, but I use this is a face cream sometimes too. Usually after putting it on my hands I’ll pat some extra cream on my face (I have dry skin). Or I’ll apply it as an eye cream – it goes on great under makeup and it doesn’t clog pores. I love it! Oh, and the version with fragrance smells sooooooooo horrible (they just changed the fragrance and it smells like cheap, nasty perfume).
Jeni, I’m glad you like this cream. I wanted to love it so much but it just didn’t work too well for me. I guess my very dry skin needs something with more moisturizing ingredients and less Glycerin. I never thought of using this on my face though but I will give it to a go. I have combination skin with some dry patches on my cheeks so I’ll use it there and see if it works better than on my hands. Thanks for the tip.
I typed quite a long comment earlier, and somehow it just disappeared. 🙁
anyways, I used this hand cream during the winter months some years back, thanks to my hubby. And I love it. Like you, I washed my hands for n times a day, and still do so now. It really helps, though now I am using a host of other hand creams. I still use this one sometimes, at bedtime, like a hand treatment.
I used it on my dry, chapped bleeding lips during the winter months too.
Vonvon, that’s too bad, I’m sorry.
I’m glad this cream works for you too. I seem to be the only one the cream didn’t benefit much. I guess my skin just doesn’t like too much Glycerin.. 🙁