Can you believe there’s actually “alcohol” in Cantu Coconut Curling Cream? In this video, I walk you through that ingredient that has everybody side-eyeing the label: cetearyl alcohol. I’m Victoria, founder of Zoe: The School of Life, and as a board-certified pharmacist, I’m demystifying these ingredients one by one so you can know what’s truly good or bad for your hair—especially if you’re trying to grow and maintain healthy natural hair. Here’s the key takeaway: cetearyl alcohol is not a drying alcohol like ethanol. It’s a fatty alcohol, and in hair formulations, fatty alcohols are actually helpful because they give that buttery texture, help thicken the cream, and create a light film around the hair that makes it feel sleeker, smoother, and easier to manage. I also share that fatty alcohols can be derived from plant oils like coconut oil and palm oil, and I point out that the container even highlights “no dry alcohols.” So far in this series—water, glycerin, canola oil, and now cetearyl alcohol—I’m still seeing a pretty solid composition in this newer Cantu formulation.