Magnesium Stearate: Properties, Uses & Safety - A Comprehensive Guide

Ever had bathtub rings? Well, magnesium stearate when combined with hard water and soap forms soap scum. Also called magnesium salt, magnesium stearate is a tasteless, odorless white substance that's used in many different medicines and as a lubricant for a variety of products.

Chemical Make-up

• Magnesium stearate is a salt that contains two correspondents of stearate and one magnesium cation.

Temperature

• Magnesium stearate melts at 88 degrees Celsius and is not soluble in water, although it is soluble in hot alcohol.

Lubrication

• It has great lubricating properties, which are used in the manufacturing equipment during the compounding of chemical powder into solid supplement and vitamin tablets.

Safety

• It is considered safe for human consumption, and therefore it is the most frequently used lubricant for many capsules and tablets.

Other Uses

• Magnesium stearate is a common ingredient in baby powders.

  In addition, magnesium stearate is used as a binding agent to hold together sugars in hard candy products. Moreover, it's a common ingredient in most baby formulas and baby powders.