Sodium benzoate

Name variations

 * atamon

About sodium benzoate
Sodium benzoate is a preservative. It is bacteriostatic and fungistatic under acidic conditions. It is used most prevalently in acidic foods such as salad dressings (vinegar), carbonated drinks (carbonic acid), jams and fruit juices (citric acid), pickles (vinegar), and condiments. It is also found in alcohol-based mouthwash and silver polish. It can also be found in cough syrups like Robitussin. Some shampoos such as Pert 2-in-1 contain sodium benzoate as well. Sodium benzoate is declared on a product label as 'sodium benzoate' or E211.