What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
No concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningPentylene Glycol
Skin ConditioningPropanediol
SolventGlycerin
HumectantSodium PCA
HumectantSodium Lactate
BufferingArginine
MaskingSodium Hyaluronate
HumectantSodium Gluconate
Skin ConditioningAspartic Acid
MaskingPCA
HumectantCaprylhydroxamic Acid
Hyaluronic Acid
HumectantSodium Anisate
AntimicrobialGlycine
BufferingAlanine
MaskingSerine
MaskingValine
MaskingProline
Skin ConditioningThreonine
Isoleucine
Skin ConditioningHistidine
HumectantPhenylalanine
MaskingWater
Skin ConditioningPEG-7 Glyceryl Cocoate
EmulsifyingColloidal Oatmeal
AbsorbentGlycerin
HumectantPolyacrylamide
Menthol
MaskingBenzyl Alcohol
PerfumingCaprylyl Glycol
EmollientC13-14 Isoparaffin
EmollientBenzoic Acid
MaskingSodium Gluconate
Skin ConditioningLaureth-7
EmulsifyingAcrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Emulsion StabilisingEpilobium Angustifolium Flower/Leaf/Stem Extract
Skin ConditioningSodium Hydroxide
BufferingPhenoxyethanol
PreservativeSodium Metabisulfite
AntioxidantWater, PEG-7 Glyceryl Cocoate, Colloidal Oatmeal, Glycerin, Polyacrylamide, Menthol, Benzyl Alcohol, Caprylyl Glycol, C13-14 Isoparaffin, Benzoic Acid, Sodium Gluconate, Laureth-7, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Epilobium Angustifolium Flower/Leaf/Stem Extract, Sodium Hydroxide, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Metabisulfite
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Glycerin (or glycerol) is a compound naturally found in your skin. It's a powerhouse humectant that pulls water into the stratum corneum.
Topically, glycerin does several things at once:
Your skin makes glycerin on its own (mostly from sebaceous oil breakdown) and shuttles it to your outermost layer of skin, or your epidermis, via aquaporin-3.
Aquaporin-3 is a transporter that is essential for normal skin hydration, elasticity, and repair. Interestingly, mice lacking in AQP3 have dry and less elastic skin that can be fully corrected with glycerin.
This ingredient is non-irritating, plays well with almost every ingredient, and works across all skin types. Typical use is anywhere between 3-10% but can go up to 79% in some leave-on products.
Just know very high concentrations (>40%) can feel tacky in low humidity.
Glycerin is the name for this ingredient in American English. British English uses Glycerol/Glycerine.
Learn more about GlycerinThis is the synthetic salt of gluconic acid, a form of PHA and mild exfoliant.
It is mainly used to stabilize oil and butter formulations from going bad. Sodium gluconate is a humectant, pH regulator, and chelating agent.
Chelating agents help neutralize unwanted metals from affecting the formulation.
Sodium gluconate is water-soluble.
Learn more about Sodium GluconateWater. It's the most common cosmetic ingredient of all. You'll usually see it at the top of ingredient lists, meaning that it makes up the largest part of the product.
So why is it so popular? Water most often acts as a solvent - this means that it helps dissolve other ingredients into the formulation.
You'll also recognize water as that liquid we all need to stay alive. If you see this, drink a glass of water. Remember to stay hydrated!
Learn more about Water