What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil
Emollient
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Cyclopentasiloxane
Emollient
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Sorbitol
Humectant
Behenyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Arginine
Masking
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Ceteareth-20
CleansingCetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Citric Acid
Buffering
Dimethiconol
Emollient
Disodium EDTA
Disodium Ethylene Dicocamide PEG-15 Disulfate
Cleansing
Glyceryl Stearate Citrate
Emollient
Ceramide NP
Skin Conditioning
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Pantolactone
Humectant
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Sodium PCA
Humectant
Sodium Polyacrylate
Absorbent
Water, Glycerin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Pentylene Glycol, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Cyclopentasiloxane, Cetearyl Alcohol, Sorbitol, Behenyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Allantoin, Arginine, Caprylyl Glycol, Ceteareth-20, Cetyl Alcohol, Citric Acid, Dimethiconol, Disodium EDTA, Disodium Ethylene Dicocamide PEG-15 Disulfate, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Ceramide NP, Niacinamide, Panthenol, Pantolactone, Sodium Hyaluronate, Sodium PCA, Sodium Polyacrylate
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Allantoin is a soothing ingredient known for its protective and moisturizing properties; it's basically a quiet workhorse ingredient you can find in a huge range of cosmetics.
Though it can be derived from the comfrey plant, allantoin is produced synthetically for cosmetic products to ensure purity.
Research shows it can encourage your skin cells to turn over and renew by stimulating keratinocyte and fibroblast proliferation.
It also has mild keratolytic properties to help loosen and shed dead skin cells without being harsh.
Studies also suggest allantoin can help calm inflammation by dialing down some of the chemical signals your skin sends out when it is irritated.
This ingredient is typically used in the 0.1-0.5% range, and the FDA recognizes it as a skin protectant in OTC products up to 2%.
Overall, allantoin is a wonderful addition to most routines; it is stable across a wide pH range (~4-8), works well with other ingredients, and is considered non-sensitizing/non-irritating.
Fun fact: Allantoin is naturally occurring in comfrey root, beets, chamomile, and wheat sprouts. Our bodies even produce it as a byproduct of uric acid metabolism.
Learn more about AllantoinCetyl Alcohol is a fatty alcohol. Fatty Alcohols are most often used as an emollient or to thicken a product.
Its main roles are:
Though it has "alcohol" in the name, it is not related to denatured alcohol or ethyl alcohol.
The FDA allows products labeled "alcohol-free" to have fatty alcohols.
This ingredient may not be fungal acne safe. It is a primary fatty alcohol with a chain length above 12 carbons. A study from 2019 show Malassezia can feed on fatty alcohols in this range, so it may trigger fungal acne in those prone to it.
Learn more about Cetyl AlcoholGlycerin (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 GlycerinWater. 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
