What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Colloidal Oatmeal 2%
Absorbent
Water
Skin ConditioningEthylhexyl Palmitate
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil
Emollient
Dimethicone
Emollient
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
PEG-100 Stearate
Surfactant
Microcrystalline Cellulose
AbsorbentSodium PCA
Humectant
Arginine
Masking
Sodium Polyacrylate Starch
AbsorbentCaprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Citric Acid
Buffering
Sodium Phytate
Cellulose Gum
Emulsion StabilisingOphiopogon Japonicus Root Extract
Skin ConditioningXanthan Gum
EmulsifyingTocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Maltodextrin
Absorbent
Ceramide NP
Skin Conditioning
Colloidal Oatmeal 2%, Water, Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Glycerin, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Cetearyl Alcohol, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Dimethicone, Pentylene Glycol, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Microcrystalline Cellulose, Sodium PCA, Arginine, Sodium Polyacrylate Starch, Caprylyl Glycol, Citric Acid, Sodium Phytate, Cellulose Gum, Ophiopogon Japonicus Root Extract, Xanthan Gum, Tocopheryl Acetate, Maltodextrin, Ceramide NP
Water
Skin ConditioningPropanediol
Solvent
C13-15 Alkane
SolventGlycerin
Humectant
Lauryl Lactate
EmollientPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingArginine
Masking
Avena Sativa Kernel Flour
Abrasive
Sodium Gluconate
Skin ConditioningSodium PCA
Humectant
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingEthylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningOphiopogon Japonicus Root Extract
Skin ConditioningHydroxyphenyl Propamidobenzoic Acid
Skin ConditioningSodium Hydroxide
BufferingMaltodextrin
Absorbent
Ceramide NP
Skin Conditioning
Ascorbyl Palmitate
Antioxidant
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Water, Propanediol, C13-15 Alkane, Glycerin, Lauryl Lactate, Phenoxyethanol, Carbomer, Arginine, Avena Sativa Kernel Flour, Sodium Gluconate, Sodium PCA, Butylene Glycol, Pentylene Glycol, Xanthan Gum, Ethylhexylglycerin, Ophiopogon Japonicus Root Extract, Hydroxyphenyl Propamidobenzoic Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Maltodextrin, Ceramide NP, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Tocopherol
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Arginine is a semi-essential amino acid. This just means our bodies can product a bit on its own, but sometimes needs a little boost from food sources.
It is a part of your skin's natural moisturizing factor (NMF), or the water-loving molecules in your outermost layer of skin (stratum corneum) that keeps everything hydrated and happy.
Here's an interesting thing about Arginine: your skin converts it into urea through the Krebs-Henseleit urea cycle. Urea is one of the most effective humectants your skin naturally produces.
A clinical study showed applying 2.5% arginine hydrochloride to atopic dermatitis skin showed significant urea levels in the stratum corneum and improved moisture in just four weeks.
Arginine is also a precursor to nitric oxide; nitric oxide improves microcirculation and supports wound healing and collagen synthesis.
One study found that an amino acid complex containing Arginine reduced skin irritation, improved hydration, and accelerated skin repair in clinical / in-vivo studies.
Arginine itself is an amino acid and not a fatty acid, oil, or ester. On its own, it's not a direct food source for Malassezia, or the yeast that causes fungal acne.
Learn more about ArginineCeramide NP (formerly known as Ceramide 3) is one of the skin's naturally occurring lipids.
Since ceramides are the major lipid components of the skin, they are crucial for maintaining skin barrier and hydration. Ceramide NP most closely mirrors the dominant kind in human skin amongst ceramide subtypes.
This ceramide works by slotting into gaps within the stratum corneum's lipid matrix to limit trans-epidermal water loss (TEWL) and shield the skin against external irritants.
A study with 312 patients found that using a ceramide-containing routine for 4 weeks reduced the severity of atopic dermatitis by over 61%.
Another clinical study in subjects aged 60 and older found that a ceramide body wash and moisturizer improved skin dryness and itchy skin in 15 days.
Overall, ceramides are considered non-irritating and safety tests have found little to no observable adverse effects from using this ingredient.
Ceramide NP is usually sourced from plants (like soybean or rice bran), or produced synthetically.
Learn more about Ceramide NPGlycerin (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 GlycerinMaltodextrin is a plant-derived carbohydrate made by breaking down starch (usually from corn, potato, or rice). In cosmetic formulas, it's a multitasking absorbent, emulsion stabilizer, and skin conditioner.
This ingredient is mostly used to stabilize emulsions and improve the powdery, non-greasy feel of products (like dry shampoos).
Safety-wise, this ingredient is pretty solid; it's even recognized as a food additive. Both animal and clinical studies found no adverse effects at the levels used in cosmetics.
Industry data shows this ingredient is used up to 45.7% in spray products and up to 33% in powder products.
Learn more about MaltodextrinWe don't have a description for Ophiopogon Japonicus Root Extract yet.
Pentylene Glycol (1,2-pentanediol) is a multitasking little diol with three main roles in a formula:
Research on alkanediols (the family pentylene glycol belongs to) show they work by disrupting microbial cell membranes. This disruption helps the primary preservative system in a product work more effectively at lower doses.
On the safety side, the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel has concluded this ingredient to be safe as used in current cosmetic practices + concentrations.
Typical use levels in a formula run about 1-5%.
Learn more about Pentylene GlycolSodium PCA (the salt of PCA) is one of the most well-established humectants in skincare.
Why is it so special? Your skin already makes it naturally; it's a natural component of your skin's Natural Moisturizing Factor (NMF), or the mix of water-binding compounds inside your skin cells that keeps things soft and hydrated.
As a cosmetic ingredient, it grabs water and holds it in the upper layers of skin to smooth roughness and ease dehydration.
There's some clinical support for the NMF approach with a study showing that a cream built to mimic the skin's NMF significantly boosted hydration.
Safety-wise, this ingredient non-irritating, non-comedogenic, and non-phototoxic in testing, with minimal skin absorption.
It also works really well with other hydrators like glycerin or hyaluronic acid, and typical usage is somewhere between 0.2-4%.
Learn more about Sodium PCAWater. 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 WaterXanthan gum is used as a stabilizer and thickener within cosmetic products. It helps give products a sticky, thick feeling - preventing them from being too runny.
On the technical side of things, xanthan gum is a polysaccharide - a combination consisting of multiple sugar molecules bonded together.
Xanthan gum is a pretty common and great ingredient. It is a natural, non-toxic, non-irritating ingredient that is also commonly used in food products.
Learn more about Xanthan Gum
