What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Titanium Dioxide 6%
Cosmetic Colorant
Zinc Oxide 10%
Cosmetic Colorant
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Vitis Vinifera Seed Oil
Emollient
Oryza Sativa Bran Oil
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Cetearyl Olivate
Sorbitan Olivate
Emulsifying
Isoamyl Laurate
Emollient
Olea Europaea Fruit Oil
Masking
Ginkgo Biloba Meristem Cell
Antimicrobial
Calendula Officinalis Flower
Skin Conditioning
Hippophae Rhamnoides Acid
EmollientCurcumin
Antioxidant
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glucose
Humectant
Lactoperoxidase
StabilisingHippophae Rhamnoides Oil
Emollient
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingMauritia Flexuosa Fruit Oil
Skin Conditioning
Bronzite Powder
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77492
Cosmetic ColorantPotassium Sorbate
Preservative
Tapioca Starch
CI 77491
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77499
Cosmetic ColorantTitanium Dioxide 6%, Zinc Oxide 10%, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Vitis Vinifera Seed Oil, Oryza Sativa Bran Oil, Glycerin, Cetearyl Olivate, Sorbitan Olivate, Isoamyl Laurate, Olea Europaea Fruit Oil, Ginkgo Biloba Meristem Cell, Calendula Officinalis Flower, Hippophae Rhamnoides Acid, Curcumin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glucose, Lactoperoxidase, Hippophae Rhamnoides Oil, Xanthan Gum, Mauritia Flexuosa Fruit Oil, Bronzite Powder, CI 77492, Potassium Sorbate, Tapioca Starch, CI 77491, CI 77499
Homosalate 7%
Skin Conditioning
Octocrylene 4.2%
UV Absorber
Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane 2.2%
UV Absorber
Water
Skin ConditioningDiisopropyl Adipate
EmollientCetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Mica
Cosmetic ColorantBenzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Acrylates/C12-22 Alkyl Methacrylate Copolymer
Parfum
Masking
Titanium Dioxide
Cosmetic Colorant
Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Emulsion StabilisingCeteth-10 Phosphate
CleansingDicetyl Phosphate
EmulsifyingCoco-Glucoside
Cleansing
Chlorphenesin
Antimicrobial
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingSodium Hydroxide
BufferingButyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Disodium EDTA
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Mangifera Indica Seed Butter
Skin Conditioning
Carica Papaya Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningMangifera Indica Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningPassiflora Incarnata Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningPlumeria Acutifolia Flower Extract
Skin ConditioningPsidium Guajava Fruit Extract
AstringentPanthenol
Skin Conditioning
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate
Antioxidant
Homosalate 7%, Octocrylene 4.2%, Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane 2.2%, Water, Diisopropyl Adipate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glycerin, Phenoxyethanol, Mica, Benzyl Alcohol, Acrylates/C12-22 Alkyl Methacrylate Copolymer, Parfum, Titanium Dioxide, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Ceteth-10 Phosphate, Dicetyl Phosphate, Coco-Glucoside, Chlorphenesin, Xanthan Gum, Sodium Hydroxide, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Disodium EDTA, Tocopheryl Acetate, Mangifera Indica Seed Butter, Carica Papaya Fruit Extract, Mangifera Indica Fruit Extract, Passiflora Incarnata Fruit Extract, Plumeria Acutifolia Flower Extract, Psidium Guajava Fruit Extract, Panthenol, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice comes from leaves of the aloe plant. Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice is best known for helping to soothe sunburns. It is also anti-inflammatory, moisturizing, antiseptic, and can help heal wounds.
Aloe is packed with good stuff including Vitamins A, C, and E. These vitamins are antioxidants, which help fight free-radicals and the damage they may cause. Free-radicals are molecules that may damage your skin cells, such as pollution.
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice also contains sugars. These sugars come in the form of monosaccharides and polysaccharides, folic acid, and choline. These sugars are able to help bind moisture to skin.
It also contains minerals such as calcium, 12 anthraquinones, fatty acids, amino acids, and Vitamin B12.
Learn more about Aloe Barbadensis Leaf JuiceCetearyl alcohol is a waxy mixture of two fatty alcohols: cetyl alcohol and stearyl alcohol. It is an emollient and emulsifier.
Despite having "alcohol" in its name, it has nothing to do with drying solvent alcohols; the FDA also allows "alcohol-free" products to contain fatty alcohols like this ingredient.
It plays several roles in a formula:
Typical use levels for this ingredient sit around 1-10% and the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel has affirmed safety at concentrations up to 25% in leave-on products.
Multiple assessments have found it to be non-irritating and non-sensitizing to most people.
However, there have been some cases of allergic contact dermatitis in patients with chronically compromised skin barriers.
Cetearyl alcohol has a comedogenic rating of 2 and irritancy rating of 1. Both of these numbers come from the 1989 study that used rabbit ears; a "2" means mildly comedogenic and a "1" means low irritancy.
Here's the catch: rabbit skin is more sensitive than human skin and throws a lot of false positives. A 1996 reappraisal found that ingredients rated 1-2 in the rabbit ear tests are generally safe for humans.
Remember comedogenic ratings are unable to assess the entire formula of a product or how it will react on your skin. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure about certain ingredients.
This ingredient is not fungal acne safe. Cetearyl alcohol is a fatty alcohol with chain lengths that fall within the range that Malassezia can metabolize.
Learn more about Cetearyl 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 GlycerinTitanium dioxide is a mineral UV filter widely used in sunscreens and cosmetics.
It is one of only two UV filters officially classified as “mineral” by regulatory agencies, the other being zinc oxide.
Titanium dioxide provides broad-spectrum protection mostly in the UVB and UVAII range, with some protection in the UVAI range.
While its UVA protection isn’t as strong as zinc oxide’s, the difference is minor.
A common myth is that mineral UV filters reflect UV light. However, modern research shows titanium dioxide absorbs UV radiation like chemical filters (~95% absorption & 5% reflection).
Thanks to its non-irritating nature, titanium dioxide is suitable for sensitive, acne-prone, or redness-prone skin. It is unlikely to cause "eye sting" like other sunscreen ingredients.
A major drawback of this ingredient is its white cast and thick texture. This is why mineral sunscreens often leave a white cast and are less cosmetically elegant than chemical/hybrid sunscreens.
To improve white cast and spreadability, micronized or nano-sized titanium dioxide is often used.
There are ongoing concerns surrounding nano-titanium oxide's impact on marine ecosystems.
There is no conclusive evidence that any form of titanium oxide (or any other sunscreen ingredients) will cause harm to marine ecosystems or coral reefs. The science is still developing but many consumers are keeping a close eye on this issue.
Please note, many destinations have reef-safety sunscreen rules. For instance, the U.S. Virgin Islands advises all visitors to use non-nano mineral sunscreens.
Nano mineral sunscreens once raised safety concerns about absorption into skin.
Extensive research has shown that they do not penetrate healthy or damaged skin; they remain safely on the surface and the top layer of dead skin (stratum corneum).
You'll likely find titanium dioxide bundled with alumina, silica, or dimethicone. These ingredients help make titanium dioxide highly photostable; this prevents it from interacting with other formula components under UV light.
Learn more about Titanium DioxideXanthan 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
