This mild gel cleanser is made to cleanse without leaving your skin tight or dry.
This oil-control serum is formulated around Niacinamide and Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 to balance excess oil and refine the look of pores.
What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningSodium Laurylglucosides Hydroxypropylsulfonate
CleansingCocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Emollient
Sodium Lauroyl Methyl Isethionate
CleansingGlycerin
Humectant
Ricinus Communis Seed Oil
Masking
Cetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Sodium Gluconate
Skin ConditioningHyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Oil
Skin Conditioning
Benzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningTocopherol
Antioxidant
Betaine
Humectant
Saccharide Isomerate
Humectant
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingSodium PCA
Humectant
Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride
Skin ConditioningPolyquaternium-10
Xylitylglucoside
Humectant
Anhydroxylitol
Humectant
Xylitol
Humectant
Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate
Antioxidant
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Water, Sodium Laurylglucosides Hydroxypropylsulfonate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Sodium Lauroyl Methyl Isethionate, Glycerin, Ricinus Communis Seed Oil, Cetyl Alcohol, Sodium Gluconate, Hyaluronic Acid, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Oil, Benzyl Alcohol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Tocopherol, Betaine, Saccharide Isomerate, Xanthan Gum, Sodium PCA, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Polyquaternium-10, Xylitylglucoside, Anhydroxylitol, Xylitol, Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Phenoxyethanol
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 Extract is a botanical extract pulled from the leaves of aloe vera and one of the most studied plant ingredients in cosmetics.
The inner leaf gel it comes from is mostly water (~99-99.5%) and the remaining fraction is made up of pretty good stuff: polysaccharides, vitamins, phenolics, and enzymes.
Its headline job is hydration.
The star polysaccharide in aloe, acemannan, is a humectant that retains moisture and helps reduce trans-epidermal water loss.
Aloe also has real soothing credentials; it contains anti-inflammatory compounds like bradykinase and C-glucosyl chromone that help calm irritation and redness.
On the repair side, lab work shows that acemannan wakes up your skin's repair cells (fibroblasts), prompting them to multiply and speed up healing.
There's some human data for cosmetic benefit too: a cream containing 10% Aloe Barbadensis leaf extract improved skin hydration and elasticity in a real-use study.
Safety-wise, this ingredient is well-regarded with just one rare downside; there have been some case reports of acute eczema, contact urticaria, and dermatitis in people who applied aloe-derived ingredients topically. Those with a known aloe or Liliaceae sensitivity should patch test.
Typical use levels range widely, from under 1% up to 90%+ depending on the format and the effect you are after.
Learn more about Aloe Barbadensis Leaf ExtractBenzyl Alcohol is an aromatic alcohol with several roles: it's a preservative, solvent, and mild fragrance component with a floral scent.
This ingredient has been deemed safe for use in cosmetic formulations at concentrations up to 5%, and up to 10% in hair dyes. You'll typically see 0.5-2% in most rinse-off or leave-on products.
As a preservative, it works by disrupting the membrane of microbial proteins. This helps keep bacteria and fungi from growing in your products.
The sensitization picture is actually quite assuring as well:of nearly 71,000 patients patch tested with benzyl alcohol, only 0.21% showed a positive reaction with most of them being weakly positive.
This led researchers to conclude that benzyl alcohol cannot be regarded as a significant contact allergen.
It is worth noting this ingredient is classified as one of the EU's regulated fragrance allergens and restricted to 1% in finished products.
Labels must also declare it in concentrations above 0.001% in leave-on products and 0.01% in rinse-off products.
At concentrations around 5%, localized redness and itching can appear as a direct irritant response and not as a true allergic reaction.
Learn more about Benzyl AlcoholEthylhexylglycerin is created from glycerin. It is a multitasker ingredient that:
The CIR Expert Panel found minimal skin absorption or sensitization of any kind in a safety assessment. Though this ingredient is considered well-tolerated, a small number of cases of allergic dermatitis have been published since 2002. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure.
Industry-reported use ranges from 8% in rinse-off products and 2% in leave-on formulations.
Learn more about EthylhexylglycerinGlycerin (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 GlycerinTocopherol is a fat-soluble antioxidant known as Vitamin E.
You'll find this ingredient in the vast majority of skincare (for good reason). It works to neutralize free radicals, or unstable molecules generated by UV exposure, pollution, and other environmental stressors, before they can cause oxidative damage to your skin cells.
Topically applied tocopherol has been shown to protect against UV damage by ramping up the skin's own natural defense enzymes.
It also acts as a skin conditioning agent; some studies show that regular topical use can improve the skin's water-binding capacity over 2-4 weeks.
This ingredient is especially loved for being a team player. When combined with Vitamin C, the photoprotective effect of both ingredients roughly doubles and the combo also helps reduce UV-induced DNA damage.
This ingredient has some brightening potential but it's more of a prevention ingredient than spot-fader. Cell studies show it can slow down melanin production but it's worth noting that it's not the most powerful brightener out there.
In formulations, it also serves as a stabilizer that helps protect other oxidation-prone ingredients from degrading.
Concentrations usually range from 0.1-1% in most leave-on products.
Learn more about TocopherolWater. 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
