What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningDisodium Cocoamphodiacetate
CleansingGlycerin
Humectant
Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate
CleansingGuar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride
Skin ConditioningCocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Avena Sativa Kernel Flour
Abrasive
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Lactate
Buffering
Lactic Acid
Buffering
Serine
Masking
Beta-Glucan
Skin Conditioning
Urea
Buffering
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Sorbitol
Humectant
Sodium Chloride
MaskingAllantoin
Skin Conditioning
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Sorbic Acid
Preservative
Benzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Citric Acid
Buffering
Water, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Glycerin, Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Avena Sativa Kernel Flour, Pentylene Glycol, Sodium Lactate, Lactic Acid, Serine, Beta-Glucan, Urea, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Sorbitol, Sodium Chloride, Allantoin, Phenoxyethanol, Caprylyl Glycol, Sorbic Acid, Benzyl Alcohol, Citric Acid
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate
Cleansing
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingAloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice Powder
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Glycolate
BufferingOlea Europaea Leaf Extract
Perfuming
Glycolic Acid
Buffering
Hamamelis Virginiana Flower Water
AstringentAllantoin
Skin Conditioning
Echinacea Angustifolia Extract
MoisturisingCentipeda Cunninghamii Extract
Skin ConditioningCitrus Grandis Peel Oil
Masking
Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Fruit Oil
Masking
Fusanus Spicatus Wood Oil
Masking
Anthemis Nobilis Flower Oil
Masking
Cedrus Atlantica Bark Oil
Masking
Passiflora Incarnata Extract
AstringentLinum Usitatissimum Seed Oil
Perfuming
Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningSaccharum Officinarum Extract
MoisturisingCitrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract
MaskingCitrus Medica Limonum Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningAcer Saccharum Extract
Skin ConditioningSalicylic Acid
Masking
Sodium Citrate
BufferingBenzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Dehydroacetic Acid
Preservative
Water, Glycerin, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Xanthan Gum, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice Powder, Sodium Glycolate, Olea Europaea Leaf Extract, Glycolic Acid, Hamamelis Virginiana Flower Water, Allantoin, Echinacea Angustifolia Extract, Centipeda Cunninghamii Extract, Citrus Grandis Peel Oil, Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Fruit Oil, Fusanus Spicatus Wood Oil, Anthemis Nobilis Flower Oil, Cedrus Atlantica Bark Oil, Passiflora Incarnata Extract, Linum Usitatissimum Seed Oil, Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit Extract, Saccharum Officinarum Extract, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract, Citrus Medica Limonum Fruit Extract, Acer Saccharum Extract, Salicylic Acid, Sodium Citrate, Benzyl Alcohol, Dehydroacetic Acid
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 AllantoinBenzyl 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 AlcoholCocamidopropyl Betaine is a fatty acid created by mixing similar compounds in coconut oil and dimethylaminopropylamine, a compound with two amino groups.
This ingredient is a surfactant and cleanser. It helps gather the dirt, pollutants, and other impurities in your skin to be washed away. It also helps thicken a product and make the texture more creamy.
Being created from coconut oil means Cocamidopropyl Betaine is hydrating for the skin.
While Cocamidopropyl Betaine was believed to be an allergen, a study from 2012 disproved this. It found two compounds in unpure Cocamidopropyl Betaine to be the irritants: aminoamide and 3-dimethylaminopropylamine. High-grade and pure Cocamidopropyl Betaine did not induce allergic reactions during this study.
Learn more about Cocamidopropyl BetaineGlycerin (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
