What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningButylene Glycol
Humectant
Hydroxyethylcellulose
Emulsion StabilisingGlycerin
Humectant
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingGlycolic Acid
Buffering
Urea
Buffering
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Bisabolol
Antioxidant
Colloidal Oatmeal
Absorbent
Maltodextrin
Absorbent
Carica Papaya Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningPotassium Sorbate
Preservative
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial
Chrysanthemum Parthenium Extract
Skin ConditioningGlycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract
Bleaching
Salix Nigra Bark Extract
Skin ProtectingDisodium Phosphate
BufferingPolysorbate 60
Emulsifying
Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate
Antimicrobial
Sodium Phosphate
BufferingCitric Acid
Buffering
Water, Butylene Glycol, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Glycerin, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Hydroxide, Glycolic Acid, Urea, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Bisabolol, Colloidal Oatmeal, Maltodextrin, Carica Papaya Fruit Extract, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Chrysanthemum Parthenium Extract, Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract, Salix Nigra Bark Extract, Disodium Phosphate, Polysorbate 60, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Sodium Phosphate, Citric 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.
Glycerin (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 GlycerinSodium Hydroxide is also known as lye or caustic soda. It is used to adjust the pH of products; many ingredients require a specific pH to be effective.
In small amounts, sodium hydroxide is considered safe to use. However, large amounts may cause chemical burns due to its high alkaline.
Your skin has a natural pH and acid mantle. This acid mantle helps prevent harmful bacteria from breaking through. The acid mantle also helps keep your skin hydrated.
"Alkaline" refers to a high pH level. A low pH level would be considered acidic.
Learn more about Sodium HydroxideWater. 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
