What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningSodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate
Cleansing
Lauryl Hydroxysultaine
CleansingSodium Chloride
MaskingGlycerin
Humectant
Sodium Gluconate
Skin ConditioningDimethiconol
Emollient
Parfum
Masking
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingCitric Acid
Buffering
Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride
Skin ConditioningGlycol Distearate
Emollient
Tea-Dodecylbenzenesulfonate
CleansingDisodium EDTA
PEG-45m
HumectantPPG-7
Skin ConditioningLactic Acid
Buffering
Zinc Gluconate
Skin Conditioning
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Hydrolyzed Yeast Protein
Skin ConditioningHexyl Cinnamal
Perfuming
Limonene
Perfuming
Linalool
Perfuming
Mica
Cosmetic ColorantCI 77891
Cosmetic ColorantWater, Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate, Lauryl Hydroxysultaine, Sodium Chloride, Glycerin, Sodium Gluconate, Dimethiconol, Parfum, Sodium Benzoate, Carbomer, Citric Acid, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Glycol Distearate, Tea-Dodecylbenzenesulfonate, Disodium EDTA, PEG-45m, PPG-7, Lactic Acid, Zinc Gluconate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Niacinamide, Hydrolyzed Yeast Protein, Hexyl Cinnamal, Limonene, Linalool, Mica, CI 77891
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 GlycerinTocopheryl Acetate is a stable, shelf-friendly form of vitamin E.
Formulators love it because plain vitamin E oxidizes quickly once it hits air. This acetate version stays stable and resists going off, helping to extend a product's shelf life.
It's actually inactive on its own and works like a slow-release "storage" form; the enzymes in your skin called esterases gradually convert it into active vitamin E over time.
One in vivo study showed 5% of the acetate in the living layer of the epidermis converted to vitamin E after 5 days of application. This study also found the skin gained protection against UV damage even though the conversion was slow and small.
Once converted, vitamin E acts as a skin's main fat-soluble antioxidant that fights free radicals to protect skin from damage.
Topical vitamin E generally boosts the skin's photoprotection, and it reduced UV-damage in animal models.
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.
Overall, it has a pretty solid safety profile and has been found to be non-irritating and non-comedogenic. Allergic reactions may happen but stay rare due to how widely the ingredient gets used.
The concentration will vary depending on the formula; industry data shows 0.1% in baby lotions, 3% in lipsticks, and 5% in foot powders. You can also find this ingredient at 100% in a pure vitamin E oil.
Most leave-on skincare keeps it at the lower end, often between 0.5-1%.
Learn more about Tocopheryl Acetate
