What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Palmitic Acid
Emollient
Lauric Acid
Cleansing
Potassium Hydroxide
BufferingStearic Acid
Cleansing
Myristic Acid
Cleansing
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Potassium Cocoyl Glycinate
Potassium Chloride
Polyquaternium-7
Disodium EDTA
Citrus Paradisi Peel Oil
Masking
Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Peel Oil
Masking
Potassium Cocoate
Emulsifying
Coconut Acid
Cleansing
Methylparaben
Preservative
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Epilobium Fleischeri Extract
Skin ConditioningPropylparaben
Preservative
Disteardimonium Hectorite
StabilisingPotassium Sorbate
Preservative
Citric Acid
Buffering
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial
Water, Glycerin, Palmitic Acid, Lauric Acid, Potassium Hydroxide, Stearic Acid, Myristic Acid, Butylene Glycol, Potassium Cocoyl Glycinate, Potassium Chloride, Polyquaternium-7, Disodium EDTA, Citrus Paradisi Peel Oil, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Peel Oil, Potassium Cocoate, Coconut Acid, Methylparaben, Sodium Hyaluronate, Epilobium Fleischeri Extract, Propylparaben, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Potassium Sorbate, Citric Acid, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Water
Skin ConditioningMyristic Acid
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Palmitic Acid
Emollient
Potassium Hydroxide
BufferingLauric Acid
Cleansing
Kaolin
Abrasive
Potassium Cocoyl Glycinate
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Methylpropanediol
SolventGlyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Decyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningPentasodium Triphosphate
BufferingTetrasodium EDTA
Polyquaternium-7
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Euglena Gracilis Extract
Skin ConditioningAscorbyl Glucoside
Antioxidant
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Water, Myristic Acid, Glycerin, Palmitic Acid, Potassium Hydroxide, Lauric Acid, Kaolin, Potassium Cocoyl Glycinate, Stearic Acid, Methylpropanediol, Glyceryl Stearate, Decyl Glucoside, Ethylhexylglycerin, Pentasodium Triphosphate, Tetrasodium EDTA, Polyquaternium-7, Niacinamide, Euglena Gracilis Extract, Ascorbyl Glucoside, Tocopherol, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate
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 GlycerinLauric Acid is a saturated fatty acid naturally found in coconut oil, palm kernel oil, and even breast milk.
In cosmetics, it is an:
Lab studies have found that lauric acid is surprisingly good at killing acne-causing bacteria. However, these tests were done on bacteria in a petri dish and not on real skin, so we can't say for certain it works the same in a formulation on a real face.
The comedogenic rating of 4 comes from the 1972 rabbit ear model using undiluted ingredients. Comedogenicity is highly individual and one comedogenic ingredient cannot predict how a formula will behave on skin.
This ingredient is not fungal acne safe and research has confirmed Malassezia can use it as a food source.
Learn more about Lauric AcidMyristic Acid is a saturated fatty acid. It is naturally found in milk fat. Other sources include palm oil, coconut oil, and butter fat.
Myristic Acid is an emulsifer and cleanser. As an emulsifer, it stabilizes a product by preventing ingredients from separating. Myristic Acid helps clean your skin by acting as a surfactant. It tends to gather oil and dirt on your skin to be easily rinsed away.
One study from 2021 found Myristic Acid to have anti-inflammatory properties.
Learn more about Myristic AcidPalmitic Acid is a fatty acid naturally found in our skin and in many plant and animal sources. In cosmetics, it is usually derived from palm oil. It serves many purposes in skincare, acting as a cleanser, emollient, and emulsifier.
Interestingly, topically applied Palmitic Acid can be elongated into longer chain fatty acids and ceramides. A 2019 study found low levels of Palmitic Acid lead to slower development of cells, suggesting it plays a role in keeping your skin's renewal process on track.
The CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review) panel determined it safe as used in cosmetics at concentrations up to 13%. It is non-irritating and non-sensitizing in clinical studies.
The culprit behind fungal acne, the Malassezia yeast, feeds on fatty acids with carbon chain lengths between C11-C24. Palmitic Acid, at C16, falls right into that sweet spot.
In vitro studies have shown that Palmitic Acid is one of the fatty acids that induce rapid Malassezia growth in lab settings.
It's worth noting that what feeds yeast in a lab doesn't necessarily feed it on your face since formulation and your skin's chemistry play a bigger role.
Learn more about Palmitic AcidPolyquaternium-7 is a light to clear colored liquid. It is commonly found in haircare products for its film-forming and anti-static properties.
According to a manufacturer, it is a non-paraben and specially developed for negatively charged surfactant systems. This makes it a great hairstyle holder and helps to improve wet hair detangling without adding buildup.
Potassium Cocoyl Glycinate is an amino acid-based surfactant and cleaning agent. This ingredient can be derived from animals or plants. It may also be synthetically created from fatty acids of the coconut and glycine.
Potassium Cocoyl Glycinate is a gentle surfactant. Surfactants help gather the dirt, oil, and other pollutants from your skin to be rinsed away. It is a mild cleanser and naturally produces foam.
Potassium hydroxide is commonly known as caustic potash. It is used to fix the pH of a product or as a cleaning agent in soap. In cleansers, it is used for the saponification of oils.
Sapnification is the process of creating fatty acid metal salts from triglycerides and a strong base. During this process, Potassium Hydroxide is used up and is not present in the final product.
Using high concentrations of Potassium Hydroxide have shown to irritate the skin.
Learn more about Potassium HydroxidePotassium Sorbate is a preservative used to prevent yeast and mold in products. It is commonly found in both cosmetic and food products.
This ingredient comes from potassium salt derived from sorbic acid. Sorbic acid is a natural antibiotic and effective against fungus.
Both potassium sorbate and sorbic acid can be found in baked goods, cheeses, dried meats, dried fruit, ice cream, pickles, wine, yogurt, and more.
You'll often find this ingredient used with other preservatives.
Learn more about Potassium SorbateStearic Acid is a fatty acid that is already found in your skin. It's one of the free fatty acids that works alongside ceramides and cholesterols to maintain your barrier.
In cosmetics, it is a multitasker:
Safety-wise, the CIR Expert Panel has concluded it to be safe in cosmetics when formulated to be non-irritating and non-sensitizing.
Free stearic acid is a C18 fatty acid that the Malassezia yeast can substrate, so this ingredient may not be fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Stearic AcidWater. 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
