La Roche-Posay Lipikar Gel Urea 30% Versus La Roche-Posay Lipikar Urea 10% Roughness Smoothing Lotion
What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
No concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningUrea
Buffering
Glycerin
Humectant
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Brassica Campestris Seed Oil
Skin Conditioning
Dicaprylyl Carbonate
EmollientIsopropyl Palmitate
Emollient
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Glycine
Buffering
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Silica
Abrasive
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Sorbitan Oleate
Emulsifying
Sorbitan Tristearate
EmulsifyingGlyceryl Stearate
Emollient
PEG-100 Stearate
PEG-20 Methyl Glucose Sesquistearate
Emulsifying
Isohexadecane
EmollientSodium Hydroxide
BufferingSodium Lactate
Buffering
Myristic Acid
Cleansing
Palmitic Acid
Emollient
Mannose
HumectantHydroxyacetophenone
Antioxidant
Hydroxyethylpiperazine Ethane Sulfonic Acid
BufferingCaprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Citric Acid
Buffering
Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingPolysorbate 80
Emulsifying
Acrylamide/Sodium Acryloyldimethyltaurate Copolymer
Emulsion StabilisingAcrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Emulsion StabilisingTocopherol
Antioxidant
Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate
Antioxidant
Chlorhexidine Digluconate
Antimicrobial
Water, Urea, Glycerin, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Brassica Campestris Seed Oil, Dicaprylyl Carbonate, Isopropyl Palmitate, Pentylene Glycol, Glycine, Cetearyl Alcohol, Silica, Stearic Acid, Allantoin, Sorbitan Oleate, Sorbitan Tristearate, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, PEG-20 Methyl Glucose Sesquistearate, Isohexadecane, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Lactate, Myristic Acid, Palmitic Acid, Mannose, Hydroxyacetophenone, Hydroxyethylpiperazine Ethane Sulfonic Acid, Caprylyl Glycol, Citric Acid, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Xanthan Gum, Polysorbate 80, Acrylamide/Sodium Acryloyldimethyltaurate Copolymer, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Tocopherol, Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Chlorhexidine Digluconate
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Caprylyl Glycol is a humectant, skin conditioner, emollient, and preservative booster derived from either caprylic acid or synthetically created.
Typical use levels vary from 0.3-1% as a preservative booster and go up to 2% to condition skin.
Because it is not a free-fatty acid or alcohol, this ingredient is fungal acne safe (there's nothing for Malassezia to feed on).
Learn more about Caprylyl GlycolGlycerin (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 GlycerinWe don't have a description for Hydroxyethylpiperazine Ethane Sulfonic Acid yet.
Pentylene glycol is typically used within a product to thicken it. It also adds a smooth, soft, and moisturizing feel to the product. It is naturally found in plants such as sugar beets.
The hydrophilic trait of Pentylene Glycol makes it a humectant. As a humectant, Pentylene Glycol helps draw moisture from the air to your skin. This can help keep your skin hydrated.
This property also makes Pentylene Glycol a great texture enhancer. It can also help thicken or stabilize a product.
Pentylene Glycol also acts as a mild preservative and helps to keep a product microbe-free.
Some people may experience mild eye and skin irritation from Pentylene Glycol. We always recommend speaking with a professional about using this ingredient in your routine.
Pentylene Glycol has a low molecular weight and is part of the 1,2-glycol family.
Learn more about Pentylene GlycolSodium 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 HydroxideUrea is also called carbamide and is the diamide of carbonic acid. In cosmetics, urea is used to hydrate the skin. It also provides exfoliation in higher concentrations.
As a humectant, urea helps draw moisture from the air and from deep within the skin. This helps hydrate your skin. Studies show urea is an effective moisturizer for dry skin conditions. 40% urea is typical in medications for treating eczema and other skin conditions.
Urea has the strongest exfoliation effect in concentrations higher than 10%. It is a keratolytic agent, meaning it breaks down the keratin protein in the top layer of skin. This helps remove dead skin cells and flaking skin.
In medicine, urea has been shown to help increase the potency of other ingredients, such as fungal treatments.
Humans and animals use urea to metabolize nitrogen-containing compounds. Urea is highly soluble in water. Once dissolved, it is neither acidic nor alkaline.
Urea is actually one of the more well-studied and well-supported ingredients out there if you have eczema.
Clinical trials have shown that urea creams in the 5 - 10% range can:
Higher concentrations (20 -30%) can also help with thickened, scaly patches but is also more likely to sting on active flares.
Skip urea if you have rosacea. The AAD (American Academy of Dermatology) lists it alongside alcohol, menthol, and fragrance as a potential irritant for rosacea-prone skin. Urea's keratolytic and penetration-enhancing properties can trigger stinging, burning, and redness.
As always, your skin is unique, so definitely check in with your dermatologist.
Learn more about UreaWater. 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
