What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Glycerin
Humectant
Cetearyl Olivate
Water
Skin ConditioningCetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate Citrate
Emollient
Sorbitan Olivate
Emulsifying
Opuntia Ficus-Indica Seed Oil
Emollient
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Antimicrobial
Albizia Julibrissin Bark Extract
MaskingHydrolyzed Adansonia Digitata Seed Extract
Hibiscus Sabdariffa Flower Extract
Skin ConditioningCurcuma Longa Root Extract
Masking
Saccharide Isomerate
Humectant
Darutoside
Skin ConditioningTocopherol
Antioxidant
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Benzoic Acid
Masking
Dehydroacetic Acid
Preservative
Sodium Phytate
Citric Acid
Buffering
Sodium Citrate
BufferingBenzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingSodium Benzoate
Masking
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Glycerin, Cetearyl Olivate, Water, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Sorbitan Olivate, Opuntia Ficus-Indica Seed Oil, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Albizia Julibrissin Bark Extract, Hydrolyzed Adansonia Digitata Seed Extract, Hibiscus Sabdariffa Flower Extract, Curcuma Longa Root Extract, Saccharide Isomerate, Darutoside, Tocopherol, Tocopheryl Acetate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Benzoic Acid, Dehydroacetic Acid, Sodium Phytate, Citric Acid, Sodium Citrate, Benzyl Alcohol, Xanthan Gum, Sodium Benzoate, Potassium Sorbate
Water
Skin ConditioningShea Butter Ethyl Esters
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Emollient
Albizia Julibrissin Bark Extract
MaskingDarutoside
Skin ConditioningAlcohol Denat.
Antimicrobial
Terminalia Ferdinandiana Fruit Extract
Antioxidant
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Hydrogenated Starch Hydrolysate
HumectantAscophyllum Nodosum Extract
Skin ConditioningAsparagopsis Armata Extract
Skin ProtectingTocopherol
Antioxidant
Benzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Dehydroacetic Acid
Preservative
Sodium Hydroxide
BufferingWater, Shea Butter Ethyl Esters, Glycerin, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Albizia Julibrissin Bark Extract, Darutoside, Alcohol Denat., Terminalia Ferdinandiana Fruit Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Hydrogenated Starch Hydrolysate, Ascophyllum Nodosum Extract, Asparagopsis Armata Extract, Tocopherol, Benzyl Alcohol, Dehydroacetic Acid, Sodium Hydroxide
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
We don't have a description for Albizia Julibrissin Bark Extract yet.
Benzyl 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 AlcoholWe don't have a description for Darutoside yet.
Dehydroacetic Acid is a synthetic preservative that keeps your products safe from microbes.
As an organic acid, it penetrates microbial cell walls and disrupts cellular metabolism. This makes it effective against bacteria, yeast, and mold.
It is effective at low concentrations (<0.6%). Clinical studies have found it to be non-irritating, non-sensitizing, and non-photosensitizing.
Learn more about Dehydroacetic AcidGlycerin (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 Hyaluronate is the salt form of hyaluronic acid. It is a long sugar chain that is naturally found in your skin, joints, and connective tissue that maintains hydration and elasticity.
In skincare, it works as a humectant. It pulls water from the environment and deeper layers of skin and binds it to the surface.
Interestingly, the size of the molecule affects its behavior:
Some clinical evidence links low molecular weight versions to improved wrinkle depth, elasticity, anti-inflammatory effects, and barrier repair.
Many serums use a blend of both weights so you can get surface hydration plus longer-lasting and deeper effects.
You'll typically see concentrations between 0.1-2% for this ingredient.
Learn more about Sodium HyaluronateTocopherol is a fat-soluble antioxidant known as Vitamin E.
You'll find this ingredient in the vast majority of skincare (for good reason). It works to neutralize free radicals, or unstable molecules generated by UV exposure, pollution, and other environmental stressors, before they can cause oxidative damage to your skin cells.
Topically applied tocopherol has been shown to protect against UV damage by ramping up the skin's own natural defense enzymes.
It also acts as a skin conditioning agent; some studies show that regular topical use can improve the skin's water-binding capacity over 2-4 weeks.
This ingredient is especially loved for being a team player. When combined with Vitamin C, the photoprotective effect of both ingredients roughly doubles and the combo also helps reduce UV-induced DNA damage.
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.
In formulations, it also serves as a stabilizer that helps protect other oxidation-prone ingredients from degrading.
Concentrations usually range from 0.1-1% in most leave-on products.
Learn more about TocopherolWater. 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
