What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningCocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Decyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingAloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Chloride
MaskingLactic Acid
Buffering
Coco-Glucoside
Cleansing
Glyceryl Oleate
Emollient
Inulin
Skin Conditioning
Linoleic Acid
Cleansing
Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract
Masking
Linolenic Acid
Cleansing
Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides Citrate
Emollient
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Citric Acid
Buffering
Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate
Antioxidant
Disodium EDTA
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Water, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Decyl Glucoside, Glycerin, Xanthan Gum, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Sodium Chloride, Lactic Acid, Coco-Glucoside, Glyceryl Oleate, Inulin, Linoleic Acid, Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract, Linolenic Acid, Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides Citrate, Potassium Sorbate, Tocopherol, Sodium Benzoate, Panthenol, Citric Acid, Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Disodium EDTA, Tocopheryl Acetate
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Water
Skin ConditioningDecyl Glucoside
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Coco-Glucoside
Cleansing
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingSodium Cocoyl Glutamate
Cleansing
Glyceryl Oleate
Emollient
Saccharide Isomerate
Humectant
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Sodium Levulinate
Skin ConditioningHelianthus Annuus Seed Oil
Emollient
Sodium Astrocaryum Murumuruate
EmollientCarrageenan
Citric Acid
Buffering
Pelargonium Graveolens Flower Oil
Masking
Morinda Citrifolia Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningGlucose
Humectant
Sodium Phytate
Sparassis Crispa Extract
Emulsion StabilisingOcimum Basilicum Oil
Masking
Rosa Centifolia Flower Oil
Masking
Sodium Citrate
BufferingAlcohol
Antimicrobial
Sodium Gluconate
Skin ConditioningTocopherol
Antioxidant
Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides Citrate
Emollient
Citronellol
Perfuming
Geraniol
Perfuming
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Water, Decyl Glucoside, Glycerin, Coco-Glucoside, Xanthan Gum, Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Glyceryl Oleate, Saccharide Isomerate, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Levulinate, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Sodium Astrocaryum Murumuruate, Carrageenan, Citric Acid, Pelargonium Graveolens Flower Oil, Morinda Citrifolia Fruit Extract, Glucose, Sodium Phytate, Sparassis Crispa Extract, Ocimum Basilicum Oil, Rosa Centifolia Flower Oil, Sodium Citrate, Alcohol, Sodium Gluconate, Tocopherol, Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides Citrate, Citronellol, Geraniol
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice comes from leaves of the aloe plant. Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice is best known for helping to soothe sunburns. It is also anti-inflammatory, moisturizing, antiseptic, and can help heal wounds.
Aloe is packed with good stuff including Vitamins A, C, and E. These vitamins are antioxidants, which help fight free-radicals and the damage they may cause. Free-radicals are molecules that may damage your skin cells, such as pollution.
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice also contains sugars. These sugars come in the form of monosaccharides and polysaccharides, folic acid, and choline. These sugars are able to help bind moisture to skin.
It also contains minerals such as calcium, 12 anthraquinones, fatty acids, amino acids, and Vitamin B12.
Learn more about Aloe Barbadensis Leaf JuiceCitric Acid is an alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) naturally found in citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, and limes.
Like other AHAs, citric acid can exfoliate skin by breaking down the bonds that hold dead skin cells together. This helps reveal smoother and brighter skin underneath.
However, this exfoliating effect only happens at high concentrations (20%) which can be hard to find in cosmetic products.
Due to this, citric acid is usually included in small amounts as a pH adjuster. This helps keep products slightly more acidic and compatible with skin's natural pH.
In skincare formulas, citric acid can:
While it can provide some skin benefits, research shows lactic acid and glycolic acid are generally more effective and less irritating exfoliants.
Most citric acid used in skincare today is made by fermenting sugars (usually from molasses). This synthetic version is identical to the natural citrus form but easier to stabilize and use in formulations.
Read more about some other popular AHA's here:
Learn more about Citric AcidCoco-Glucoside is a surfactant, or a cleansing ingredient. It is made from glucose and coconut oil.
Surfactants help gather dirt, oil, and other pollutants from your skin to be rinsed away.
This ingredient is considered gentle and non-comedogenic. However, it may still be irritating for some.
Learn more about Coco-GlucosideDecyl Glucoside is a plant-derived surfactant and emulsion stabilizer. It is created by reacting glucose with the fatty acids from plants.
Like all surfactants, it works by lowering the surface tension between water and oil. This makes it so that dirt, sebum, and makeup can be lifted off your skin and rinsed away. It also produces a dense and creamy foam.
Because it has a neutral charge, it is compatible with a wide range of ingredients and stays stable across a broad pH range/water hardiness conditions.
Patch testing has shown it to have the lowest irritation potential among common cleansing surfactants (like SLS).
Typical use levels range from 5-20% in rinse-off cleansers.
One thing worth knowing: The American Contact Dermatitis Society named the parent family, alkyl glucosides, "Allergen of the Year" in 2017. The prevalence of allergy is pretty low but be sure to patch test if you've reacted to "gentle" or sulfate-free cleansers before.
This ingredient is fungal acne safe because the fatty alcohol portion of this ingredient is below the C11-24 chain length that Malassezia can metabolize.
Learn more about Decyl GlucosideGlycerin (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 GlycerinGlyceryl Oleate is the ester of glycerin and oleic acid. This ingredient is mainly an emollient and emulsifier.
Emollients soften and hydrate the skin by creating a thin film on top to trap in moisture. As an emulsifier, glyceryl oleate helps stabilize formulations by preventing ingredients such as oil and water from separating. According to a manufacturer, this ingredient helps helps thicken water-in-oil formulations, shower gels, and hair shampoos.
In some products, this ingredient may be used as a fragrance / perfuming ingredient. The scent of this ingredient is described to be "waxy".
Glyceryl oleate is created from oils rich in oleic acid, such as peanut oil and olive oil.
This ingredient may not be malassezia folliculitis safe.
Learn more about Glyceryl OleateHydrogenated Palm Glycerides Citrate isn't fungal acne safe.
Potassium 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 SorbateTocopherol (also known as Vitamin E) is a common antioxidant used to help protect the skin from free-radicals and strengthen the skin barrier. It's also fat soluble - this means our skin is great at absorbing it.
Vitamin E also helps keep your natural skin lipids healthy. Your lipid skin barrier naturally consists of lipids, ceramides, and fatty acids. Vitamin E offers extra protection for your skin’s lipid barrier, keeping your skin healthy and nourished.
Another benefit is a bit of UV protection. Vitamin E helps reduce the damage caused by UVB rays. (It should not replace your sunscreen). Combining it with Vitamin C can decrease sunburned cells and hyperpigmentation after UV exposure.
You might have noticed Vitamin E + C often paired together. This is because it is great at stabilizing Vitamin C. Using the two together helps increase the effectiveness of both ingredients.
There are often claims that Vitamin E can reduce/prevent scarring, but these claims haven't been confirmed by scientific research.
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 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
