What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycereth-26
Humectant
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Glycerin
Humectant
Arginine
Masking
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingEthylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningPolyglyceryl-10 Laurate
Skin Conditioning
Adenosine
Skin Conditioning
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Copper Tripeptide-1
Skin Conditioning
Hexapeptide-11
Skin Conditioning
Hexapeptide-9
Skin Conditioning
Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4
Skin Conditioning
Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1
Skin Conditioning
Tripeptide-1
Skin Conditioning
Water
Skin ConditioningButylene Glycol
Humectant
Glycerin
Humectant
Dipropylene Glycol
Humectant1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Raffinose
Skin ConditioningBetaine
Humectant
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingEthylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningTromethamine
BufferingAdenosine
Skin Conditioning
Hydrolyzed Sclerotium Gum
HumectantDisodium EDTA
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Cynanchum Atratum Extract
Skin ConditioningHydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Polyglyceryl-10 Laurate
Skin Conditioning
Acetyl Hexapeptide-8
Humectant
Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5
Skin Conditioning
Acetyl Tetrapeptide-5
Humectant
Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4
Skin Conditioning
Acetyl Hexapeptide-38
Skin Conditioning
Nonapeptide-1
Skin Conditioning
Pentapeptide-18
Skin Conditioning
Water, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Dipropylene Glycol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Niacinamide, Raffinose, Betaine, Carbomer, Ethylhexylglycerin, Tromethamine, Adenosine, Hydrolyzed Sclerotium Gum, Disodium EDTA, Allantoin, Cynanchum Atratum Extract, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Sodium Hyaluronate, Caprylyl Glycol, Polyglyceryl-10 Laurate, Acetyl Hexapeptide-8, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5, Acetyl Tetrapeptide-5, Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4, Acetyl Hexapeptide-38, Nonapeptide-1, Pentapeptide-18
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
1,2-Hexanediol is a synthetic liquid and another multi-functional powerhouse.
It is a:
- Humectant, drawing moisture into the skin
- Emollient, helping to soften skin
- Solvent, dispersing and stabilizing formulas
- Preservative booster, enhancing the antimicrobial activity of other preservatives
Adenosine is in every living organism. It is one of four components in nucleic acids that helps store our DNA.
Adenosine has many benefits when used. These benefits include hydrating the skin, smoothing skin, and reducing wrinkles. Once applied, adenosine increases collagen production. It also helps with improving firmness and tissue repair.
Studies have found adenosine may also help with wound healing.
In skincare products, Adenosine is usually derived from yeast.
Learn more about AdenosineButylene Glycol (or BG) is used within cosmetic products for a few different reasons:
Overall, Butylene Glycol is a safe and well-rounded ingredient that works well with other ingredients.
Though this ingredient works well with most skin types, some people with sensitive skin may experience a reaction such as allergic rashes, closed comedones, or itchiness.
Learn more about Butylene GlycolCaprylyl 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, this ingredient is fungal acne safe (there's nothing for Malassezia to feed on).
Learn more about Caprylyl GlycolCarbomer is a high-molecular weight polymer of acrylic acid. It is used to form gels and thicken formulas.
Due to its large molecular size, carbomer has minimal skin penetration and is considered an inert ingredient.
A high amount of carbomer can cause pilling or balling up of products. Don't worry, most products contain 1% or less of carbomer.
Learn more about CarbomerEthylhexylglycerin is created from glycerin. It is a multitasker ingredient that:
The CIR Expert Panel found minimal skin absorption or sensitization of any kind in a safety assessment. Though this ingredient is considered well-tolerated, a small number of cases of allergic dermatitis have been published since 2002. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure.
Industry-reported use ranges from 8% in rinse-off products and 2% in leave-on formulations.
Learn more about EthylhexylglycerinGlycerin (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 GlycerinYou might know this ingredient as Matrixyl. It is a synthetic peptide made up of five amino acids attached to a palmitic acid, a fatty acid that helps it absorb into skin more easily.
As a signal peptide, Matrixyl acts like a little messenger. Once it reaches your skin cells, it tells them to ramp up production of collagen, elastin, and other proteins that keep skin looking firm and smooth.
A 12 week clinical study found that a moisturizer containing just 3 ppm of Matrixyl led to a significant improvement in fine-lines and wrinkles. Another study showed an 18% reduction in wrinkle depth, 37% reduction in wrinkle thickness, and a 21% improvement in skin firmness after just 28 days of twice-daily use.
The coolest part is that it works at incredibly low concentrations (like 0.0003%) and it plays well with other actives.
The CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review) panel found it to be non-sensitizing across multiple tests and human patch tests also showed no irritation or sensitization.
Fun fact: Matrixyl was originally developed by French company Sederma and Procter & Gamble.
Read more about other common types of peptides here:
Learn more about Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4Polyglyceryl-10 Laurate is a cleansing agent and emulsifier.
It rounds up dirt, oil, and grime, so they can be rinsed off easily as a cleanser.
On the emulsifier side, it keeps your formula smooth and well-mixed by playing peacekeeper for ingredients that don't naturally get along (like oil and water).
Because it has a C12 (lauric acid) fatty acid chain, this ingredient can potentially feed the Malassezia yeast that causes fungal acne. The Malassezia yeast prefers esters with C11-C24 fatty acids.
This ingredient is an ester of lauric acid and Polyglycerin-10.
Learn more about Polyglyceryl-10 LaurateWater. 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
