What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningLaureth-1 Phosphate
Glycerin
Humectant
Lauryl Phosphate
EmulsifyingSodium Laureth Sulfate
Cleansing
PEG-120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate
Emulsifying
PPG-3 Caprylyl Ether
SolventLauryl Hydroxysultaine
CleansingGlycol Distearate
Emollient
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Extract
Perfuming
Citric Acid
Buffering
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
PEG-100 Stearate
PEG-160 Sorbitan Triisostearate
Cleansing
Alcohol Denat.
Antimicrobial
Sodium Chloride
MaskingSodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate
Cleansing
Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Emulsion StabilisingPotassium Hydroxide
BufferingDimethicone
Emollient
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Oil
Antioxidant
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningDisodium EDTA
Acanthopanax Senticosus Root Extract
Skin ConditioningCentella Asiatica Extract
Cleansing
Panax Ginseng Root Extract
Emollient
Asparagus Cochinchinensis Root Extract
Skin ConditioningPolygonum Multiflorum Root Extract
Skin ConditioningLonicera Japonica Flower Extract
Skin ConditioningCamellia Japonica Seed Oil
Emollient
Water, Laureth-1 Phosphate, Glycerin, Lauryl Phosphate, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, PEG-120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate, PPG-3 Caprylyl Ether, Lauryl Hydroxysultaine, Glycol Distearate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Extract, Citric Acid, 1,2-Hexanediol, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, PEG-160 Sorbitan Triisostearate, Alcohol Denat., Sodium Chloride, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Potassium Hydroxide, Dimethicone, Butylene Glycol, Caprylyl Glycol, Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Oil, Ethylhexylglycerin, Disodium EDTA, Acanthopanax Senticosus Root Extract, Centella Asiatica Extract, Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Asparagus Cochinchinensis Root Extract, Polygonum Multiflorum Root Extract, Lonicera Japonica Flower Extract, Camellia Japonica Seed Oil
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
Humectant
Myristic Acid
Cleansing
Palmitic Acid
Emollient
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Potassium Hydroxide
BufferingLauric Acid
Cleansing
Cocamide DEA
Emulsifying
Beeswax
Emulsion Stabilising
Glycol Distearate
Emollient
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
PEG-100 Stearate
Parfum
Masking
Benzyl Glycol
SolventSodium Chloride
MaskingEthylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningButylene Glycol
Humectant
Dipropylene Glycol
HumectantButyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Hamamelis Virginiana Leaf Water
Astringent
Bacillus/Glutamic Acid Ferment Filtrate
Skin Conditioning1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Disodium EDTA
Sodium Hyaluronate
Humectant
Tocopheryl Acetate
Antioxidant
Propanediol
Solvent
Fomes Officinalis Extract
Skin ProtectingMacadamia Integrifolia Seed Oil
Skin Conditioning
Alcohol Denat.
Antimicrobial
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Hydrolyzed Glycosaminoglycans
HumectantSodium Hydroxide
BufferingSodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer
Humectant
Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Hydroxypropyltrimonium Hyaluronate
Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate
Humectant
Water, Glycerin, Myristic Acid, Palmitic Acid, Stearic Acid, Potassium Hydroxide, Lauric Acid, Cocamide DEA, Beeswax, Glycol Distearate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Parfum, Benzyl Glycol, Sodium Chloride, Ethylhexylglycerin, Butylene Glycol, Dipropylene Glycol, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Hamamelis Virginiana Leaf Water, Bacillus/Glutamic Acid Ferment Filtrate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Disodium EDTA, Sodium Hyaluronate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Propanediol, Fomes Officinalis Extract, Macadamia Integrifolia Seed Oil, Alcohol Denat., Propylene Glycol, Hydrolyzed Glycosaminoglycans, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Hydroxypropyltrimonium Hyaluronate, Hyaluronic Acid, Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate
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
Alcohol Denat. is an alcohol with a denaturant property. It is created by mixing ethanol with other additives.
The "denat" part just means "denatured"; common denaturants include Denatonium Benzoate, t-butyl alcohol, and Diethyl Phthalate. This step makes the alcohol undrinkable (and lets brand skip taxes related to beverage alcohol).
This ingredient gets a bad rep because it is irritating and drying due to its astringent property. Astringents draw out natural oils in tissue to constrict pores and dry out your skin.
However, alcohol denat. is not all that bad.
Due to its low molecular weight, alcohol denat. tends to evaporate quickly. One study on pig skin found half of applied alcohol evaporated in 10 seconds and less than 3% stayed on skin.
This also helps other ingredients become better absorbed upon application.
Studies are conflicted about whether this ingredient causes skin dehydration. One study from 2005 found adding emollients to propanol-based sanitizer decreased skin dryness and irritation. Another study found irritation only occurs if your skin is already damaged.
Small amounts of alcohol are generally tolerated by oily skin or people who live in humid environments.
The rule of thumb is this ingredient will probably not affect your skin much if it is near the end of an ingredients list.
One thing to note:
People with ALDH2 (aldehyde dehydrogenase 2) deficiency may experience skin irritation from continued alcohol use. About 8% of the world's population have this deficiency.
The Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel has determined denatured alcohols to be safe for use in concentrations between 0.05% and 12% (depending on which denaturant is used).
Also...
This ingredient has antimicrobial and solvent properties.
The antimicrobial property helps preserve products and increase their shelf life. As a solvent, it helps dissolve other ingredients.
Look for formulas that contain glycerin, hyaluronic acid, or panthenol if you want to offset any drying effect.
This ingredient will trip away your skin's natural oils/lipids that help it lock in moisture. This can worsen dryness, trigger eczema flare-ups, and aggravate rosacea.
Be sure to patch test any product with this ingredient if you have dry or sensitive skin, eczema, or rosacea.
Learn more about Alcohol Denat.Butylene 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 GlycolDisodium EDTA is a chelating agent. It grabs onto and deactivates metal ions that sneak into your products from water, packaging, or air.
This ingredient mainly works behind the scenes and helps with:
On top of that, this ingredient can counteract the effects of hard water by binding to the minerals in it.
One thing worth knowing is that Disodium EDTA has been shown to be a mild penetration enhancer. It can help other ingredients absorb into skin more effectively which can be a double-edged sword (great for actives, but can also make the active too strong if you have sensitive skin).
Clinical patch testing showed no significant skin irritation at typical use concentrations and minimal dermal absorption.
You'll most likely see this ingredient near the end of an ingredient list. It's typically found in concentrations less than 1%.
Learn more about Disodium EDTAEthylhexylglycerin 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 GlycerinGlyceryl Stearate is made by reacting glycerin with stearic acid (typically sourced from plant oils like palm or coconut). It's an emulsifier, emollient, and mild occlusive.
Emulsifiers help ingredients like oil and water stay mixed so your formula stays nicely blended and uniform in texture.
This ingredient is typically used in concentrations between 1-10%. Studies have found it to be non-sensitizing, non-phototoxic, and non-photoallergenic.
A close cousin of this ingredient is Glyceryl Stearate SE ("self-emulsifying"). This just has a small amount of sodium or potassium stearate added so it can emulsify without a co-emulsifier.
Since this ingredient is an ester of a C18 fatty acid, it may not be fungal acne safe. The Malassezia yeast can potentially metabolize within the C11-C24 range.
Fun fact: The human body also creates Glyceryl Stearate naturally.
Learn more about Glyceryl StearateGlycol Distearate serves as a pearlizing or opacifying agent in cosmetic products.
It's often included in cleansers and haircare products to give them a lustrous or shimmering appearance.
It is derived from stearic acid, a natural fatty acid commonly found in vegetable oils and animal fats.
Glycol Distearate isn't fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Glycol DistearatePeg-100 Stearate is an emollient and emulsifier. As an emollient, it helps keep skin soft by trapping moisture in. On the other hand, emulsifiers help prevent oil and water from separating in a product.
PEGS are a hydrophilic polyether compound . There are 100 ethylene oxide monomers in Peg-100 Stearate. Peg-100 Stearate is polyethylene glycol ester of stearic acid.
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 HydroxideChances are, you eat sodium chloride every day. Sodium Chloride is also known as table salt. This ingredient has many purposes in skincare: thickener, emulsifier, and exfoliator.
You'll most likely find this ingredient in cleansers where it is used to create a gel-like texture. As an emulsifier, it also prevents ingredients from separating.
You might see people debate whether Sodium Chloride is comedogenic, but there actually haven't been any comedogenic tests done on it. Either way, the overall formulation of a product matters a lot more than any single ingredient.
You might see this ingredient used in scrubs as a primary exfoliating ingredient.
Learn more about Sodium ChlorideWater. 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
