What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningPanthenol
Skin Conditioning
Pentylene Glycol
Skin Conditioning
Glycerin
Humectant
Propanediol
Solvent
Niacinamide
Smoothing
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
Ectoin
Skin Conditioning
Amylopectin
Lithothamnion Calcareum Extract
Skin ConditioningBeta-Glucan
Skin Conditioning
Phospholipids
Skin Conditioning
Sphingolipids
Emollient
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract
Emollient
Bioflavonoids
Skin ConditioningBrassica Oleracea Italica Extract
AstringentSodium PCA
Humectant
Lysine
Skin ConditioningHistidine
Humectant
Arginine
Masking
Aspartic Acid
Masking
Threonine
Serine
Masking
Glutamic Acid
Humectant
Proline
Skin Conditioning
Glycine
Buffering
Alanine
Masking
Valine
MaskingIsoleucine
Skin ConditioningLeucine
Skin ConditioningTyrosine
MaskingPhenylalanine
Masking
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingAcacia Senegal Gum
Masking1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Sodium Citrate
BufferingP-Anisic Acid
Masking
Lactic Acid
Buffering
Water, Panthenol, Pentylene Glycol, Glycerin, Propanediol, Niacinamide, Butylene Glycol, Ectoin, Amylopectin, Lithothamnion Calcareum Extract, Beta-Glucan, Phospholipids, Sphingolipids, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Bioflavonoids, Brassica Oleracea Italica Extract, Sodium PCA, Lysine, Histidine, Arginine, Aspartic Acid, Threonine, Serine, Glutamic Acid, Proline, Glycine, Alanine, Valine, Isoleucine, Leucine, Tyrosine, Phenylalanine, Allantoin, Xanthan Gum, Acacia Senegal Gum, 1,2-Hexanediol, Caprylyl Glycol, Tocopherol, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate, Sodium Citrate, P-Anisic Acid, Lactic Acid
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Pentylene Glycol (1,2-pentanediol) is a multitasking little diol with three main roles in a formula:
Research on alkanediols (the family pentylene glycol belongs to) show they work by disrupting microbial cell membranes. This disruption helps the primary preservative system in a product work more effectively at lower doses.
On the safety side, the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel has concluded this ingredient to be safe as used in current cosmetic practices + concentrations.
Typical use levels in a formula run about 1-5%.
Learn more about Pentylene GlycolPhospholipids are a family of skin-identical lipids that makeup the structural backbone of every cell membrane in your body.
In cosmetics, they function as skin conditioning agents with emulsifier and surfactant properties. They're typically sourced from soybean or sunflower lecithin (or sometimes egg yolk or marine sources).
Because they mirror the lipids naturally found in the deeper layers of your skin, topical phospholipids help reinforce the lipid matrix, reduce transepidermal water loss, and leave skin feeling conditioned.
They're also used to form liposomes, or tiny self-assembling vesible used to stabilize actives like vitamin c or retinol. This helps these ingredients integrate into the upper layers of skin more easily.
Phospholipids are compatible with everything and the CIR Expert Panel has concluded them to be safe at current use levels.
Some types of phospholipids include:
Learn more about PhospholipidsSodium PCA (the salt of PCA) is one of the most well-established humectants in skincare.
Why is it so special? Your skin already makes it naturally; it's a natural component of your skin's Natural Moisturizing Factor (NMF), or the mix of water-binding compounds inside your skin cells that keeps things soft and hydrated.
As a cosmetic ingredient, it grabs water and holds it in the upper layers of skin to smooth roughness and ease dehydration.
There's some clinical support for the NMF approach with a study showing that a cream built to mimic the skin's NMF significantly boosted hydration.
Safety-wise, this ingredient non-irritating, non-comedogenic, and non-phototoxic in testing, with minimal skin absorption.
It also works really well with other hydrators like glycerin or hyaluronic acid, and typical usage is somewhere between 0.2-4%.
Learn more about Sodium PCAWater. 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
