What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningAloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Ethylhexyl Palmitate
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Cetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Stearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Dipalmitoyl Hydroxyproline
Skin Conditioning
Allantoin
Skin Conditioning
Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Lecithin
Emollient
Cocos Nucifera Water
Masking
Lactococcus Ferment Lysate
Skin Conditioning
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Ethylhexylglycerin
Skin ConditioningWater, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Glyceryl Stearate, Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Glycerin, Stearic Acid, Cetyl Alcohol, Stearyl Alcohol, Dipalmitoyl Hydroxyproline, Allantoin, Hyaluronic Acid, Lecithin, Cocos Nucifera Water, Lactococcus Ferment Lysate, Tocopherol, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylhexylglycerin
Water
Skin ConditioningAloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Oleic Acid
Emollient
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Cetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glycoproteins
Skin Conditioning
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Linoleic Acid
Cleansing
Soluble Collagen
Humectant
PEG-40 Stearate
Emulsifying
Palmitic Acid
Emollient
Ceteareth-20
CleansingSerum Albumin
HumectantStearic Acid
Cleansing
Fibronectin
Skin ConditioningTocopherol
Antioxidant
Parfum
Masking
Potassium Lactate
BufferingDisodium EDTA
Hyaluronic Acid
Humectant
Lactic Acid
Buffering
Limonene
Perfuming
Citric Acid
Buffering
Potassium Sorbate
Preservative
Sodium Benzoate
Masking
Water, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Oleic Acid, 1,2-Hexanediol, Cetyl Alcohol, Glycoproteins, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate, Linoleic Acid, Soluble Collagen, PEG-40 Stearate, Palmitic Acid, Ceteareth-20, Serum Albumin, Stearic Acid, Fibronectin, Tocopherol, Parfum, Potassium Lactate, Disodium EDTA, Hyaluronic Acid, Lactic Acid, Limonene, Citric Acid, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate
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 JuiceCetyl Alcohol is a fatty alcohol. Fatty Alcohols are most often used as an emollient or to thicken a product.
Its main roles are:
Though it has "alcohol" in the name, it is not related to denatured alcohol or ethyl alcohol.
The FDA allows products labeled "alcohol-free" to have fatty alcohols.
Learn more about Cetyl AlcoholGlyceryl 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 StearateHyaluronic acid (HA) is a glycosaminoglycan (basically a long sugar chain) that your skin already makes on its own. In your skin, HA lives in the extracellular matrix and acts as the body's moisture reservoir.
Topically, HA is a humectant that binds water and helps skin look more plump, smooth, and hydrated.
The only catch is that HA isn't a single thing; it actually comes in a wide range of molecular weights (~50 - 2,000+ kDA) and size matters.
Some clinical evidence links low molecular weight versions to improved wrinkle depth, elasticity, anti-inflammatory effects, and barrier repair.
This is why the best HA serums blend the two sizes together so you get the best of both worlds.
The majority of cosmetic HA is produced by bacterial fermentation, typically using Streptococcus or Bacillus strains. Typical use levels in skincare sit around 0.1-2%.
A clinical study using a 0.2% low-molecular weight HA gel showed improvement in facial seborrheic dermatitis with excellent tolerance.
These are some other common types of Hyaluronic Acid:
Learn more about Hyaluronic AcidStearic Acid is a fatty acid that is already found in your skin. It's one of the free fatty acids that works alongside ceramides and cholesterols to maintain your barrier.
In cosmetics, it is a multitasker:
Safety-wise, the CIR Expert Panel has concluded it to be safe in cosmetics when formulated to be non-irritating and non-sensitizing.
Free stearic acid is a C18 fatty acid that the Malassezia yeast can substrate, so this ingredient may not be fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Stearic AcidTocopherol (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 Water
