What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Zinc Oxide
Cosmetic Colorant
Water
Skin ConditioningCaprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Masking
Glycerin
Humectant
C13-15 Alkane
SolventEthylhexyl Olivate
Skin Conditioning
Propanediol
Solvent
Polyglyceryl-3 Polyricinoleate
Emulsifying
Bis-Octyldodecyl Dimer Dilinoleate/Propanediol Copolymer
EmollientCocoglycerides
Emollient
Meadowfoam Estolide
Skin ConditioningDisteardimonium Hectorite
StabilisingJojoba Esters
Emollient
Hydrogenated Castor Oil
Emollient
Lactococcus Ferment Lysate
Skin Conditioning
Rhus Verniciflua Peel Wax
Squalane
Emollient
1,2-Hexanediol
Skin Conditioning
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin Conditioning
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Pyrus Malus Fruit Extract
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Chloride
MaskingLinoleic Acid
Cleansing
Betaine
Humectant
Sucrose
Humectant
Hydroxyacetophenone
Antioxidant
Phospholipids
Skin Conditioning
Phytosterols
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Citrate
BufferingHydrolyzed Rhodophyceae Extract
Bisabolol
Antioxidant
Panthenol
Skin Conditioning
Sodium Dehydroacetate
Preservative
Stearyl Glycyrrhetinate
Skin ConditioningTocopherol
Antioxidant
Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate
Linolenic Acid
Cleansing
Avena Sativa Kernel Extract
Abrasive
Zinc Oxide, Water, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Glycerin, C13-15 Alkane, Ethylhexyl Olivate, Propanediol, Polyglyceryl-3 Polyricinoleate, Bis-Octyldodecyl Dimer Dilinoleate/Propanediol Copolymer, Cocoglycerides, Meadowfoam Estolide, Disteardimonium Hectorite, Jojoba Esters, Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Lactococcus Ferment Lysate, Rhus Verniciflua Peel Wax, Squalane, 1,2-Hexanediol, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Caprylyl Glycol, Pyrus Malus Fruit Extract, Sodium Chloride, Linoleic Acid, Betaine, Sucrose, Hydroxyacetophenone, Phospholipids, Phytosterols, Sodium Citrate, Hydrolyzed Rhodophyceae Extract, Bisabolol, Panthenol, Sodium Dehydroacetate, Stearyl Glycyrrhetinate, Tocopherol, Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate, Linolenic Acid, Avena Sativa Kernel Extract
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Avena Sativa Kernel Extract is is derived from colloidal oatmeal. Besides being a healthy breakfast, oats have many benefits in skincare too.
This ingredient helps sooth, hydrate, and protect the skin. The starches in colloidal oatmeal are able to bind water, keeping the skin hydrated.
The cellulose and fiber in colloidal oatmeal help reduce inflammation. This can also help the skin feel softer.
Colloidal Oatmeal is also an antioxidant. Antioxidants protect our skin from free-radical damage.
Oatmeal also contains beneficial compounds:
This ingredient is created by mixing grounded oatmeal and a liquid base.
Learn more about Avena Sativa Kernel ExtractBisabolol is a gentle skin conditioner, antioxidant, and soothing ingredient.
It's primary claim to fame is soothing and research shows topically applied bisabolol can quiet the chemical messengers that cause your skin to become inflamed, helping to sooth any irritation.
A clinical study found that applying 0.5% bisabolol daily for 8 weeks produced an average 9% decrease in skin pigmentation. Researchers found it can also suppress the process that leads to excess melanin production in skin.
In vitro studies found that bisabolol combined with propylene glycol significantly increased skin permeability by increasing lipid fluidity in the stratum corneum.
You'll likely see use concentrations quite low, usually 0.1-0.2%.
Overall, this is a well-tolerated ingredient that works well in formulas designed for sensitive, reactive, or post-procedure skin.
Learn more about BisabololGlycerin (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 GlycerinWater. 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 WaterZinc Oxide is a mineral broad-spectrum UV filter; it is the broadest UVA and UVB reflector approved by the FDA. It also has skin protectant and skin soothing properties.
Zinc oxide is one of the most effective broad-spectrum UV filters. It protects against UVB, UVAII, and UVAI. In comparison to its counterpart titanium dioxide, zinc oxide provides uniform and extended UVA protection.
Another great benefit? This ingredient is highly photostable so it won't degrade easily under sunlight.
A common myth is that mineral UV filters are widely believed to primarily reflect UV light.
However, modern research shows titanium dioxide absorbs UV radiation like chemical filters (~95% absorption & 5% reflection).
Zinc oxide has great skin soothing properties so you'll likely find this in sunscreens formulated for sensitive skin or babies/children. It is unlikely to cause "eye sting" like other sunscreen ingredients.
Regulatory agencies consider zinc oxide to be non-toxic and safe. It has also been shown to not penetrate the skin.
Unfortunately, this ingredient does leave a visible white cast. This is why mineral sunscreens are often less cosmetically elegant than chemical or hybrid ones.
In cosmetics, zinc oxide can be found in both non-nano and nano-sized forms. The nano version is used to reduce white cast and improve the texture of sunscreen formulas.
There are ongoing concerns surrounding nano-zinc oxide's impact on marine ecosystems and whether it can be absorbed into skin.
Regarding marine ecosystems and coral reefs, there is no conclusive evidence that any form of zinc oxide (or any other sunscreen ingredients) will cause harm. The science is still developing but many consumers are keeping a close eye on this issue.
Please note, many destinations have reef-safety sunscreen rules. For instance, the U.S. Virgin Islands advises all visitors to use non-nano mineral sunscreens.
There has also been some stir about whether micronized or nano zinc oxide has potential photoxicity and absorption through the skin/lungs.
An in-vitro (done in a test tube or petri dish) study demonstrated micronized zinc oxide to have potential phototoxicity. There's no need to fret; the EU Commission's Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety has stated, "The relevance of these findings needs to be clarified by appropriate investigations in vivo." Or in other words, further studies done on living organisms are needed to prove this.
Current research shows zinc oxide nanoparticles do not penetrate intact or sunburned skin. They either remain on the surface or in the outermost layer of dead skin (stratum corneum).
Zinc oxide is one of only two classified mineral UV filters with titanium dioxide being the other one.
Fun fact: Zinc has been used throughout history as an ingredient in paint and medicine. An Indian text from 500BC is believed to list zinc oxide as a salve for open wound. The Ancient Greek physician Dioscorides has also mentioned the use of zinc as an ointment in 1AD.
Learn more about Zinc Oxide
