What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningMyristic Acid
Cleansing
Glycerin
Humectant
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Potassium Hydroxide
BufferingSorbitol
Humectant
Dipropylene Glycol
HumectantLauric Acid
Cleansing
PEG-60 Glyceryl Isostearate
Surfactant
PEG-6
HumectantPEG-32
HumectantGlycol Distearate
Emollient
Glyceryl Stearate Se
Emulsifying
Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate
Cleansing
Parfum
Masking
Disodium EDTA
Limonene
Perfuming
Magnesium Aluminum Silicate
Absorbent
Serine
Masking
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Water, Myristic Acid, Glycerin, Stearic Acid, Potassium Hydroxide, Sorbitol, Dipropylene Glycol, Lauric Acid, PEG-60 Glyceryl Isostearate, PEG-6, PEG-32, Glycol Distearate, Glyceryl Stearate Se, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Parfum, Disodium EDTA, Limonene, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Serine, Tocopherol
Water
Skin ConditioningGlyceryl Stearate Se
Emulsifying
Glycerin
Humectant
Glycol Distearate
Emollient
PEG-60 Glyceryl Isostearate
Surfactant
Butylene Glycol
Humectant
PEG-32
HumectantPEG-6
HumectantMyristic Acid
Cleansing
Cetyl Alcohol
Emollient
PPG-15-Buteth-20
Skin ConditioningCoconut Acid
Cleansing
Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate
Cleansing
Kaolin
Abrasive
Stearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
BHT
Antioxidant
Saccharum Officinarum Extract
MoisturisingLeuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate
Antimicrobial
Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningCitrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract
MaskingCitrus Limon Fruit Extract
Masking
Morinda Citrifolia Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningAcer Saccharum Extract
Skin ConditioningSalvia Hispanica Seed Extract
EmollientSuccinoglycan
Skin ConditioningCalcite
Skin ConditioningIllite
Abrasive
Silica
Abrasive
Montmorillonite
AbsorbentDisodium EDTA
Potassium Hydroxide
BufferingPhenoxyethanol
Preservative
CI 77891
Cosmetic ColorantWater, Glyceryl Stearate Se, Glycerin, Glycol Distearate, PEG-60 Glyceryl Isostearate, Butylene Glycol, PEG-32, PEG-6, Myristic Acid, Cetyl Alcohol, PPG-15-Buteth-20, Coconut Acid, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Kaolin, Stearyl Alcohol, Tocopherol, BHT, Saccharum Officinarum Extract, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Vaccinium Myrtillus Fruit Extract, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract, Citrus Limon Fruit Extract, Morinda Citrifolia Leaf Extract, Acer Saccharum Extract, Salvia Hispanica Seed Extract, Succinoglycan, Calcite, Illite, Silica, Montmorillonite, Disodium EDTA, Potassium Hydroxide, Phenoxyethanol, CI 77891
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Disodium 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 EDTAGlycerin (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 Se is a self-emulsifying (SE) form of glyceryl stearate. Self-emusifying means this ingredient automatically blends with water. It is an emulsifier, emollient, and cleansing agent.
As an emulsifier, Glyceryl Stearate Se prevents ingredients such as oil and water from separating. It is also a surfactant, meaning it helps cleanse the skin. Surfactants help gather oil, dirt, and other pollutants so they may be rinsed away easily.
Emollients help your skin stay smooth and soft. It does so by creating a film on top of the skin that helps trap moisture in.
Learn more about Glyceryl Stearate SeGlycol Distearate is an emulsifier and emollient that adds a "pearly" appearance to formulations.
That lustrous look you see in many shampoos is due to this ingredient: when cooled, it crystallizes into small platelets that reflect light to give products that rich, shimmering look.
This ingredient is considered safe at present practices of use and concentration and repeated insult patch test with 50% Glycol Distearate on 125 subjects found no evidence of skin irritation, hypersensitivity, or acute toxicity.
Typical use concentrations range from 0.1-10%.
Because it's an ester of stearic acid, it falls into the range that Malassezia likes to metabolize. This ingredient may not be fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Glycol DistearateMyristic Acid, aka tetradecanoic acid, is a naturally occurring fatty acid found in coconut oil and palm oil.
In skincare, it is an:
Research indicates that this ingredient posts a low risk of irritation and sensitization.
Since myristic acid is a C14 fatty acid, it falls within the range that Malassezia can metabolize, and therefore not fungal acne safe.
Learn more about Myristic AcidPEG-32 is a synthetic and water-soluble polymer with 32 repeating units. It has humectant, solvent, and emulsifying properties.
As a solvent and emulsifier, it helps dissolve and blend ingredients. It is also able to attract water as a humectant to help hydrate skin. According to a manufacturer, this ingredient is non-greasy, gentle, and mildly scented.
Japanese manufacturers will sometimes call this ingredient PEG 1540.
Learn more about PEG-32We don't have a description for PEG-6 yet.
PEG-60 Glyceryl Isostearate isn't fungal acne safe.
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 HydroxideSodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate is a gentle, coconut-derived cleansing surfactant. It's most commonly found in "sulfate-free" cleansers.
As a taurate, it belongs to a class of anionic surfactants prized for being efficient at cleansing without harshness, good performance in hard water, stability across a wide pH range, and easily biodegradable.
It is able to lift away oil and grime and make a nice lather without stripping your skin, so it's a good pick for sensitive skin.
Safety-wise, it has a good record. The CIR Expert Panel has concluded this ingredient to be safe in cosmetics and concentrations go up to 11% in leave-on products or 13% in rinse-off products.
Despite being derived from coconut oil, this ingredient is fungal acne safe. It's a water-soluble surfactant with no fatty oils or esters left intact on skin for the Malassezia yeast to feed.
Learn more about Sodium Methyl Cocoyl TaurateTocopherol is a fat-soluble antioxidant known as Vitamin E.
You'll find this ingredient in the vast majority of skincare (for good reason). It works to neutralize free radicals, or unstable molecules generated by UV exposure, pollution, and other environmental stressors, before they can cause oxidative damage to your skin cells.
Topically applied tocopherol has been shown to protect against UV damage by ramping up the skin's own natural defense enzymes.
It also acts as a skin conditioning agent; some studies show that regular topical use can improve the skin's water-binding capacity over 2-4 weeks.
This ingredient is especially loved for being a team player. When combined with Vitamin C, the photoprotective effect of both ingredients roughly doubles and the combo also helps reduce UV-induced DNA damage.
This ingredient has some brightening potential but it's more of a prevention ingredient than spot-fader. Cell studies show it can slow down melanin production but it's worth noting that it's not the most powerful brightener out there.
In formulations, it also serves as a stabilizer that helps protect other oxidation-prone ingredients from degrading.
Concentrations usually range from 0.1-1% in most leave-on products.
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
