What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningPropanediol
Solvent
Corn Starch Modified
AbsorbentGlycerin
Humectant
Propylheptyl Caprylate
EmollientAmmonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/Vp Copolymer
C10-18 Triglycerides
Emollient
Oryzanol
Skin ConditioningSorbitan Sesquioleate
Emulsifying
Zinc Gluconate
Skin Conditioning
Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Emulsion StabilisingSodium Citrate
BufferingSalicylic Acid
Masking
Parfum
Masking
Propolis Extract
Skin Conditioning
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate
Antioxidant
Adenosine
Skin Conditioning
Aminoethanesulfinic Acid
Antioxidant
Caprylyl Glycol
Emollient
Carnosine
Skin Conditioning
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Disodium Adenosine Triphosphate
Skin ConditioningLaminaria Digitata Extract
Skin Protecting
Acetyl Hexapeptide-8
Humectant
Water, Propanediol, Corn Starch Modified, Glycerin, Propylheptyl Caprylate, Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/Vp Copolymer, C10-18 Triglycerides, Oryzanol, Sorbitan Sesquioleate, Zinc Gluconate, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Sodium Citrate, Salicylic Acid, Parfum, Propolis Extract, Propylene Glycol, Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Adenosine, Aminoethanesulfinic Acid, Caprylyl Glycol, Carnosine, Tocopherol, Disodium Adenosine Triphosphate, Laminaria Digitata Extract, Acetyl Hexapeptide-8
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Glycerin (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 GlycerinPropylene Glycol is a synthetic, colorless, odorless liquid that has been a staple in cosmetics for decades. It is a skin conditioning agent, humectant, and solvent.
As a humectant, it draw water to the skin to reduce flaking and restore suppleness. It's also a solvent that helps dissolve other actives and keeps formulas stable across temperature changes.
The CIR Expert Panel has confirmed this ingredient to be nontoxic and clinical studies show no sensitization at cosmetic use concentrations.
True allergic reactions are quite rare: a 15-year retrospective study of 6,751 patients found only 0.31% had a positive reaction (and less than half were considered clinically relevant).
It seemed that when sensitization does occur, it's most commonly linked to topical medication (like corticosteroids) and not cosmetics. Allergic contact dermatitis also appears largely limited to individuals with underlying skin conditions.
Overall, propylene glycol is a well-studied ingredient that most people can tolerate without issue.
Learn more about Propylene GlycolTocopherol 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
