What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningJuglans Regia Shell Powder
Abrasive
Glyceryl Stearate Se
Emulsifying
Glycerin
Humectant
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Zea Mays Kernel Meal
Abrasive
Cetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate
CleansingCocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleansing
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
PEG-100 Stearate
Cetyl Acetate
Emollient
Benzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Ceteareth-20
CleansingAcetylated Lanolin Alcohol
Emollient
Carbomer
Emulsion StabilisingPolysorbate 60
Emulsifying
Triethanolamine
BufferingParfum
Masking
Disodium EDTA
Benzoic Acid
Masking
Sorbic Acid
Preservative
Prunus Armeniaca Fruit Extract
Skin ConditioningCI 77891
Cosmetic ColorantWater, Juglans Regia Shell Powder, Glyceryl Stearate Se, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Zea Mays Kernel Meal, Cetyl Alcohol, Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Cetyl Acetate, Benzyl Alcohol, Ceteareth-20, Acetylated Lanolin Alcohol, Carbomer, Polysorbate 60, Triethanolamine, Parfum, Disodium EDTA, Benzoic Acid, Sorbic Acid, Prunus Armeniaca Fruit Extract, CI 77891
Water
Skin ConditioningAloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Sesamum Indicum Seed Oil
Emollient
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Cetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Ceteareth-20
CleansingBambusa Arundinacea Stem Extract
Skin ConditioningJuglans Regia Shell Powder
Abrasive
Glycerin
Humectant
Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil
Emollient
Rosa Canina Fruit Oil
Emollient
Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract
Masking
Arctium Lappa Root Extract
Skin Conditioning
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Citrus Tangerina Peel Oil
Masking
Citrus Nobilis Peel Oil
Masking
Lavandula Angustifolia Oil
Masking
Vanillin
Masking
Vanilla Planifolia Fruit Extract
Skin Conditioning
Citric Acid
Buffering
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Benzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Linalool
Perfuming
Limonene
Perfuming
Water, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Sesamum Indicum Seed Oil, Cetearyl Alcohol, Cetyl Alcohol, Ceteareth-20, Bambusa Arundinacea Stem Extract, Juglans Regia Shell Powder, Glycerin, Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil, Rosa Canina Fruit Oil, Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract, Arctium Lappa Root Extract, Tocopherol, Citrus Tangerina Peel Oil, Citrus Nobilis Peel Oil, Lavandula Angustifolia Oil, Vanillin, Vanilla Planifolia Fruit Extract, Citric Acid, Phenoxyethanol, Benzyl Alcohol, Linalool, Limonene
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Benzyl Alcohol is most commonly used as a preservative. It also has a subtle, sweet smell. Small amounts of Benzyl Alcohol is not irritating and safe to use in skincare products. Most Benzyl Alcohol is derived from fruits such as apricots.
Benzyl Alcohol has both antibacterial and antioxidant properties. These properties help lengthen the shelf life of products. Benzyl Alcohol is a solvent and helps dissolve other ingredients. It can also improve the texture and spreadability.
Alcohol comes in many different forms. Different types of alcohol will have different effects on skin. This ingredient is an astringent alcohol.
Using high concentrations of these alcohols are drying on the skin. They may strip away your skin's natural oils and even damage your skin barrier. Astringent alcohols may also irritate skin.
Other types of astringent alcohols include:
According to the National Rosacea Society based in the US, you should be mindful of products with these alcohols in the top half of ingredients.
Any type of sanitizing product will have high amounts of alcohol to help kill bacteria and viruses.
Learn more about Benzyl AlcoholCeteareth-20 is an emulsifier and surfactant made by reacting cetearyl alcohol with 20 moles of ethylene oxide.
This gives it both oil and water-loving properties that makes it an effect emulsifier; it's really great at pulling oil droplets into water to create a stable, creamy, and easy-to-spread base.
Typical use ranges from 0.5-30%. Most leave-on products are in the 1-10% zone.
The 20 ethylene oxide units is well above the PEG-10 threshold and therefore not a food source for Malassezia (it's fungal acne safe).
This ingredient has a comedogenic rating of 2 and an irritancy rating of 3. These numbers come from testing the raw ingredient on rabbit ears and doesn't reflect how it will behave in a finished product.
In practice, this ingredient is a well-tolerated ingredient. The ratings reflect cautious lab conditions and not real-world use. Just be sure to patch test any formulas you feel unsure about.
Learn more about Ceteareth-20Cetearyl alcohol is a waxy mixture of two fatty alcohols: cetyl alcohol and stearyl alcohol. It is an emollient and emulsifier.
Despite having "alcohol" in its name, it has nothing to do with drying solvent alcohols; the FDA also allows "alcohol-free" products to contain fatty alcohols like this ingredient.
It plays several roles in a formula:
Typical use levels for this ingredient sit around 1-10% and the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel has affirmed safety at concentrations up to 25% in leave-on products.
Multiple assessments have found it to be non-irritating and non-sensitizing to most people.
However, there have been some cases of allergic contact dermatitis in patients with chronically compromised skin barriers.
Cetearyl alcohol has a comedogenic rating of 2 and irritancy rating of 1. Both of these numbers come from the 1989 study that used rabbit ears; a "2" means mildly comedogenic and a "1" means low irritancy.
Here's the catch: rabbit skin is more sensitive than human skin and throws a lot of false positives. A 1996 reappraisal found that ingredients rated 1-2 in the rabbit ear tests are generally safe for humans.
Remember comedogenic ratings are unable to assess the entire formula of a product or how it will react on your skin. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure about certain ingredients.
This ingredient is not fungal acne safe. Cetearyl alcohol is a fatty alcohol with chain lengths that fall within the range that Malassezia can metabolize.
Learn more about Cetearyl AlcoholCetyl 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 AlcoholGlycerin (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 GlycerinYou might know this ingredient as walnut shell powder. It is an abrasive used as a physical exfoliator.
Abrasives are physical exfoliants used to get rid of dead cell buildup on your skin. Physical exfoliators have a bad reputation due to the myth that they give your face tiny cuts. This is untrue.
Like any exfoliant, using this ingredient can disrupt your skin barrier. This can lead to breakouts, irritation, and dryness. It is critical to be gentle when using any type of exfoliator.
If you want to use a chemical exfoliator instead, check out glycolic acid.
Learn more about Juglans Regia Shell PowderWater. 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
