What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningAloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Skin Conditioning
Sesamum Indicum Seed Oil
Emollient
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Glycerin
Humectant
Ceteareth-20
CleansingCetyl Alcohol
Emollient
Rosa Canina Fruit Oil
Emollient
Oenothera Biennis Oil
Emollient
Borago Officinalis Seed Oil
Emollient
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Cucumis Sativus Fruit Extract
Emollient
Arctium Lappa Root Extract
Skin Conditioning
Urtica Dioica Leaf Extract
Skin ConditioningXanthan Gum
EmulsifyingCitric Acid
Buffering
Phenoxyethanol
Preservative
Benzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Water, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Sesamum Indicum Seed Oil, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glycerin, Ceteareth-20, Cetyl Alcohol, Rosa Canina Fruit Oil, Oenothera Biennis Oil, Borago Officinalis Seed Oil, Tocopherol, Cucumis Sativus Fruit Extract, Arctium Lappa Root Extract, Urtica Dioica Leaf Extract, Xanthan Gum, Citric Acid, Phenoxyethanol, Benzyl Alcohol
Water
Skin ConditioningPersea Gratissima Oil
Skin Conditioning
Glycerin
Humectant
Cetearyl Glucoside
Emulsifying
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Stearic Acid
Cleansing
Glyceryl Stearate
Emollient
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil
Emollient
Dehydroacetic Acid
Preservative
Benzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Daucus Carota Sativa Seed Oil
Emollient
Actinidia Chinensis Seed Oil
Emollient
Salvia Officinalis Oil
Masking
Bisabolol
Antioxidant
Vitis Vinifera Seed Extract
Antimicrobial
Water, Persea Gratissima Oil, Glycerin, Cetearyl Glucoside, Cetearyl Alcohol, Stearic Acid, Glyceryl Stearate, Tocopherol, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Dehydroacetic Acid, Benzyl Alcohol, Daucus Carota Sativa Seed Oil, Actinidia Chinensis Seed Oil, Salvia Officinalis Oil, Bisabolol, Vitis Vinifera Seed Extract
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 AlcoholCetearyl 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 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 GlycerinTocopherol 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
