Region: US

This anti-aging serum is formulated around Squalane and Hydroxypinacolone Retinoate to soften the look of wrinkles and refine skin texture.

This anti-aging treatment is formulated around Retinol and Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate to soften the look of wrinkles and refine skin texture.

Serum
Facial Treatment
Canadian Canada
American United States

What's inside

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Show highlights for:

Water

Skin Conditioning

Dimethicone

Emollient
1 / 0 Silicon IconGood for Scar Healing Icon

Glycerin

Humectant
0 / 0 Helps hydrate Dry Skin IconGood for Scar Healing IconGood for Barrier Repair Icon

Butylene Glycol

Humectant
1 / 0 Helps hydrate Dry Skin IconGood for Barrier Repair Icon

Isononyl Isononanoate

Emollient

Castor Isostearate Succinate

Skin Conditioning
May worsen Seborrheic Dermatitis IconNot safe for Fungal Acne Icon

Glyceryl Stearate

Emollient
1 / 0 May worsen Seborrheic Dermatitis IconNot safe for Fungal Acne Icon

C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate

Antimicrobial

Dimethicone Crosspolymer

Emulsion Stabilising
Silicon Icon

PEG-33

Humectant

Polysorbate 20

Emulsifying
0 / 0 May worsen Seborrheic Dermatitis IconNot safe for Fungal Acne Icon

Behenyl Alcohol

Emollient
Fatty Alcohol Icon

PEG-100 Stearate

Surfactant
0 / 0 May worsen Seborrheic Dermatitis IconNot safe for Fungal Acne Icon

Pentaerythrityl Tetraisostearate

Emollient
2 / 0 May worsen Seborrheic Dermatitis IconNot safe for Fungal Acne Icon

Polymethylsilsesquioxane

Silicon Icon

Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate

Antioxidant
Vitamin C IconAntioxidant IconHelps brighten skin IconGood for Minimizing Pores IconHelps reduce Skin Redness IconGood for Scar Healing IconGood for Skin Texture Icon

Retinol

Skin Conditioning
Retinoid IconHelps fight Acne IconHelps with Anti-Aging IconHelps brighten skin IconGood for Oily Skin IconGood for Minimizing Pores IconGood for Scar Healing IconGood for Dark Spots IconGood for Skin Texture IconMay worsen Perioral Dermatitis IconMay worsen Psoriasis IconMay worsen Rosacea Icon

Ceramide Ng

Skin Conditioning
Ceramide IconHelps with Anti-Aging IconHelps hydrate Dry Skin IconHelps reduce irritation IconGood for Barrier Repair Icon

Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7

Skin Conditioning
Peptide IconHelps with Anti-Aging IconGood for Scar Healing IconGood for Skin Texture Icon

Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-12

Skin Conditioning
Peptide IconHelps with Anti-Aging Icon

Sodium Hyaluronate

Humectant
0 / 0 Hyaluronic Acid IconHelps with Anti-Aging IconHelps hydrate Dry Skin IconHelps reduce Skin Redness IconGood for Barrier Repair Icon

Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate

Humectant
Helps reduce irritation IconHelps reduce Skin Redness Icon

Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract

Bleaching
Helps hydrate Dry Skin IconHelps brighten skin IconHelps reduce irritation IconHelps reduce Skin Redness IconGood for Scar Healing IconGood for Dark Spots IconGood for Barrier Repair Icon

Avena Sativa Kernel Extract

Abrasive
Antioxidant IconExfoliant IconHelps hydrate Dry Skin IconHelps reduce irritation IconHelps reduce Skin Redness IconGood for Barrier Repair Icon

Arctium Lappa Seed Oil

Emollient
Oil Icon

Salix Alba Extract

Skin Conditioning

Glycine Soja Sterols

Emollient
0 / 0 Helps hydrate Dry Skin IconMay worsen Seborrheic Dermatitis IconNot safe for Fungal Acne Icon

Lecithin

Emollient
Helps hydrate Dry Skin IconGood for Barrier Repair Icon

Allantoin

Skin Conditioning
0 / 0 Helps hydrate Dry Skin IconHelps reduce irritation IconHelps reduce Skin Redness IconGood for Scar Healing IconGood for Barrier Repair Icon

Tocopheryl Acetate

Antioxidant
0 / 0 Vitamin E IconAntioxidant IconHelps brighten skin Icon

Hydrolyzed Soy Protein

Humectant
Helps hydrate Dry Skin Icon

Sorbitan Laurate

Emulsifying
1-2 / 1-2 May worsen Seborrheic Dermatitis IconNot safe for Fungal Acne Icon

Acetyl Dipeptide-1 Cetyl Ester

Skin Conditioning
Peptide IconHelps with Anti-Aging IconHelps reduce irritation IconHelps reduce Skin Redness Icon

Disodium EDTA

Chelating

Hydroxyethylcellulose

Emulsion Stabilising

Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1

Skin Conditioning
Peptide IconHelps with Anti-Aging IconGood for Scar Healing IconGood for Skin Texture Icon

Sodium Hydroxide

Buffering

Tribehenin

Emollient
0 / 0 May worsen Seborrheic Dermatitis IconNot safe for Fungal Acne Icon

Caprylyl Glycol

Emollient
Fatty Alcohol Icon

Ethylhexylglycerin

Skin Conditioning

Pentylene Glycol

Skin Conditioning
Good for Barrier Repair Icon

PEG-75 Shea Butter Glycerides

Emulsifying
May worsen Seborrheic Dermatitis IconNot safe for Fungal Acne Icon

PPG-12/Smdi Copolymer

Emollient

PEG-10 Phytosterol

Emulsifying

PEG-8 Dimethicone

Emulsifying
Silicon Icon

PEG-14

Humectant

Magnesium Aluminum Silicate

Absorbent
0 / 0 Good for Oily Skin Icon

Arachidyl Glucoside

Emulsifying

Arachidyl Alcohol

Emollient
Fatty Alcohol Icon

Sclerotium Gum

Emulsion Stabilising

Carbomer

Emulsion Stabilising
1 / 0

Phenoxyethanol

Preservative
Preservative Icon

Benzoic Acid

Masking
Preservative IconMay worsen Eczema Icon

Reviews

3.25
Overall rating
5
4
3
2
1
What people say
Heavy 75% Great Value 75% Oily 75%
4.67
Overall rating
5
4
3
2
1
What people say
Absorbs Well 50% Expensive 50% Light 50%

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.

Antimicrobial, Emollient, Skin Conditioning

C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate is a lightweight emollient made by combinig benzoic acid with fatty alcohols that are 12-15 carbons long.

In cosmetics, it plays several roles:

The Cosmetic Review Expert Panel has concluded the alkyl benzoate group to be safe as used in cosmetics; it wasn't found to be a skin irritant and unlikely to be absorbed due to its low water solubility.

This report recorded almost 1000 reported uses with concentrations up to 59% in leave-on products but your cosmetics will typically use 0.5-15% depending on the product.

It's often called a "SPF booster": this is because it keeps UV filters properly dissolved and evenly distributed to support a sunscreen's performance. It doesn't actually raise SPF on its own.

Overall, this ingredient is well tolerated.

This ingredient is fungal acne safe because it is an ester of benzoic acid.

Think of this ingredient as two parts stuck together: an oily part and an acid part. Malassezia only gets a meal when it can snip off a fatty acid to eat. With C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, the acid part is benzoic acid, which isn't a fatty acid and which the yeast can't use as food.

Benzoic acid is actually used as a preservative to stop yeast from growing.

The oily part is a blend of C12-15 fatty alcohols but fatty alcohols in this size range can support only a little Malassezia growth (mostly for one species of Malassezia as well).

In the ingredient, those alcohols stay locked inside the molecule. The yeast can only reach them by snipping the benzoate bond, and that type of bond is harder for it to cut than a normal fatty bond.

So not much gets released. And whatever does get snipped comes packaged with benzoic acid, which discourages yeast growth.

Learn more about C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate

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