What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningPropanediol
Solvent
Helianthus Annuus Hybrid Oil
Emollient
Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate
CleansingBenzyl Alcohol
Perfuming
Carrageenan
Cetearyl Alcohol
Emollient
Xanthan Gum
EmulsifyingCitric Acid
Buffering
Bakuchiol
Antimicrobial
Tocopherol
Antioxidant
Dehydroacetic Acid
Preservative
Sodium Citrate
BufferingGlycerin
Humectant
Biosaccharide Gum-1
Humectant
Glycine Soja Oil
Emollient
Hibiscus Sabdariffa Flower Extract
Skin ConditioningGlyceryl Caprylate
EmollientSodium Anisate
AntimicrobialSodium Levulinate
Skin ConditioningSodium Benzoate
Masking
Water, Propanediol, Helianthus Annuus Hybrid Oil, Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate, Benzyl Alcohol, Carrageenan, Cetearyl Alcohol, Xanthan Gum, Citric Acid, Bakuchiol, Tocopherol, Dehydroacetic Acid, Sodium Citrate, Glycerin, Biosaccharide Gum-1, Glycine Soja Oil, Hibiscus Sabdariffa Flower Extract, Glyceryl Caprylate, Sodium Anisate, Sodium Levulinate, Sodium Benzoate
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Bakuchiol is a plant-derived antioxidant from the seeds of the Psoralea corylifolia plant. It has antimicrobial, emollient, skin conditioning, and antioxidant properties.
You'll likely see it called a "retinol replacement" but the two are technically not related. This is because bakuchiol is able to flip many of the same switches in your skin cells to tell them to:
1) produce more collagen (type I, III, and IV)
2) activate the same genes retinoids do
Unlike retinoids, this ingredient will not increase photosensitivity and is safe to use during pregnancy (but please still check in with your doctor!).
The flagship clinical trial from Dhaliwal et al. 2019 found 0.5% bakuchiol (twice daily) and 0.5% retinol (once daily) reduced wrinkles and hyperpigmentation equally, but bakuchiol had significantly less irritation.
Systematic reviews also back this up:
Bakuchiol is comparable to retinol for photoaging but with better tolerability. It also has mild antibacterial properties against Cutibacterium acnes and antifungal activity in vitro against Candida and dermatophytes.
The reason bakuchiol works well is due to its structure; it is a meroterpene phenol, or a hybrid molecule. The phenol half acts as an antioxidant while the terpene half is fat-loving. This helps the molecule slip through the skin barrier.
This ingredient is usually used between 0.5-2%. Only one case of contact dermatitis has ever been reported for this ingredient.
Learn more about Bakuchiol
