What's inside
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
HumectantOctyldodecanol
EmollientButylene Glycol
HumectantButyrospermum Parkii Butter
Skin ConditioningSodium Polyacrylate
AbsorbentPentylene Glycol
Skin ConditioningPolysorbate 60
EmulsifyingPiroctone Olamine
PreservativeXanthan Gum
Emulsifying1,2-Hexanediol
Skin ConditioningCaprylyl Glycol
EmollientDimethicone
EmollientPhytosphingosine
Skin ConditioningCitric Acid
BufferingAsiaticoside
AntioxidantWater
Skin ConditioningGlycerin
HumectantAcetamide Mea
HumectantIsodecyl Neopentanoate
EmollientCyclopentasiloxane
EmollientPentylene Glycol
Skin ConditioningCetyl Alcohol
EmollientCyclohexasiloxane
EmollientSclerotium Gum
Emulsion StabilisingZinc PCA
HumectantPiroctone Olamine
PreservativePolyacrylamide
Polymethyl Methacrylate
Butylene Glycol
HumectantStearyl Glycyrrhetinate
Skin ConditioningC13-14 Isoparaffin
EmollientGlyceryl Stearate
EmollientPEG-100 Stearate
SurfactantAcrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Emulsion StabilisingDimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer
Skin ConditioningSodium Hydroxide
BufferingLaureth-7
EmulsifyingBiosaccharide Gum-2
Skin ConditioningDisodium EDTA
Hydroxyphenyl Propamidobenzoic Acid
Skin ConditioningAscorbyl Palmitate
AntioxidantWater, Glycerin, Acetamide Mea, Isodecyl Neopentanoate, Cyclopentasiloxane, Pentylene Glycol, Cetyl Alcohol, Cyclohexasiloxane, Sclerotium Gum, Zinc PCA, Piroctone Olamine, Polyacrylamide, Polymethyl Methacrylate, Butylene Glycol, Stearyl Glycyrrhetinate, C13-14 Isoparaffin, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Sodium Hydroxide, Laureth-7, Biosaccharide Gum-2, Disodium EDTA, Hydroxyphenyl Propamidobenzoic Acid, Ascorbyl Palmitate
Reviews
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Butylene Glycol (or BG) is used within cosmetic products for a few different reasons:
Overall, Butylene Glycol is a safe and well-rounded ingredient that works well with other ingredients.
Though this ingredient works well with most skin types, some people with sensitive skin may experience a reaction such as allergic rashes, closed comedones, or itchiness.
Learn more about Butylene GlycolGlycerin (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 GlycerinPentylene glycol is typically used within a product to thicken it. It also adds a smooth, soft, and moisturizing feel to the product. It is naturally found in plants such as sugar beets.
The hydrophilic trait of Pentylene Glycol makes it a humectant. As a humectant, Pentylene Glycol helps draw moisture from the air to your skin. This can help keep your skin hydrated.
This property also makes Pentylene Glycol a great texture enhancer. It can also help thicken or stabilize a product.
Pentylene Glycol also acts as a mild preservative and helps to keep a product microbe-free.
Some people may experience mild eye and skin irritation from Pentylene Glycol. We always recommend speaking with a professional about using this ingredient in your routine.
Pentylene Glycol has a low molecular weight and is part of the 1,2-glycol family.
Learn more about Pentylene GlycolPiroctone Olamine is a synthetic antifungal and preservative ingredient.
Its main job is to keep the yeast, Malassezia, in check; this yeast is linked to dandruff, seborrheic dermatitis, and fungal acne (a.k.a. Malassezia folliculitis).
The way it works is pretty neat:
It slips into the fungal cell and grabs onto iron ions that the yeast needs for its energy metabolism; this basically starves it out. But the full mechanism isn't 100% pinned down and some research also points it to interfering with ergosterol (a building block of the fungal cell membrane).
Besides antifungal action, it also has mild anti-inflammatory and soothing effects to help calm itchiness in the scalp.
Typical usage concentrations are low. The EU permits it to be a preservative up to 1% in rinse-off products and 0.5% in leave-on products.
Though it's generally well-tolerated, a small number of people may notice itching or irritation (as with any active).
Learn more about Piroctone OlamineWater. 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