Paula's Choice Rescue & Repair Intensive Moisturiser Ingredients Explained

Glycerin is already naturally found in your skin. It helps moisturize and protect your skin.

A study from 2016 found glycerin to be more effective as a humectant than AHAs and hyaluronic acid.

Propanediol helps absorb ingredients into your skin, boosting their benefits. It can act as an emollient, making your skin softer. Propanediol can help products last longer by boosting the properties of preservatives within the formulation.

Propanediol is not likely to cause sensitivity and considered safe to use.

Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil is the oil derived from the seeds of a Sunflower. Sunflower seed oil is non-fragrant. It is an emollient, meaning it helps to soften the skin.

Sunflower seed oil contains many fatty acids. The fatty acids found in sunflower seeds include (from highest amount to least): linoleic acid, myristic acid, palmitic acid, stearic acid, arachidic acid, oleic acid, and linolenic acid.

Cetearyl alcohol is a mixture of two fatty alcohols: cetyl alcohol and stearyl alcohol. It is mainly used as an emulsifier. Emulsifiers help prevent the separation of oils and products. Due to its composition, it can also be used to thicken a product or help create foam.

Cetearyl alcohol is an emollient. Emollients help soothe and hydrate the skin by trapping moisture.

Arachidyl Alcohol is a fatty alcohol made from peanut oil. It is an emollient, emulsifier, and thickener.

You'll most likely find this ingredient as an emulsifier in water-based cosmetics.

Stearic Acid is a fatty acid. It is an emollient, emulsifier, and texture enhancer.

As an emollient, stearic acid helps soften skin. It aids the skin's protective barrier by preventing water loss. It also provides a gentle cleansing effect without stripping away natural oils.

Inulin is a polysaccharide (carbohydrate) with prebiotic and antioxidant properties.

The majority of inulin is extracted from chicory, but can also be obtained from other plants such as garlic, onion, asparagus, and sugarcane.

A type of fatty alcohol. Fatty Alcohols are most often used as an emollient or to thicken a product. They are usually derived from natural fats and oils and therefore do not have the same drying or irritating effect as traditional alcohols.

Emollients help keep your skin soft and hydrated by creating a film that traps moisture in.

Cetyl Alcohol is a fatty alcohol. Fatty Alcohols are most often used as an emollient or to thicken a product.

Cetyl Alcohol is not related to SD alcohol, denatured alcohol, or ethyl alcohol. The FDA allows products labeled "alcohol-free" to have fatty alcohols.

Butylene Glycol (or BG) is used within cosmetic products for a few different reasons:

• It is a solvent, meaning that it helps to dissolve other ingredients. This also enhances the absorption of the product into one's skin.
• It is a humectant, which means that it helps attract moisture into the skin.
• It helps improve product application.

Overall, Butylene Glycol is a safe and well-rounded ingredient. It is unlikely to irritate skin, and works well with pretty much all other ingredients.

Hydrogenated Lecithin is created from the hydrogenation of lecithin. Hydrogenation is a chemical reaction between molecule hydrogen and another element.

Hydrogenated Lecithin is an emollient and emulsifier. As an emollient, it helps soften skin by trapping moisture within.

Myristyl Myristate is created from the fatty acids of myristyl alcohol and myristic acid. In skincare, it is an emollient and texture enhancer.

On its own, this ingredient has a comedogenicity index of 5/5. This means it has the potential to clog pores. When diluted with cetyl alcohol or propylene glycol, the comedogenicity will decrease.

We don't have a description for Arachidyl Glucoside.

Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer is a synthetic polymer. It is used to thicken and improve the texture of products.

Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer is also an emulsifier. Due to its properties, it can prevent water and oil ingredients from separating.

Caprylyl Glycol is a humectant and emollient, meaning it attracts and preserves moisture.

It is a common ingredient in many products, especially those designed to hydrate skin. The primary benefits are retaining moisture, skin softening, and promoting a healthy skin barrier.

Allantoin plays a role in soothing and moisturizing the skin. Because of this, it is often added to products with strong active ingredients.

Some studies have shown this ingredient can promote wound healing with higher concentrations.

Tocopherol (also known as Vitamin E) is a common antioxidant used to help protect the skin from free-radicals and strengthen the skin barrier. It's also fat soluble - this means our skin is great at absorbing it.

Vitamin E also helps keep your natural skin lipids healthy. Your lipid skin barrier naturally consists of lipids, ceramides, and fatty acids. Vitamin E offers extra protection for your skin’s lipid barrier, keeping your skin healthy and nourished.

Ethylhexylglycerin (we can't pronounce this either) is commonly used as a preservative and skin softener. It is derived from glyceryl.

You might see Ethylhexylglycerin often paired with other preservatives such as phenoxyethanol. Ethylhexylglycerin has been found to increase the effectiveness of these other preservatives.

Hexylene Glycol is a surfactant. Glycols are a class of alcohols. Hexylene Glycol is a surfactant and emulsifier.

As a surfactant, Hexylene Glycol helps gather dirt and oil on your skin to be washed away.

Xanthan gum is used as a stabilizer and thickener within cosmetic products. It helps give products a sticky, thick feeling - preventing them from being too runny.

On the technical side of things, xanthan gum is a polysaccharide - a combination consisting of multiple sugar molecules bonded together.

Alpha-Glucan Oligosaccharide is a prebiotic. It prevents harmful bacteria from growing on skin by keeping the skin's microbiome in balance.

Alpha-Glucan Oligosaccharide also has antioxidant properties. Antioxidants help fight free-radicals. Free-radicals are molecules that may damage your skin cells.

Sodium Phytate is the synthetic salt form of phytic acid. Phytic acid is an antioxidant and can be found in plant seeds.

Sodium Phytate is a chelating agent. Chelating agents help prevent metals from binding to water. This helps stabilize the ingredients and the product.

We don't have a description for Glycogen.

We don't have a description for Yeast Extract.

Laminaria Digitata Extract comes from the dark brown seaweed, Laminaria Digitata. It is a potent antioxidant, which also provides soothing and hydrating benefits.

Many studies show the antioxidant components of Laminaria Digitata to help with anti-inflammation.

Albatrellus Confluens Extract is from a mushroom from Finland, known as the Nothern Truffle. (This mushroom is edible!) This ingredient helps soothe skin and provides antioxidants.

Albatrellus Confluens Extract helps decrease redness and irritation. It does this by blocking signals for our skin to get irritated.

This ingredient comes from the stem of the Prickly Pear cactus. The stem is rich in polyphenols, a potent source of antioxidants. It is anti-aging and soothing properties.

Prickly Pear stem is made up mostly of water (85%). The rest is composed of skin nourishing compounds: protein, fiber, fatty acids, simple sugars, Vitamin C, and some minerals.

We don't have a description for Galactoarabinan.

We don't have a description for Schizophyllan.

Citric Acid is an AHA derived from citrus fruits (think oranges, lemons, and limes!).

As an AHA, Citric Acid removes the top layer of skin cells from the newer layer of skin underneath. This helps skin to remove dark spots and even out skin tone.

Maltodextrin is a polysaccharide. It is derived from starch such as rice, corn, wheat, or potato starch.

In food, Maltodextrin is used to improve the texture and thicken a product. Due to its structure, it can help create a gel texture. As an emulsion stabilizer, it helps keep the ingredients in a product together.

Acetyl Hexapeptide-8 is a peptide. A common name for this peptide is Argireline.

Argireline has a similar function to botox. It prevents muscle movement and contractions. By preventing muscles from moving, Argireline also prohibits the formation of fine lines and wrinkles. However, research is lacking in proving this ingredient to be as effective as botox.

Phenoxyethanol is a preservative that has germicide, antimicrobial, and aromatic properties. Studies show that phenoxyethanol can prevent germ and microbial growth. By itself, it has a scent that is similar to that of a rose.

It's often used in formulations along with Caprylyl Glycol to preserve the shelf life of products.

Potassium Sorbate is a preservative used to prevent yeast and mold in products. It is commonly found in both cosmetic and food products.

This ingredient comes from potassium salt derived from sorbic acid. Sorbic acid is a natural antibiotic and effective against fungus.