[
  {
    "ingredient": "Glycerin",
    "description": "Glycerin doesn’t sound very glamorous but it is a real oldie but a goodie . It’s been used in cosmetics for more than  50 years and it’s a totally natural ingredient that’s also in the outermost layer of our skin (called stratum corneum - SC). It’s a so-called humectant type of moisturiser meaning that it helps our skin to cling onto water. A 2005 study has shown that glycerin levels correlate with skin hydration levels , so more glycerin means better hydrated skin. As newer studies examine glycerin it turns out more and more that it’s not just a simple humectant but also does some other important things: It makes sure that the gooey stuff between the skin cells is neither too diluted nor too concentrated (it’s called osmoregulation) It helps to maintain the healthy state of the cell membranes and intracellular lipids (keeping the lipids in a nice liquid crystal state that is optimal for barrier function) It can normalize skin shedding in very dry skin. It protects against skin irritation (such as washing your face too much and/or too aggressively) What this all means is that glycerin is a real superstar and helps to maintain the healthy state of our skin in several ways. And there is even more. If your skin is severely dry, you have to read this. A large-scale study done with 394 guys and girls with dry skin compared two high-glycerin (containing 25% and 40% glycerin) moisturizers to 16 other popular moisturizers on the market (that had less than 6% glycerin). The two high-glycerin ones won hands down . They had superior, quick-acting hydrating properties and they also seemed to create a “reservoir” of moisture-holding ability in the skin . This means that even after not using the high-glycerin moisturizer the skin stayed hydrated longer compared to all the other low glycerin moisturizers. You might think now that this is sooo awsome I will go to the pharmacy right now buy some glycerin and put it on my face. Well, do not do that. 100% pure glycerin is not good for the skin either. Too much glycerin (and in general humectants) might attract water out of the lower layers of the skin . That’s a problem because once water is in the upper layer some of it will evaporate. It’s called trans-epidermal-water-loss (TEWL). If too much TEWL happens your skin becomes dry. :( This is confirmed by a study too: skin treated to 99.7% glycerin for 5 days showed that after the treatment the SC (do you remember? it’s the outermost layer of the skin) was not visibly different from the untreated control. The same study also examined skin treated with a 25% glycerin lotion and there the SC had a visibly different, expanded - in other words more hydrated - appearance. So the thing to know about the optimal amount of glycerin is this: it is an effective molecule already from 3% (even from 1%, at least when combined with skin lipids), and the benefits tend to increase up until 20-40%. Around 10%, glycerin seems to have a reals sweet spot in terms of effects and usability. This amount is still possible to formulate into a relatively light, non-sticky and not too heavy formula (yes, glycerin is sticky and high % is really hard to formulate into a cosmetically elegant formula) but 10% also shows all the great therapeutic effects including effective moisturization with a reservoir effect, protecting against irritation, maintaining a healthy skin barrier and making the skin just smooth and plump. So bottom line: glycerin is a real goodie and far more than a simple moisturizer. In our opinion, it is an underappreciated superstar that deserves more spotlight than it is currently getting."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Butylene Glycol",
    "description": "Butylene glycol, or let’s just call it BG, is a multi-tasking colorless, syrupy liquid. It’s a great pick for creating a nice feeling product. BG’s main job is usually to be a solvent for the other ingredients. Other tasks include helping the product to absorb faster and deeper into the skin (penetration enhancer), making the product spread nicely over the skin (slip agent), and attracting water (humectant) into the skin. It’s an ingredient whose safety hasn’t been questioned so far by anyone (at least not that we know about). BG is approved by Ecocert and is also used enthusiastically in natural products. BTW, it’s also a food additive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Squalene",
    "description": "Squalene is an oily liquid that originally comes from shark liver but luckily it can also be found in a couple of plant oils. Olive (0.6%), peanut (0.1%) and pumpkin (0.35%) oils contain it, though not in huge amounts. What contains more of it, is the sebum (the oily stuff) that our skin produces. About 13% of human sebum is squalene, which means that it’s an important skin-identical ingredient and NMF (natural moisturizing factor) . Chemically speaking, it is an unsaturated (has double bonds) hydrocarbon (contains only carbon and hydrogen) molecule, that can undergo oxidation. On the pro side, this means that squalene can act as an antioxidant (while its no-double-bond version sister, squalane cannot), but on the con side, squalene is less stable and has a shorter shelf life . This is probably the main reason why its no-double bond and hence more stable sister, squalane shows up more often on ingredient lists. Read about squalane here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ceteareth-20",
    "description": "A common functional ingredient that helps to keep the oil-loving and water-loving ingredients together (emulsifier), stabilizes and thickens the products. Chemically speaking, it is ethoxylated Cetearyl alcohol , meaning that some ethylene oxide is added to the fatty alcohol to increase the water-soluble part in the molecule. The result is that the mainly oil soluble, emollient fatty alcohol is converted to an emulsifier molecule that keeps oil and water mixed in creams. The number in the name of Ceteareth emulsifiers refers to the average number of ethylene oxide molecules added and 20 makes a good emulsifier."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glyceryl Stearate",
    "description": "A super common, waxy, white, solid stuff that helps water and oil to mix together, gives body to creams and leaves the skin feeling soft and smooth . Chemically speaking, it is the attachment of a glycerin molecule to the fatty acid called stearic acid . It can be produced from most vegetable oils (in oils three fatty acid molecules are attached to glycerin instead of just one like here) in a pretty simple, \"green\" process that is similar to soap making. It's readily biodegradable. It also occurs naturally in our body and is used as a food additive. As cosmetic chemist Colins writes it , \"its safety really is beyond any doubt\"."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glyceryl Stearate SE",
    "description": "An oily kind of ingredient that can magically blend with water all by itself. This is called self-emulsifying and SE in its name stands for that. The difference between \"normal\" Glyceryl Stearate and this guy is that the SE grade contains a small amount of water-loving soap molecules, such as sodium stearate . This increases Glyceryl Stearate's affinity for water and gives it stronger emulsifying abilities. Other than that, it’s a nice emollient that gives a smooth and soft appearance to the skin. You can read some more at Glyceryl Stearate >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Potassium Sorbate",
    "description": "It's one of those things that help your cosmetics not to go wrong too soon , aka a preservative. It’s not a strong one and doesn’t really work against bacteria, but more against mold and yeast. To do that it has to break down to its active form, sorbic acid. For that to happen, there has to be water in the product and the right pH value (pH 3-4). But even if everything is right, it’s not enough on its own . If you see potassium sorbate you should see some other preservative next to it too. BTW, it’s also a food preservative and even has an E number, E202."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Caprylyl Glycol",
    "description": "It’s a handy multi-tasking ingredient that gives the skin a nice, soft feel . At the same time, it also boosts the effectiveness of other preservatives , such as the nowadays super commonly used phenoxyethanol . The blend of these two (caprylyl glycol + phenoxyethanol) is called Optiphen, which not only helps to keep your cosmetics free from nasty things for a long time but also gives a good feel to the finished product. It's a popular duo."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Squalane",
    "description": "It seems to us that squalane is in fashion and there is a reason for it. Chemically speaking, it is a saturated  (no double bonds) hydrocarbon (a molecule consisting only of carbon and hydrogen), meaning that it's a nice and stable oily liquid with a long shelf life. It occurs naturally in certain fish and plant oils (e.g. olive), and in the sebum (the oily stuff our skin produces) of the human skin . As f.c. puts it in his awesome blog post , squalane's main things are \" emolliency , surface occlusion, and TEWL prevention all with extreme cosmetic elegance \". In other words, it's a superb moisturizer that makes your skin nice and smooth, without being heavy or greasy. Another advantage of squalane is that it is pretty much compatible with all skin types and skin conditions . It is excellent for acne-prone skin and safe to use even if you have fungi-related skin issues, like seborrhea or fungal acne. The unsaturated (with double bonds) and hence less stable version of Squal a ne is Squal e ne, you can read about it here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Xanthan Gum",
    "description": "It's one of the most commonly used thickener s and emulsion stabilizers . If the product is too runny, a little xanthan gum will make it more gel-like. Used alone, it can make the formula sticky and it is a good team player so it is usually combined with other thickeners and so-called rheology modifiers (helper ingredients that adjust the flow and thus the feel of the formula). The typical use level of Xantha Gum is below 1%, it is usually in the 0.1-0.5% range. Btw, Xanthan gum is all natural, a chain of sugar molecules (polysaccharide) produced from individual sugar molecules ( glucose and sucrose ) via fermentation. It’s approved by Ecocert and also used in the food industry (E415)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Phenoxyethanol",
    "description": "It’s pretty much the current IT- preservative . It’s safe and gentle , but even more importantly, it’s not a feared-by-everyone-mostly-without-scientific-reason paraben. It’s not something new: it was introduced around 1950 and today it can be used up to 1% worldwide. It can be found in nature - in green tea - but the version used in cosmetics is synthetic. Other than having a good safety profile and being quite gentle to the skin it has some other advantages too. It can be used in many types of formulations as it has great thermal stability (can be heated up to 85°C) and works on a wide range of pH levels (ph 3-10). It’s often used together with ethylhexylglycerin as it nicely improves the preservative activity of phenoxyethanol."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Hydroxide",
    "description": "The unfancy name for it is lye. It’s a solid white stuff that’s very alkaline and used in small amounts to adjust the pH of the product and make it just right. For example, in case of AHA or BHA exfoliants, the right pH is super-duper important, and pH adjusters like sodium hydroxide are needed. BTW, lye is not something new. It was already used by ancient Egyptians to help oil and fat magically turn into something else. Can you guess what? Yes, it’s soap. It still often shows up in the ingredient list of soaps and other cleansers. Sodium hydroxide in itself is a potent skin irritant, but once it's reacted (as it is usually in skin care products, like exfoliants) it is totally harmless."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethoxydiglycol",
    "description": "A nice odorless liquid used mainly as a superior solubilizer and efficacy booster for cosmetic active ingredients such as skincare bigshot vitamin C , self-tanning active DHA or the anti-acne gold standard, benzoyl peroxide . Other than that it can also be used in hair care products where it gives a longer-lasting and more uniform coloring. According to a manufacturer, it might even prevent the formation of split ends."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Carbomer",
    "description": "A big molecule created from repeated subunits (a polymer of acrylic acid) that magically converts a liquid into a nice gel formula .  It usually has to be neutralized with a base (such as sodium hydroxide ) for the thickening to occur and it creates viscous, clear gels that also feel nice and non-tacky on the skin. No wonder, it is a very popular and common ingredient. Typically used at 1% or less in most formulations."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hyaluronic Acid",
    "description": "Hyaluronic acid (HA) and its various forms are the current IT-moisturizer s. So let’s see, what is hyaluronic acid and even more importantly what’s the big deal about it? HA is a nice big sugar molecule from repeated subunits (polymer) that can be found naturally in our body . It’s the most dominant, and most important molecule in the liquidy stuff between our skin cells (the sciency name for it is the extracellular matrix or ECM). A 70 kg adult has about 15 g of HA in her body, and half of it is in the skin. Most of the skin HA is in the dermis (the deeper layer - about 0.5 mg/kg) but there is also some in the epidermis (the upper layer - about 0.1 mg/kg). Saying it’s a big molecule, doesn’t do it justice. By default, it’s a HUGE molecule. Its molecular weight can be up to 4 million Dalton (that is just the unit molecular weight is measured in). To compare, normal table sugar that you bake with has a molecular weight of 340 Dalton. Because HA is a polymer, its subunits can be repeated many times or just a few times and thus different molecular weight versions exist. There is not a super clear definition what counts as high molecular weight or low molecular weight, but it seems to be roughly like this: High molecular weight HA, or HMW-HA :  500k - 4M Dalton Low molecular weight HA, or LMW-HA :   500k Dalton and below. HMW-HA in the skin First, you have to know that this is the version that can mostly be found in our skin . So what does it do? Think of it as a sponge. HMW-HA has superstar water-binding abilities. It can bind 1000 times its own weight in water . Or to say it another way 1 gram of HA can bind up to 6 liters of water! That is a lot, and this makes HA pretty much the best water-binding ingredient we know today. It is really the sponge of our skin: it’s there in the outer layers and helps our skin immensely to attract and retain its water content. Not only that, but HA has lots of other important biological functions. Apart from hydration, the skin-related functions include maintaining the skin's elasticity, reducing the skin's inflammatory response, regenerating the damaged skin barrier and plumping up water-loss related wrinkles. Essentially, helping the skin to look and feel healthy and young. HMW-HA put on your face As for smearing HMW-HA all over our face, you have to know that most probably it does not penetrate the skin . There is a lonely study from 1999 that thinks that HA can absorb into the skin through some active transport mechanism, however, we could not find anything to confirm this.  What we could find is multiple expert opinions and newer studies that state HMW-HA is a huge molecule that stays on top of the skin to give surface hydration and to form a protective barrier . Not only that, but it can also work as an \"osmotic pump\", meaning it can be a penetration enhancer for water-soluble actives . As the cosmetic chemist at Realize Beauty puts it , HA can be an \" osmotic delivery system that can push water-soluble actives deeper into the skin by forming a highly hydrated reservoir on the surface of the skin \". LMW-HA in the skin The biological function of LMW-HA in the skin seems to be crazy complicated and different than that of HMW-HA. LMW-HA is mostly created when HMW-HA is chopped up into smaller pieces at sites of an injury and it is thought to be a pro-inflammatory signal molecule that says \"danger, danger, bring on some inflammation and repair yourself\". LMW-HA put on your face Based on LMW-HA's biological role, the question is logical: is LMW-HA pro-inflammatory when we smear it on? Well, it is a good question and we do not have the surefire answer. Most evidence points so far to a no, at least when it comes to molecular weights in the 50kDa and up range. First, LMW-HA is still a big-big molecule whose penetration is questionable . It might absorb a bit better than HMW-HA, but that still means working mostly in the epidermis, the uppermost layers of the skin. Second, we found multiple studies showing that LMW-HA can help the skin to repair itself . One study showed that 0.2% LMW-HA (~ 200kDa used in the study) increases the skin's self-defense and another two studies found LMW-HA (also in 0.2%) to be helpful for inflammation-related skin diseases such as rosacea and facial seborrheic dermatitis. Third, a manufacturer-related study (done by Evonik) found that HA versions with a molecular-weight of 50kDa and up do not induce inflammatory signals in the skin, however, the 20kDa version did show some pro-inflammatory activity . Granted, this was done on reconstituted human epidermis, so it might or might not be like this on real human skin. BTW, they also found in-vivo (on real people) that the LMW-HA versions , especially the one with 50kDa MW can plump up wrinkles really good. So based on LMW-HA's biological role and the Evonik study, you might want to be careful with ultra-low molecular weights, the ones below 50kDa . However, this is also not a sure thing. We also saw manufacturer data showing that a 10kDa molecular weight HA version has better antioxidant activity than a 1.6MDa version and it also had better sun protection and after-sun repair abilities than the higher MW versions. We really cannot tell you the surefire answer. Our best guess is that if you are a cautious type, avoid the ultra-low MW versions, but \"normal\" LMW-HA seems to be all OK to us. Phweeew, that was really long and complicated, sorry for that. If you are still with us, congrats! You've just become a real HA-and-the-skin expert! :)"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Laureth-23",
    "description": "A white waxy solid that helps water and oil to mix nicely together (emulsifier). It is derived from the fatty alcohol lauryl alcohol by ethoxylating it and thus making the molecule a lot more water-soluble. In fact, Laureth-23 is mostly water-soluble acting as a solubilizer for dissolving small amounts of oily things into water-based formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Centella Asiatica Extract",
    "description": "Centella Asiatica - or sometimes also called Gotu Kola or Cica - has been used in folk medicine for hundreds of years. It’s traditionally used to improve small wounds , burns and scratches and it’s also a well known anti-inflammatory agent for eczema. Recently science has taken an interest in Gotu Kola as well and it turns out it really has many active compounds with several benefits. Just for hard-core geeks, the main biologically active compounds are pentacyclic triterpenoid saponins called asiaticoside, madecassoside, asiatic and madecassic acid (also called centellosides). One of the biological activities of the centellosides is to be able to stimulate GAGs (glycosaminoglycans - polysaccharides that are part of the liquidy stuff between our skin cells), and especially hyaluronic acid synthesis in our skin. This is probably one of the reasons why Centella Asiatica Extract has nice skin moisturizing properties that was confirmed by a 25 people, four weeks study along with Centella's anti-inflammatory effects . Madecassoside can also help in burn wound healing through increasing antioxidant activity and enhancing collagen synthesis. Asiaticoside was shown to increase antioxidant levels on rats skin when applied at 0.2%. Centella Asiatica also often shows up in products that try to treat cellulite or striae . Of course, it cannot make a miracle but it might have some effect via regulating microcirculation and normalizing the metabolism in the cells of connective tissues. Bottom line : Gotu Kola is a great plant ingredient with proven wound healing, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. Nice to spot on any ingredient list."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Phytate",
    "description": "It’s one of those little helper ingredients that makes sure the product stays the same over time . No color change or anything like that. It does so by neutralizing the metal ions in the formula (that usually get into there from water) that would otherwise cause some not so nice changes."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Triethanolamine",
    "description": "It’s a little helper ingredient that helps to set the pH of a cosmetic formulation to be just right. It’s very alkaline (you know the opposite of being very acidic): a 1% solution has a pH of around 10. It does not have the very best safety reputation but in general, you do not have to worry about it. What is true is that if a product contains so-called N-nitrogenating agents (e.g.: preservatives like 2-Bromo-2-Nitropropane-1,3-Diol, 5-Bromo-5-Nitro- 1,3-Dioxane or sodium nitrate - so look out for things with nitro, nitra in the name) that together with TEA can form some not nice carcinogenic stuff (that is called nitrosamines). But with proper formulation that does not happen, TEA in itself is not a bad guy. But let’s assume a bad combination of ingredients were used and the nitrosamines formed. :( Even in that case you are probably fine because as far as we know it cannot penetrate the skin. But to be on the safe side, if you see Triethanolamine in an INCI and also something with nitra, nitro in the name of it just skip the product, that cannot hurt."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lactic Acid",
    "description": "Lactic acid is the second most well-known and most well researched among the AHAs . The no. 1 is glycolic acid. If you're new to AHAs we strongly suggest that you head over to our description about glycolic acid . There you will find a super detailed geeky description and many of the things we wrote are true to all AHAs and to lactic acid as well. Here we will focus mainly on the differences. :)  But before we dive in, just a short intro. Lactic acid is probably one of oldest actives, about which women have noticed that it has some nice benefits to the skin. Legend has it that in ancient Egypt Cleopatra bathed in sour milk . And yes, you guessed it right: sour milk is a major natural source of lactic acid. As an AHA it’s also true of lactic acid that it can gently lift away dead skin cells revealing the fresher, smoother, nicer skin underneath . This is an awesome property of AHAs and this alone makes us a total fan! But just like glycolic acid, lactic acid also knows some more. However the “some more” is a bit different for the two of them. The differences stem from the fact that the molecule of lactic acid is larger . Because of the larger molecule it can penetrate the skin less effectively. This means on the one hand that lactic acid is more gentle and on the other hand that the anti-aging properties are probably a little less effective. While the collagen boosting ability of lactic acid is not so well proven there are studies that show that it also has great anti-aging properties (if used in the right concentration at the right pH). A study done in 1996 compared a 5% and a 12% lactic acid treatment and examined their effect on the outer (epidermis) and middle (dermis) layer of the skin. The result was that both treatments had nice exfoliation effect, but the 5% treatment only affected the epidermis while the 12% treatment affected both the dermis and the epidermis. Another study has compared multiple AHAs including lactic acid and glycolic acid in terms of skin benefits and skin irritation. The result was that both of them are very effective AHA versions (more effective than citric, malic and hydroxybutyric acids) and after six weeks of use both lactic and glycolic acid improved skin firmness, thickness and wrinkles to a similar extent. This study also compared the different versions of lactic acid, L and D . Lactic acid is like our hands, it has “a left and a right-handed” version. Surprisingly these two versions are not equal: the L-lactic acid showed the same effectiveness with less irritation potential so that version is the better choice for a cosmetic product. BTW, the reason for this is not understood. Other than that lactic acid has one more magic property: it’s an amazing moisturizer ingredient . In fact, it’s so great with moisturizing and treating dry skin that in the USA there is even an FDA-approved, prescription product, called LacHydrin that contains 12% lactic acid to hydrate skin. As for choosing the right product concentration and pH value is very important here too. You can read in detail about both things at the glycolic acid description . The exact same thing is true for lactic acid: pH 3-4 is the best for at-home products . The other good-to-know things listed out at glycolic acid also apply here. The only difference: it’s more gentle, so probably it will cause less stinging or burning (though it depends on the concentration and pH of course). So bottom line : lactic acid is also a superstar. It’s a gentle, moisturizing AHA  that can give you a fresh, smooth, even complexion and also some anti-aging benefits. You have to give it a try if you have not done so so far!"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ascorbic Acid",
    "description": "If Vit C was a person it would be someone like Beyoncé, Jennifer Lopez or Mariah Carey. Serious performance, A-list superstar but at the same time shows some major divaish behaviour. But before we dive into it let’s just take a quick look where Vit C comes from. By the 18th century sailors noticed that if they eat plenty of citrus fruits that helps to prevent scurvy (an ugly disease that causes bleeding gums and other bad things - caused by Vit C deficiency). At that time they had no clue what it was inside citrus fruits that helped. Scientists managed to figure out only in the 1930s what Vitamin C is. Since then it’s been a much researched, lovely vitamin that has turned out to have tremendous health benefits not only for our body but also for our skin. It’s the primary water-soluble antioxidant in our tissue and plays a big role in the complicated process where our skin creates some nice new skin-firming collagen. So it’s really good to have plenty of Vit C in our body and in our skin but the trick is that our body cannot make it for itself (fun fact: some animals, like mice can!). We have to take it entirely from outside sources. Citrus fruits, black currants, red pepper or guava are for example awesome Vit C rich foods that you should eat regularly. And here is an another trick: eating Vit C does not help our skin to have high levels of it. And of course when the sun shines upon us or when we face environmental pollution that is also not good for the Vit C levels in our skin. But here is good news: putting some lovely Vit C cream or serum on our skin actually helps. So how does it help exactly? Let’s see: Great antioxidant and UV protection booster Multiple studies showed that animal skin treated with topical ascorbic acid have less skin reddening (it’s called erythema), fewer sunburn cells, and decreased tumor formation after UV exposure. What this means is that it’ a great idea to use your Vit C serum in the morning under your sunscreen (not instead of it!).  For even better protection choose a serum that contains Vit E as well as it doubles the photoprotection properties of Vit C. And wait, it gets even better: Ferulic acid further doubles the photoprotection of Vit C + E. So this trio, Vit C + E + Ferulic acid is really effective . If you are into protecting your skin from UV rays (and you should be if you want lovely skin for a long time) you should try a serum containing the magic trio. (BTW, this was discovered by American researcher, Sheldon Pinnell in 2005 and Skinceuticals CE Ferulic Serum was the first one on the market containing all three actives.) Helps skin to make nice collagen Collagen is complicated but the most important thing to know about it is that it’s like tent pole. It helps to keep our skin firm and wrinkle free. Throwing poles on a ramshackle tent does not help. The poles do not go magically to the right place to make the tent nice and firm again. It’s the same with collagen - in a skincare product it does not really help (to be fair it has some hydrating properties, but not wrinkle erasing magic properties). Boosting the collagen production of your skin helps. And Vit C can do that. In a study from 1999 a 10% Vit C serum (Cellex-C) was shown to decrease wrinkles when applied for a 3 month period. A few years later another study using a 5% Vit C cream for a 6 month period showed statistically significant improvement in skin hydration, wrinkles, glare, brown spots and skin density. Helping your skin to make extra collagen is always nice and Vit C is one of the very very few ingredients that is proved to do so in peer reviewed studies. A-list superstar, right? Fades brown spots Brown spots or hyperpigmentation is just not nice and frankly it is very difficult to fade them just with skincare. But Vit C can help. For brown spots to form the body needs an enzyme (stuffs that help chemical reactions in our body) called tyrosinase. Vit C works by inhibiting this enzyme so brown spots cannot form that effectively. That is all nice and lovely, and an A-list superstar performance. But we have started our description saying that Vit C is such a diva. So what about that? Well, here are its major diva demands: Extremely unstable, oxidizes very easily If you ever tried a pure Vit C serum and you have not used it up in a month or two then you must have noticed that it changed its color and started to become brownish. Yes, that was the Vit C going wrong in the product. There are some tips and tricks that help to stabilize Vit C. Low pH (below 3.5pH) or waterless formulation helps. Also some other ingredients help, like ferulic acid, glutathione, citric acid or sodium metabisulfite. These are all shown in research studies to help with the stability issues. Also protecting the formula from air and light is super important. The best is a totally airless packaging when it comes to Vit C formulas. But even with all these tricks employed a potent Vit C serum can be used usually only three month after opening it. Diva, see? Does not penetrate skin easily It is water soluble and skin is just not attracted to water soluble things but rather to oil soluble things. So this makes it a little tricky for Vit C to actually get into your skin. But good news: low pH (again below 3.5pH) solves the problem, so look out for water based Vit C serums that state that they have the right pH or waterless formulas can work too. High amount of Vit C can irritate sensitive skin Slight tingling is quite normal but if your skin is super sensitive, rosacea prone than a very potent (above 10%) Vit C serum might not be for you. You know, if there are some big advantages there will always be some disadvantages too. That’s just how it is. Still Vit C is so awesome that you should try it at least once and see how your skin reacts. It’s always individual so you never know for sure until you try it. If you are still here, congrats! You are now a true  “Vitamin C and the skin”  expert. :)"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ferulic Acid",
    "description": "Ferulic Acid (FA) is a goodie that can be found naturally in plant cell walls. There is a lot of it especially in the bran of grasses such as rice, wheat and oats. FA - whose main job is to be an antioxidant - owes its fame to a 2005 research that discovered that adding in 0.5% FA to a 15% Vitamin C + 1% Vitamin E solution not only stabilizes the highly unstable, divaish Vit C, but it also doubles the photoprotection abilities of the formula. Couple of other studies show that FA just by itself is also a nice addition to cosmetic formulations: it can penetrate the skin (which is kind of important to do the job) and it has protecting properties against UV caused skin damage. So if you spot it on the ingredient list be happy about it. :)"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Limonene",
    "description": "A super common and cheap fragrance ingredient . It's in many plants, e.g. rosemary, eucalyptus, lavender, lemongrass, peppermint and it's the main component (about 50-90%) of the peel oil of citrus fruits. It does smell nice but the problem is that it oxidizes on air exposure and the resulting stuff is not good for the skin. Oxidized limonene can cause allergic contact dermatitis and counts as a frequent skin sensitizer . Limonene's nr1 function is definitely being a fragrance component, but there are several studies showing that it's also a penetration enhancer, mainly for oil-loving components. All in all, limonene has some pros and cons, but - especially if your skin is sensitive - the cons probably outweigh the pros."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Panthenol",
    "description": "An easy-to-formulate, commonly used, nice to have ingredient that’s also called pro-vitamin B5. As you might guess from the “pro” part, it’s a precursor to vitamin B5 (whose fancy name is pantothenic acid). Its main job in skincare products is to moisturise the skin . It’s a humectant meaning that it can help the skin to attract water and then hold onto it. There is also research showing that panthenol can help our skin to produce more lovely lipids that are important for a strong and healthy skin barrier. Another great thing about panthenol is that it has anti-inflammatory and skin protecting abilities. A study shows that it can reduce the irritation caused by less-nice other ingredients (e.g. fragrance, preservatives or chemical sunscreens) in the product. Research also shows that it might be useful for wound healing as it promotes fibroblast (nice type of cells in our skin that produce skin-firming collagen) proliferation. If that wasn’t enough panthenol is also useful in nail and hair care products . A study shows that a nail treatment liquide with 2% panthenol could effectively get into the nail and significantly increase the hydration of it. As for the hair the hydration effect is also true there. Panthenol might make your hair softer, more elastic and helps to comb your hair more easily."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Opuntia Ficus-Indica Extract",
    "description": "Prickly pear is a cactus that’s native to Mexico. It has large, sweet fruit that’s called tunas and has been used as a source of food since pre-Hispanic Mexico. Currently jams and jellies are produced from it and also a traditional Mexican alcoholic drink called colonche . But what is it doing in our skincare products? Well, according to swiss manufacturer, Mibelle its two main properties are that it soothes and hydrates the skin .  And what’s more, they have also created some nice test results both in vitro and in vivo (in the lab tubes and on humans) showing that Opuntia Ficus-Indica can protect skin cells against UV light . And that’s still not all. An American manufacturer has combined the ingredient with yeast extract and the two together helps to reduce neurosensory irritation caused by the application of topical products such as retinoids (slow reaction), alpha hydroxy acids (fast reaction) or preservatives which induce some type of irritation or inflammation. The bottom line: though we could not really find independent published research, we definitely think that Prickly Pear’s name sounds cool + it’s a very promising ingredient that seems to have great soothing and protecting abilities."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glycolic Acid",
    "description": "Unless you have avoided every bit of skin care info out there so far (in this case special welcome to you! :)) you must have heard of glycolic acid. Or at least about AHA s or to put it even more nice-sounding fruit acids . AHAs (alpha-hydroxy acids) stand for a whole group of ingredients and glycolic acid is one of them. If you are a chemist geek type you might want to know that the point of AHAs is that they contain a hydroxy group (-OH) and a carboxylic acid part (HO¬ =0) and these two parts are only one carbon apart (if they are two carbons apart it’s a beta-hydroxy acid). You can find great description and great drawings about all this on the super nice blog, LabMuffin . So glycolic acid is an AHA and it’s the smallest and simplest one of them. It can be found naturally in grape, sugar cane juice, sugar beet and Virginia creeper leaves, but more often than not the version used in cosmetics is synthetic. We are pretty strict with awarding things superstar status so what’s the big deal with glycolic acid? What does it do to our skin? It can exfoliate It can gently lift off dead skin cells on the surface of your skin revealing the newer, fresher and nicer skin cells underneath. This is called exfoliation. Your skin already exfoliates itself naturally renewing the upper layer of the skin every 3-5 weeks. But as usual: this process slows down and gets faulty with age, with exposure to sun, pollution and all the usual bad stuff. So a little external help in the form of AHAs is usually very helpful! And the most awesome part: this effect is quick! With a quality AHA product, you will see pretty much immediate results in terms of fresher, smoother skin . It can increase collagen synthesis Fresher and smoother skin is already awesome enough to make us a fan but what really earned our superstar rating is glycolic acid’s proven ability to increase collagen synthesis. There are really only a few ingredients that can do that and glycolic acid is one of them. Actually this is the biggest benefit of glycolic acid compared to all the other AHAs. The skin firming, collagen boosting ability seems to be the best with the smallest and simplest version of all the AHAs (probably because being the smallest means also that it can penetrate the deepest). But be patient: collagen synthesis takes time, so this one is a long-term benefit. Count as much as 4-6 month to see some change. It reduces hyperpigmentation Brownish spots are usually not something that we want on our face (or anywhere else...) and honestly they are really stubborn things that are hard to fade with cosmetic products. But glycolic acid is something that can help to speed up the process. Studies show that it can disperse melanin in our skin (the natural pigment that gives the color of our skin, but too much of it results in brown spots) and it’s also very useful for fading the brownish marks left after inflamed acnes (it’s called post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation or PIH). Other nice things If the above was not enough there are a couple of other promising things that glycolic acid can do. With ongoing use research shows that it increases the thickness of our skin and helps to stimulate the growth of new skin that results in fresher, younger complexion. Lifting away dead skin cells from the surface of the skin is also useful to treat dry skin patches and allow all of our other skin care products to perform better . Glycolic acid is not a mainstream ingredient for treating acne but even for that you can give it a try. There are a few studies that show it can improve problem skin. (Maybe it’s worth trying in addition to an anti-acne skin care routine and not instead of the more effective, standard ingredients like salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide). Ok, so glycolic acid is a skincare superstar. But to experience all the nice things above it’s important to use a properly formulated, high-quality product. There are two really important things that influence the effectiveness of a glycolic acid (or AHA) product : Concentration If you can, choose a product where you know the exact concentration of glycolic acid (or AHA) in it. A mild, daily use at-home product ’s concentration should be about 4-10% . With a mild product like that you should see the fresher, smoother skin effect but probably not the skin-firming, anti-aging benefits. Products in the 10-20% range are still great for at home-use and should give you all the nice skin benefits that we have detailed out before. However they are probably too strong for daily use. There is a thing called over-exfoliation, and that is just not good for your skin. Visible peeling, redness, irritation - all signs of over-exfoliation, do not do that! With a stronger product definitely start only once a week or so, and if your skin takes it well, you can increase to a couple of times a week . Above 20% it’s usually professional territory . Dermatologists do skin peels at concentration up to 70%. Glycolic acid is actually the most popular “ lunchtime peel ”. If you are in need of a more serious skin boost, you can run out in lunchtime to a derm, and continue to work afterwards with fresher, more glowing skin but without any bad, visible side effects. pH value It is at least as important as concentration. Or maybe even more important. Please buy an AHA product only if you know the pH value. AHAs do not work their magic if the product pH is not acidic . The best practice pH range for an at home glycolic acid product is between 3-4 . In this range the product is still effective but it’s also gentle to the skin. If the pH is less, glycolic acid works stronger, if the pH is more it works milder. Above pH 4, and especially above pH 5  glycolic acid loses its magic powers. On the other hand if the pH is very low it might irritate the skin. Professional solutions work at a pH as low as 2, but for at home stick to a 3-4 pH range. Ok, almost done. A couple of more things to know: If you use an AHA product please use a sunscreen every morning ! No, wait I rephrase: please use a sunscreen every morning in any case. But if you use an AHA double make sure that you do that as AHAs increase skin’s sensitivity to sun. With stronger products some stinging or burning sensation is normal . Your skin gets used to it after a few times. If your skin is very sensitive or rosacea prone glycolic acid is probably not for you . In that case milder BHA and PHA products will be your friends. If you use AHAs for the first time most probably you will have to experiment a bit to see how often your skin likes it . Fresh, glowy skin is good. Peeling, red, irritated skin is bad. Some people can use a 10% product every day, others can use it only once a week. So experiment! Start slowly and increase frequency rather than the other way around. Over-exfoliation is not nice! So bottom line : glycolic acid is awesome, and a superstar. Unless you are very sensitive, do give it a try if you have not done so yet!"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Linalool",
    "description": "Linalool is a super common fragrance ingredient. It’s kind of everywhere - both in plants and in cosmetic products. It’s part of 200 natural oils including lavender, ylang-ylang, bergamot, jasmine, geranium and it can be found in 90-95% of prestige perfumes on the market. The problem with linalool is, that just like limonene it oxidises on air exposure and becomes allergenic . That’s why a product containing linalool that has been opened for several months is more likely to be allergenic than a fresh one. A study made in the UK with 483 people tested the allergic reaction to 3% oxidised linalool and 2.3% had positive test results."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tocopherol",
    "description": "Vitamin E is the major fat-soluble antioxidant in our skin . As a strong antioxidant it’s an A-player in protecting the skin cells from the nasty little things called free-radicals that want to destroy the lovely collagen that makes our skin nice and firm. Because it’s fat soluble our skin just loves to absorb it (as opposed to water soluble things where we have to trick our skin to absorb them). Vit E can be found in many foods: vegetables, oils, seeds, nuts, corn, soy, whole wheat flour, margarine and even some meats and dairy products. The natural form is denoted by a ‘d’ in the beginning of the name and  ‘dl’ denotes the synthetic form. While this is absolutely not always true, in this case research shows that the natural form is more active and is better absorbed . The name tocopherol actually refers to a whole group of stuff and it has four subtypes : alpha, beta, gamma and delta. The subtypes are quite different: alpha-tocopherol is the nicest and most active one, while delta-tocopherol seems to be the lazy guy and does not even have antioxidant properties. In cosmetic products mixed tocopherol (containing all subtypes) or alpha-tocopherol is the best choice. There are lots of studies showing that Vit E has some nice photoprotection properties , meaning it can protect the skin from UV (and in case of Vit E it’s mainly UVB) rays. If you put it on your skin,  it lowers the production of sunburn cells, reduces the damage caused by UVB rays and inhibits photocarcinogenesis. What it does not do is helping agains UVA caused skin issues like sagging. But if you combine it with Vit C (especially in high amount like 15%), the two together work in synergy , give broad spectrum protection and double each other's effectiveness. There is also this urban legend that Vit E helps in wound healing. Well, that just seems to be a legend. Several studies were made to prove this point but so far none of them managed to do so. In some cases it made things even worse. :( So if you have some surgical scars do not put Vit E containing stuff on it. It’s an urban legend , no proof."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Biosaccharide Gum-1",
    "description": "Biosaccharide Gum-1 is a pretty interesting kind of sugar ingredient that is created from sorbitol via bacterial fermentation. According to the manufacturer it’s a “S.M.A.R.T.” sugar : it has Soothing, Moisturizing, Anti-aging, Restructuring and Touch properties. Let’s look at them quickly one by one. Soothing : the manufacturer tested out the soothing effect in vivo (meaning on humans that is always a good thing!) by measuring how 3% Biosaccharide Gum-1 decreased the tingling sensation caused by 10% lactic acid. The result was good: the tingling was decreased by 47%. Moisturizing : Compared to famous hyaluronic acid , it turns out that the two are great together. HA has a quicker effect and provides more instant hydration (much more hydration was measured after 1h of application), while our nice sugar has a somewhat delayed effect demonstrating stronger hydration after 3h of application. After 8 hours both had similar moisturizing effect. Anti-aging : According to ex-vivo tests (meaning not on humans, so do not trust it too much) Biosaccharide Gum-1 can stimulate a protein in our skin called sirtuin-1 . This is supposed to help our skin cells to live longer, and function better. Resurfacing :  The sirtuin-1 stimulation also results in quicker cell renewal - something that happens anyway but slows down as we age. And the quicker cell renewal is good because it helps the regeneration of the barrier function. That is especially nice for fragile, sensitive skin. Touch : our fermented sugar is not only good to the skin, but it also feels great on the skin. It gives a nice “soft touch” feeling and makes the products pleasant to use. The bottom line is that the above info is from the manufacturer (and we could not find any relevant independent research) so obviously take it with a grain of salt. But Biosaccharide Gum-1 does look as an interesting and promising ingredient that’s why it earned our goodie rating."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Beta-Glucan",
    "description": "Beta-Glucan is a nice big molecule composed of many smaller sugar molecules (called polysaccharide). It’s in the cell walls of yeast, some mushrooms, seaweeds, and cereals. It’s a real goodie no matter if you eat it or put it on your face. Eating it is anti-diabetic, anti-cancer, and even lowers blood cholesterol. Putting it on your face also does a bunch of good things: it‘s shown to have intensive skin repairing & wound healing properties , it’s a mild antioxidant , a great skin soother, and moisturizer , and it even shows promising anti-aging benefits . The manufacturer of the ingredient did a published study with 27 people and examined the effect of 0.1% beta-glucan. They found that despite the large molecular size the smaller factions of beta-glucan penetrate into the skin, even into the dermis (the middle layer of the skin where wrinkles form). After 8 weeks there was a significant reduction of wrinkle depth and height and skin roughness has also improved greatly. Bottom line: Beta-glucan is a great ingredient, especially for sensitive or damaged skin . It soothes, moisturizes, and has some anti-aging magic properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lactococcus Ferment Lysate",
    "description": "Lactococcus Ferment Lysate is a fairly new probiotic ingredient that is obtained from the Gram-positive bacteria, Lactococcus lactis. The lysate is a fluid substance that is produced when you break down the cell membrane, which means it contains interesting things including cytoplasm and cell wall fragments. According to the manufacturer , it positively influences both the speed and quality of epidermal growth that results in better barrier function and overall skin quality. To prove their point, the German manufacturer conducted several in-vitro (made in test tubes) tests examining how the treatment with Lactococcus Ferment Lysate (LFL) affects important skin proteins. They found that gene expression influencing the proteins binding the live skin cells together (such as Occludin, Desmocollin 1 and Desmoglein 1) is stimulated by LFL, as well as the expression of enzymes (Kallikrein 5 and 7) breaking the bonds between the shedding dead skin cells. LFL also had a positive influence on epidermal growth and on the thickness of the stratum corneum (the outermost layer of the skin). Another positive finding was that LFL stimulated the production of antimicrobial peptides that play an important role in the immunocompetence of the skin cells. As for in-vivo tests, the manufacturer only did one and that had only 5 volunteers. They did some tape stripping (exactly what it sounds, hurting the skin by stripping off the top layers) and examined skin renewal and barrier recovery. 4 days after the experiment 3% Lactococcus Ferment Lysate used twice daily resulted in thicker stratum corneum (the difference was about 2 µm) and less trans-epidermal water loss. Overall , Lactococcus Ferment Lysate is a promising but fairly unproven ingredient that might help with the natural skin renewal process as well as with a healthy skin barrier and skin flora."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Extract",
    "description": "Saccharomyces cerevisiae (SC)  is the fancy name for common baker’s yeast. Usually different kind of yeast extracts are used in skincare for their great hydrating, and general skin conditioning properties. We could find one research paper to back this up: It has found that SC indeed increases skin moisture and had improved skin microrelief (the small wrinkles and surface irregularities of skin). According to manufacturer info coupled with the Mexican cactus, prickly pear it also helps to reduce neurosensory irritation that might occur from potent retinol or AHA products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Water",
    "description": "Good old water, aka H2O. The most common skincare ingredient of all. You can usually find it right in the very first spot of the ingredient list, meaning it’s the biggest thing out of all the stuff that makes up the product. It’s mainly a solvent for ingredients that do not like to dissolve in oils but rather in water. Once inside the skin, it hydrates, but not from the outside - putting pure water on the skin (hello long baths!) is drying. One more thing: the water used in cosmetics is purified and deionized (it means that almost all of the mineral ions inside it is removed). Like this, the products can stay more stable over time."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Saccharomyces Ferment Filtrate",
    "description": "Saccharomyces Ferment Filtrate is the fancy name of a liquidy, almost-water-like stuff that you get by fermenting and filtering yeast. According to manufacturer info it’s rich in all kinds of good-for-your-skin things : essential minerals, amino acids, beta-glucan and vitamins. It’s definitely great for skin moisturization and soothing , and might have some skin brightening and wrinkle repair magic activity as well."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citronellol",
    "description": "Citronellol is a very common fragrance ingredient with a nice rose-like odor . In the UK, it’s actually the third most often listed perfume on the ingredient lists. It can be naturally found in geranium oil (about 30%) or rose oil (about 25%). As with all fragrance ingredients, citronellol can also cause allergic contact dermatitis and should be avoided if you have perfume allergy. In a 2001 worldwide study with 178 people with known sensitization to fragrances citronellol tested positive in 5.6% of the cases. There is no known anti-aging or positive skin benefits of the ingredient. It’s in our products to make it smell nice."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tocopheryl Acetate",
    "description": "It’s the most commonly used version of pure vitamin E in cosmetics. You can read all about the pure form here . This one is the so-called esterified version. According to famous dermatologist, Leslie Baumann while tocopheryl acetate is more stable and has a longer shelf life , it’s also more poorly absorbed by the skin and may not have the same awesome photoprotective effects as pure Vit E."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Bifida Ferment Lysate",
    "description": "Bifida Ferment Lysate is a probiotic ingredient that’s used in one of the most iconic serums in the world, the Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair. Based on manufacturer info it potently protects against UV-induced damage in the skin and helps with DNA repair. An Estee Lauder patent from 2009 also talks about DNA repair activity . As far as published research goes we could find one promising one. It showed that applying 10% bacterial extract to sensitive, reactive skin helped with better barrier function and decreased skin sensitivity . Overall, it is definitely a promising ingredient, even for sensitive skin types but not the most proven one (yet)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acrylates/​C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer",
    "description": "Though its long name does not reveal it, this polymer molecule (big molecule from repeated subunits or monomers) is a relative to the super common, water-loving thickener, Carbomer . Both of them are big molecules that contain acrylic acid units, but Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer also contains some other monomers that are hydrophobic, i.e. water-hating. This means that our molecule is part water- and part oil-loving, so it not only works as a thickener but also as an emulsion stabilizer . It is very common in gel-type formulas that also contain an oil-phase as well as in cleansers as it also works with most cleansing agents (unlike a lot of other thickeners)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Hyaluronate",
    "description": "It’s the - sodium form - cousin of the famous NMF , hyaluronic acid (HA). If HA does not tell you anything we have a super detailed, geeky explanation about it here .  The TL; DR version of HA is that it's a huge polymer (big molecule from repeated subunits) found in the skin that acts as a sponge helping the skin to hold onto water, being plump and elastic. HA is famous for its crazy water holding capacity as it can bind up to 1000 times its own weight in water. As far as skincare goes, sodium hyaluronate and hyaluronic acid are pretty much the same and the two names are used interchangeably . As cosmetic chemist kindofstephen writes on reddit \"sodium hyaluronate disassociates into hyaluronic acid molecule and a sodium atom in solution\". In spite of this, if you search for \"hyaluronic acid vs sodium hyaluronate\" you will find on multiple places that sodium hyaluronate is smaller and can penetrate the skin better. Chemically, this is definitely not true, as the two forms are almost the same, both are polymers and the subunits can be repeated in both forms as much as you like. (We also checked Prospector for sodium hyaluronate versions actually used in cosmetic products and found that the most common molecular weight was 1.5-1.8 million Da that absolutely counts as high molecular weight). What seems to be a true difference, though, is that the salt form is more stable, easier to formulate and cheaper so it pops up more often on the ingredient lists. If you wanna become a real HA-and-the-skin expert you can read way more about the topic at hyaluronic acid (including penetration-questions, differences between high and low molecular weight versions and a bunch of references to scientific literature)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Azelaic Acid",
    "description": "Azelaic acid is a superstar acid with some serious magic properties. Before we list them out here's just a short intro. Azelaic acid is a so-called carboxylic acid. It’s not an AHA or BHA but a distant relative to them (all being carboxylic acids). It can be found naturally in wheat, rye, and barley. Magic property no.1: Antibacterial effect → Anti-Acne A very cool property of azelaic acid is that it has a great antibacterial effect. It works against multiple bacteria including the evil, acne-causing Propionibacterium acnes (P. acnes). Very few ingredient are proven to work against P. acnes, so this alone makes azelaic acid an awesome choice for acne-prone skin. For acne treatment, 20% is the standard prescription strength choice. Comparing 20% azelaic acid to other acne treatments like 0.05% retinoic acid cream, 5% benzoyl peroxide cream or 2% erythromycin ointment azelaic acid had nothing to be ashamed for as it showed similar effectiveness. There is also a study that showed that 5% azelaic acid is also somewhat effective (about 32% improvement) and it can be made much more effective by combining it with 2% clindamycin (about 64% improvement.) Magic property no. 2: Regulate the production of skin cells → Anti-Acne One of our favourite beauty blogs, xoVain cites dermatologist, Dr. David Lortscher, who gives a great explanation:  “Azelaic acid also works on the cells that line hair follicles by changing the way they mature and proliferate, which decreases follicular ‘plugging’ and helps prevent blackheads, whiteheads, and inflamed acne lesions.” So basically it helps with healthy skin cell production in the pores that is often problematic in acne and blackhead prone skin, which is nice! Magic property no. 3: Anti-inflammatory effect → Anti-rosacea, anti-acne The third magic property of azelaic acid is that it is proven to have an e anti-inflammatory effect. This is cool not only for treating acne, but also for treating rosacea. 15% is the standard prescription strength dose for rosacea treatment. Magic property no. 4: Skin lightening effect → Anti-PIH, anti-melasma Last but not least azelaic acid also shows skin lightening properties. It seems to be especially effective for post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (that often comes with acne) and melasma. Studies have compared 20% azelaic acid to 2% and 4% Hydroquinone and here again, it has nothing to be ashamed of, azelaic acid showed similar skin lightening properties. (Though interestingly azelaic acid did not seem to be effective for lightening age spots that are called solar lentigines.) So the bottom line is that azelaic acid can be a game changer (or rather skin changer) especially for acne-prone or rosacea skin types. It’s antibacterial, can regulate problematic skin cell production in pores, it’s anti-inflammatory and even helps with PIH and melasma. It really can do a lot."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Propylene Glycol",
    "description": "Propylene Glycol (PG) is a colorless liquid, whose main job, usually, is to improve the so-called freeze-thaw stability of the products. This means that it makes sure that a product doesn’t freeze or melt in low or high temperatures. To achieve this, small amounts - usually less than 2% - is used. Other functions of PG include being a humectant (helps skin attract water), being a solvent for other ingredients and being a penetration enhancer . If you google PG or you like to read around on sites advocating natural cosmetics you might have read some really scary info about this ingredient. The two most common accusations are that it’s a strong skin irritant and that it modifies the skin to allow toxins to penetrate it. As for the first one, yes PG can be a skin irritant if used 100% on your skin, but so can many things in their pure, 100% form. Think about salt. It’s not the same if you try to eat it in itself or if you put a pinch of it on your food. So PG used in small amounts in cosmetics is just fine according to every credible scientist and toxicology expert. As for the second thing (that PG allows toxins to get through our skin) it is somewhat true that PG might help some ingredients to penetrate the skin better. But it does not work so that a tiny amount of PG allows all the bad stuff to go right into our blood. English cosmetic chemist, Colin wrote a very good post about this . He writes that the skin is very good at keeping things out and getting some good ingredients into it is actually not easy. According to his experience PG is not a very good penetration enhancer and fairly large (10-25%) amount is needed for this function. But more than 10% can be irritating, so it’s very rare that a cosmetic product contains this large amount. The scientists at the Beauty Brains are even more accepting of PG. They write that PG is safe for ingestion  (it can be a food additive!) AND safe for use in injected drugs, so it’s unlikely to cause any problems in a topical cosmetic product applied on intact skin. All in all, PG is a helper ingredient and is not especially good for your skin. But used in small (<5%) amounts it’s absolutely fine, not poisonous and there is no reason to be afraid of it. If you would like to read some more about PG here is the opinion of skin care expert, Paula Begoun , cosmetic chemists Colin and the Beauty Brains - all really good info on the topic."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Salicylic Acid",
    "description": "If you have ever struggled with let’s just call it “problem skin” (you know, acne, blackheads, whiteheads, large pores) then most probably you are familiar with salicylic acid (SA). Even if the name does not ring a bell, you have probably used it. Next to benzoyl peroxide, it’s the gold standard ingredient for treating problem skin . There are two reasons for this: Reason #1: It can exfoliate skin both on the surface and in the pores AHAs are very cool, but they are water soluble and cannot go into the pores. SA is lipid soluble and it can go right into the pores and shed the stuck, dead skin cells out from there. That’s really good for treating blackheads as well as preventing acne formation. This was confirmed also by a study that compared 8% AHA and 2% BHA for treating blackheads. AHA did not decrease the blackhead density statistically significantly, but BHA did. Reason #2: SA is a potent anti-inflammatory The chemical structure of SA is very similar to aspirin, and it does have similar anti-irritant and anti-inflammatory effect. That is helpful both for acne and rosacea. So SA is definitely an ingredient to try if you have oily or problem skin, but all in all, it’s more effective against blackheads than inflamed zits. For the latter one,  it’s only moderately effective, and benzoyl peroxide outperforms it by leaps and bounds. But they work in different ways, so a combination therapy is a great way to fight (and win) against acne. (In fact, it’s a good idea to combine SA not only with BP, but with any other antibacterial agent such as azelaic acid or mandelic acid .) What else to know? For at home use 0.5-2% SA is effective and these products are usually gentle enough for daily use. In fact, in the EU 2% is the maximum strength allowed in at home products. There are also professional BHA peels that go in the 20-30% range . Those can fade pigmentation, decrease surface roughness, reduce fine lines and of course, treat acne. Regarding pH requirements for BHA, unlike for AHAs where an acidic pH is super important for efficacy , it might be less relevant for BHA. Oh, and one more things: studies show that SA (at 2%) does not increase skin’s sun sensitivity , but it has photoprotective effects. Not that we want to tell you not to use sunscreen, because please do! Bottom line : SA is a great exfoliant and anti-inflammatory and you should definitely try it if you have oily skin, large pores, blackheads or whiteheads. If you have acne, it is a useful adjacent treatment combined with an antibacterial agent such as benzoyl peroxide or azelaic acid."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Parfum/​Fragrance",
    "description": "Exactly what it sounds: nice smelling stuff put into cosmetic products so that the end product also smells nice. Fragrance in the US and parfum in the EU is a generic term on the ingredient list that is made up of 30 to 50 chemicals on average (but it can have as much as 200 components!). If you are someone who likes to know what you put on your face then fragrance is not your best friend - there's no way to know what’s really in it. Also, if your skin is sensitive, fragrance is again not your best friend. It’s the number one cause of contact allergy to cosmetics. It’s definitely a smart thing to avoid with sensitive skin (and fragrance of any type - natural is just as allergic as synthetic, if not worse!)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Palmitoyl Grapevine Shoot Extract",
    "description": "It’s a grape-derived ingredient that’s exclusive to French grape-centered skincare brand, Caudalie. Because of this there is not much independent info on it, but the brand claims that this is a very effective ingredient for fading brown spots . The Radiance Serum that contains it (and it does not contain any other skin-lightening ingredients!) is one of the brand’s best-sellers so there might be something to Caudalie’s claims."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cucumis Sativus Fruit Extract",
    "description": "Cucumber is a nice, non-irritating plant extract that’s known for it’s soothing and emollient properties. It’s not something new to put it on our face: even Cleopatra used it to “preserve her skin”. It’s commonly believed that cucumber is the answer to puffy eyes, but there is no research confirming this. What research does confirm is that it contains amino acids and organic acids that’s helpful for the skin’s acid mantle . There is also an enzyme (called shikimate dehydrigenase) in the pulp that’s shown to have anti-inflammatory properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citric Acid",
    "description": "Citric acid comes from citrus fruits and is an AHA. If these magic three letters don’t tell you anything, click here and read our detailed description on glycolic acid, the most famous AHA. So citric acid is an exfoliant , that can - just like other AHAs - gently lift off the dead skin cells of your skin and make it more smooth and fresh. There is also some research showing that citric acid with regular use (think three months and 20% concentration) can help sun-damaged skin, increase skin thickness and some nice hydrating things called glycosaminoglycans in the skin. But according to a comparative study done in 1995, citric acid has less skin improving magic properties than glycolic or lactic acid . Probably that’s why citric acid is usually not used as an exfoliant but more as a helper ingredient in small amounts to adjust the pH of a formulation."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract",
    "description": "We will tell you straight away that we are big green tea fans. Drinking it and slathering it all over your face are both great ideas. But as this is INCIDecoder and not a find-out-what’s-healthy-to-drink site we will now just focus on why you should put it on your face. Our first reason is that green tea does not only sound good but it’s super well researched . According to one of our fav dermatologist, dr. Leslie Baumann it’s one of the most studied antioxidants. A 2015 research summary paper on green tea stated that there are about 6000 research papers on the topic currently in PubMed (the US National Library of Medicine research database). Before we dive into what the magic powers of green tea are it’s good to know that the most useful components of the tea are called polyphenols , and even more precisely catechins . There are four major types: the most abundant and active one, the real superstar is called EGCG (EpiGalloCatechin Gallate). Also significant ones are  ECG (EpiCatechin Gallate), GCG (GalloCatechin Gallate) and EGC (EpiGallo Catechin), but there are also a few more types in green tea. To be able to truly judge the efficacy of a green tea product dr. Baumann emphasises that it’s important to know the polyphenol content of the extract used . There can be huge quality differences between various green tea extracts depending on climate, season, age of the leaf and how it was grown. (You know it’s like the tomato that you buy middle of the summer fresh from the market vs the tomato that you buy middle of the winter from a big supermarket, and it was picked totally unripe on the other half of the word a while ago -  they taste totally different). According to the 2015 research summary paper an average extract contains only 10% catechins, while Dr. Todorov of the fantastic smartskincare.com site writes about 25% (vs. only 4% in black tea). Dr. Leslie Baumann says in her Cosmetic Dermatology book that a good quality green tea extract should contain 50-90% catechins and the high-quality ones are brownish and have a characteristic odor . So if you stumble upon a green a tea product that’s brown and has a distinct tea-like smell that is a great sign of a quality product. Ok, so now you know that not all green tea extracts are made equal and which ones are the good ones. Let’s see those magic powers. Great Antioxidant & UV protectant The polyphenols in green tea are strong, proven antioxidants. That’s good because they help to protect our skin against not-so-nice little things called free radicals that are out there to destroy the very nice, firming collagen in our skin. Studies show that green tea reduces UV caused skin irritation and reddening (it’s called erythema), and decreases the number of sunburn cells. It’s a great idea to use a green tea product in the morning under your sunscreen. Anticarcinogenic This one partly comes from the antioxidant and UV protectant properties but we wanted to emphasise that green tea does not only give some “superficial” skin benefits but is truly a health protectant. It can inhibit DNA damage and even activates some enzymes that help with DNA repair. Thanks to this it’s very useful for preventing non-melanoma type skin cancer. So especially if your skin cancer risk factors are high (fair skin, skin cancer history in the family, blue or green eyes, past sunburns, some types of moles), introducing green tea into your skin care is a fantastic thing to do. Anti-inflammatory Inflammation is an important process that’s a biological, protective response to not nice things that happen to our body. However too much inflammation in our skin is not good: it accelerates the aging process and it’s also behind many skin diseases (acne and rosacea the most common examples). The catechins in green tea are not only amazing antioxidants but they also possess magic anti-inflammatory powers. This makes green tea an awesome choice for sensitive, rosacea or acne prone skin. Anti-microbial This one is probably the least well known, but green tea also shows promising anti-microbial properties against some not-nice bacteria. This property makes green tea even more awesome for acne-prone skin. We could find two promising research paper results showing that 2% green tea lotion is effective to treat mild-to-moderate acne. Also atopic dermatitis is a skin diseases that could be improved with the help of the green tea polyphenols. So the bottom line is this: green tea is a real superstar with magic powers that make it an awesome ingredient to almost everybody. If you are worried about anti-aging, skin cancer prevention, acne, rosacea or atopic dermatitis, it’s an excellent idea to use a high-quality green tea product in your skincare routine."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Rubus Idaeus Fruit Extract",
    "description": "Raspberry is one of the colorful berries that’s not only delicious but contains many biologically active, healthy compounds. It has polyphenols including anthocyanins and ellagitannins that have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. According to skin care expert Paula Begoun , it’s antibacterial as well but due to its tannin content it can cause also irritation to the very sensitive skinned."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sclerocarya Birrea  Seed Oil",
    "description": "If you have an interest in elephants and Africa, you have probably heard of elephants getting drunk from the fruit of the Marula tree. Though this seems to be only a legend , what is true is that the Marula fruit is really nice (and elephants do love to eat it) and there is a stone in it with several oil-rich kernels inside. So the Marula oil - similar to many other plant oils - is a really nice nourishing and moisturizing oil that can improve skin hydration and smoothness and it can even reduce skin redness . It's traditionally used in South Africa to massage babies with and as a body lotion for face, feet, and hands. As for its composition, it's loaded with skin goodies: it's very rich in fatty acids , including oleic (73%), palmitic (15%), and linoleic (9%) acids. It also contains some natural antioxidants , including Vitamin E and the oil shows an outstanding oxidative stability. If you have dry skin that needs some pampering, Marula oil is a good choice."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Vitis Vinifera Juice Extract",
    "description": "It's a liquid extract coming from grape. According to manufacturer info , it's a skin peeling agent, aka exfoliant , that contains a nice mix of AHA acids (if those magic three letters do not tell you anything, you must click here now .) About 40% of the extract is a mix of tartaric, malic , lactic , citric and gluconic acid and they work to gently lift off dead skin cells to reveal nicer fresher skin underneath. The manufacturer also claims that the exfoliation with grape juice extract is very well tolerated and depending on the concentration the result can be soft or even strong exfoliation."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer",
    "description": "It's a special \"cross-linked\" from of IT-moisturizer, hyaluronic acid (HA). Cross-linked means that \"normal\" HA pieces (1-2 million Da molecular weight) are chemically bound togeather to create a big, \"infinite\" mesh. The special HA mesh has a remarkable water-binding capacity, 5 times more than the already crazy water-binding capacity of \"normal\" HA . This water filled crosslinked HA gel forms a smooth film on the skin and continuously delivers the bound water, so it gives long-term moisturizing benefits . Btw, crosslinking HA was developed for dermal fillers (as crosslinking helps their longevity), and this guy is the topical version of FDA approved dermal filler called Hylan B gel . Smearing crosslinked version all over ourselves is a newish thing, and incoming evidence so far suggests that it's a great idea, even better than normal HA. A very recent, 2016 research article compared the topical moisturizing effect of crosslinked HA (not Hylan B gel specifically, but something called Resilient HA or RHA), HMW-HA and LMW-HA and found that \"TEWL (that is trans-epidermal water loss, the water that evaporates from the skin) was reduced by 27.8% with RHA, and by 15.6% with HMW HA, but increased by 55.5% with LMW HA.\" (You can read much more about HMW and LMW HA here in the geeky details section.) All in all, we think Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer is an awesome version of HA , probably superior to traditional versions, so be happy to spot it on the ingredient list."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Propanediol",
    "description": "Propanediol is a natural alternative for the often used and often bad-mouthed propylene glycol . It's produced sustainably from corn sugar and it's Ecocert approved. It's quite a multi-tasker: can be used to improve skin moisturization , as a solvent , to boost preservative efficacy or to influence the sensory properties of the end formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice",
    "description": "Aloe Vera is one of today’s magic plants. It does have some very nice properties indeed, though famous dermatologist Leslie Baumann warns us in her book that most of the evidence is anecdotal and the plant might be a bit overhyped. What research does confirm about Aloe is that it’s a great moisturizer and has several anti-inflammatory (among others contains salicylates, polysaccharides, magnesium lactate and C-glucosyl chromone) as well as some antibacterial components. It also helps wound healing and skin regeneration in general. All in all definitely a goodie."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Aesculus Hippocastanum Seed Extract",
    "description": "Horse Chestnut is an often-used ingredient thanks to a couple of nice magic properties. It contains the active ingredient called escin that helps to maintain healthy blood circulation and strengthen capillaries . This makes horse chestnut useful for rosacea-prone skin and it’s also often used in toners for a fresh skin feeling. It also has some anti-inflammatory and wound healing properties , so all in all, a nice one to spot on the ingredient list."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Allantoin",
    "description": "Super common soothing ingredient . It can be found naturally in the roots & leaves of the comfrey plant, but more often than not what's in the cosmetic products is produced synthetically. It's not only soothing but it' also skin-softening and protecting and can promote wound healing ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydroxyethylcellulose",
    "description": "A nice little helper ingredient that can thicken up cosmetic products and create beautiful gel formulas. It's derived from cellulose, the major component of the cell wall of green plants. It is compatible with most co-ingredients and gives a very good slip to the formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Buddleja Davidii Meristem Cell Culture",
    "description": "The extract of summer lilac or  butterfly-bush in itself is a nice ingredient with some antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and the manufacturer claims that the meristem cell culture is even better. It contains among others verbascoside and isoverbascoside that have not only antioxidant and anti-inflammatory but also photoprotective activity . What’s more, it has phytosterols, amino acids and polysaccharides, all useful for skin moisture ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Arctostaphylos Uva-Ursi Leaf Extract",
    "description": "Arctostaphylos Uva-Ursi is a little plant with nice red berries that lives in the North and is also called bearberry or kinnikinnick. According to Wikipedia the uva-ursi part means “grape of the bear”. As for skincare bearberry is interesting because it contains the well-known skin lightening agent arbutin . The leaves contain 5-15% percent of it and might be able to help fading brown spots on the skin. Also, kinnikinnick (such a cool name :)) is an antioxidant and has some antibacterial activity ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polysorbate 20",
    "description": "It's a common little helper ingredient that helps water and oil to mix together. Also, it can help to increase the solubility of some other ingredients in the formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethylhexylglycerin",
    "description": "If you have spotted ethylhexylglycerin on the ingredient list, most probably you will see there also the current IT-preservative, phenoxyethanol . They are good friends because ethylhexylglycerin can boost the effectiveness of phenoxyethanol (and other preservatives) and as an added bonus it feels nice on the skin too. Also, it's an effective deodorant and a medium spreading emollient ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Saccharomyces Ferment",
    "description": "There is not much info out there about this ingredient but the little we can know is the following: it comes from the fermentation of saccharomyces, that is a type of yeast and according to the manufacturer it's a natural deodorant . It contains a number of enzymes, which bio-converts several malodorous substances, so most often you will spot this ingredient in natural, aluminum- free deodorants."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glycereth-26",
    "description": "It's a nice glycerin-based humectant and emollient that gives skin a smooth and luxurious feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hexylene Glycol",
    "description": "Similar to other glycols , it's a helper ingredient used as a solvent , or to thin out thick formulas and make them more nicely spreadable. Hexylene Glycol is also part a preservative blend named Lexgard® HPO, where it helps the effectiveness of current IT-preservative, phenoxyethanol ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Camellia Oleifera  Leaf Extract",
    "description": "Camellia Oleifera is a type of green tea plant that's mostly known for the oil that comes from its seeds. As for the leaves, it has similar properties as the better known and more often used Camellia Sinensis leaves. You can read all the geeky details about green tea  and why it's awesome by clicking here , but in short, it has antioxidants and anti-inflammatory magic properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tetrasodium EDTA",
    "description": "A handy helper ingredient that helps products to remain nice and stable for a longer time . It does so by neutralizing the metal ions in the formula (that usually get into there from water) that would otherwise cause some not so nice changes."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methylpropanediol",
    "description": "It's a type of glycol that - according to the manufacturer - is an extremely good replacement for other glycols like propylene or butylene glycol . Its main job is to be a solvent , but it has also very good antimicrobial properties and acts as a true preservative booster . Also helps with skin hydration without stickiness or tacky feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Niacinamide",
    "description": "Niacinamide, or as us normal people call it vitamin B3, is a real skincare superstar that has had so many studies and has so many skin benefits that we have to warn you that this \"geeky details\" description will not be short. Just as an intro a couple of thing about the stuff itself: it's a water-soluble vitamin that usually comes in white powder form. It is odorless and has a salty, bitter taste. It can be found in meat, fish, wheat and small amounts in vegetables. The version used in cosmetics is produced exclusively synthetically. Let's look at all those skin benefits: #1: Anti-aging, wrinkle-smoothing properties : With age, our skin tends to slow down in many ways. One of them is in producing important proteins, such as keratin, filaggrin, and involucrin, at a slower rate. Reduced amounts of these proteins results in poorer skin structure, reduced skin elasticity, and more wrinkles. Studies show that niacinamide can boost collagen production as well as the production of these three important proteins . That means improved skin structure and fewer wrinkles. FYI, anti-aging studies usually use 4-5% niacinamide daily for 8-12 weeks , so if you are after the anti-aging benefits try to choose a product that tells you the exact percentage of niacinamide it contains. #2: Skin-lightening properties : Hyperpigmentation or brown spots are really stubborn and honestly it can be really hard to make them disappear just by topical products. What you can expect for them is to fade a little and niacinamide is a great ingredient to help with that. Studies show that 2-5% niacinamide used daily for 8 weeks results in significant lightening of hyperpigmentation . When combined with amino sugar, acetyl glucosamine the results are even better. What's more, niacinamide as a skin lightener works in a way different to most others. It suppresses the transfer of melanosomes (little spheres carrying the melanin pigment) from melanocytes (skin cells producing the melanin) to keratinocytes (skin cells in the top layer of the skin) while most other skin lighteners block an enzyme called tyrosinase (that plays an important role in melanin production). So if you want to mount a multi-front attack on the brown spots you can combine a niacinamide treatment with tyrosinase inhibitors like vitamin C , arbutin or kojic acid. #3: Barrier repair functions : the skin barrier is the outer layer of the skin that is amazingly important at keeping the skin hydrated and healthy. The stuff between the skin cells consists mainly of free fatty acids, cholesterol, and ceramides. The amount and structure of these determine how healthy the skin barrier is. What studies have shown is that 2% niacinamide can increase the synthesis of free fatty acids, cholesterol, and ceramides that result in healthier and stronger skin barrier, decreased trans-epidermal water loss and better hydrated skin. #4: Anti-acne properties : though niacinamide does not count as one of the gold standard anti-acne ingredients, if you have problem skin it's totally worth a try. It has sebum regulating and anti-inflammatory properties and a study that used 4% niacinamide for 8 weeks to treat acne found that 82% of those treated showed some improvement . What's more, the results were slightly better than with a 1% clindamycin gel, an antibiotics often used to treat acne. #5: Other notable things : if the above four things are not  enough to convince you about niacinamide here are some more reasons! :)  Studies show that vitamin B3 can help to speed up epidermal cell growth (that slows down with age), it can help with wound healing , it can smooth the structure of the skin and it has also antibacterial and photo protective properties. Plus, it might also be useful for rosacea and atopic dermatitis probably because of its anti-inflammatory property. Well, that was long. Hope we could convince you that niacinamide is a skincare superstar and a must-try for pretty much everybody . :)"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ammonium Glycolate",
    "description": "A synthetic form of famous  AHA, glycolic acid . Usually used as a pH adjuster to make sure the product has the right pH (usually pH 3-4) for exfoliation to do its magic."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hamamelis Virginiana  Leaf Extract",
    "description": "The extract created from the leaves of the hazelnut-bush-like-magic-tree, commonly called Witch Hazel. We have gone into detail about Witch Hazel in cosmetic products here (it's astringent, soothing, antioxidant and antibacterial), but the important part to know about the leaves is that they contain much, much less active components than the bark . In fact, it contains hardly any tannins (only 0.04%) and the most active component in the leaves is the antibacterial gallic acid . Too many tannins can be very astringent and irritating to the skin, so this is not necessarily a bad thing. Even the small amount of active components in the leaves seem to give it nice soothing, astringent, and antibacterial properties . You can read much more about witch hazel here ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Galactoarabinan",
    "description": "Galactoarabinan is a natural polysaccharide (a big carbohydrate molecule) that comes from the Larch trees. According to the manufacturer it can do all kinds of good in a formula: it can reduce trans-epidermal-water-loss (a fancy way of saying that it's moisturizing ), improve the appearance of skin’s superficial fine lines, improve the uniformity and spreadability of a formulation and provides SPF enhancement . What's more it can also help to boost the efficacy of AHA exfoliants (while not boosting the irritation side effect)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Adenosine",
    "description": "Adenosine is an important little compound in our body that has a vital cell-signalling role . Research on smearing it on our face is also promising and shows so far a couple of things: It can help with wound healing It’s a good anti-inflammatory agent It might even help with skin’s own collagen production and improve skin firmness and elasticity It helps with barrier repair and protection It might be even useful for the hair helping with hair thickness and hair growth"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glucose",
    "description": "A fancy name for sugar . Luckily when you put it on your skin it's good for you not like when you eat it. :) It has water-binding properties, which means that it helps to keep your skin nice and hydrated ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Fructose",
    "description": "Fancy name for fruit sugar . It has nice water-binding properties and helps to keep skin hydrated ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dextrin",
    "description": "A little helper ingredient that can be a thickener, a humectant, a foam booster, an adhesion promoter and a filler. It's a blend of polysaccharides that helps to moisturize and soften the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Urea",
    "description": "Yes, it's the thing that can be found naturally in pee. And in the skin. It is an awesome natural moisturizing factor, aka NMF. NMFs are important components that help the skin to hold onto water and keep it plump, elastic and hydrated. Urea makes up about 7% of NMFs next to other things such as amino acids (40%), PCA (12%) or Lactate (12%). What makes urea special, is that it is not only a simple moisturizer, but it is thought to be a \" small-molecule regulator of epidermal structure and function \" meaning that it has a bunch of extra biological activities. It acts as a mild keratolytic agent (some of its moisturizing action is thought to come from urea's ability to break down bonds in the protein called filaggrin and thus freeing up amino acids in the skin), enhances antimicrobial peptide expression and improves skin barrier function . Being a mild keratolytic agent and strong moisturizer means that high-percentage (10-40%) urea treatments are found effective in a bunch of skin disorders connected to excessive dryness and malfunctioning skin barrier such as ichthyosis, xerosis, psoriasis, eczema and seborrheic dermatitis. Overall , just like glycerin , urea is a real oldie but a goodie, a nice ingredient in any moisturizer."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sucrose",
    "description": "A type fo sugar , usually refined from cane or beet sugar. On the skin, it has water-binding properties and helps to keep your skin hydrated ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Alanine",
    "description": "A non-essential amino acid (a building block of skin proteins like collagen or elastin) that hydrates the skin ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glutamic Acid",
    "description": "Glutamic acid is a little molecule and non-essential (our body can synthesize it) amino acid with the important job of being a neurotransmitter in the human body meaning that it helps your nervous system work correctly. As for what it's doing in cosmetics, Glutamic acids' main thing (similar to other amino acids) is being a humectant moisturizer and skin-conditioning agent (sidenote: if you attach lots of glutamic acid molecules, you get polyglutamic acid that is claimed to be a better than hyaluronic acid humectant). It also seems to affect skin barrier repair, however, it is not clear-cut in which direction. The complication is that glutamic acid has two distinct forms, L-glutamic acid and D-glutamic acid, that are the mirror images of each other (think of it like your left and right hand). Studies show that a topical application of L-glutamic acid on damaged skin delayed skin repair, while D-glutamic acid application sped up skin repair. As both forms are used by the industry, it is a bit uncertain what you are getting with just glutamic acid on the ingredient list (but if it is a  Shiseido group product, it is probably the goodie D-form :)). Other than that, Glutamic acid can also be used as a pH adjuster and can be processed via biological pathways into pyrrolidone carboxylic acid, the sodium salt of which is a goodie and one of your skin’s natural moisturizing factors."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hexyl Nicotinate",
    "description": "There is not too much info out there about Hexyl Nicotinate. It's an emollient, moisturizer ingredient. Also according to this study it increases blood flow."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Biotin",
    "description": "Also called vitamin H , biotin is the main component of many enzymes in our body. A nice ingredient to take as a supplement for stronger nails and hair. When you do not take it as a supplement its effects are a bit more questionable but according to manufacturer info it can smooth the skin and strengthen the hair ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Caprylic/​Capric Triglyceride",
    "description": "A super common emollient that makes your skin feel nice and smooth . It comes from coconut oil and glycerin, it’s light-textured, clear, odorless and non-greasy. It’s a nice ingredient that just feels good on the skin, is super well tolerated by every skin type and easy to formulate with. No wonder it’s popular."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Corylus Avellana  Seed Oil",
    "description": "It's the oil that comes from the edible hazelnuts. Just like many other plant oils, it's a great emollient, moisturizer , skin softener. It has a light skin feeling, spreads easily and absorbs quickly into the skin. It's rich in nourishing fatty acid, oleic containing about 66-85%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Propylene Glycol Dicaprylate/​Dicaprate",
    "description": "Propylene Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate is an emollient that leaves a light, non-oily smooth and velvet skin sensation . According to manufacturer info it's also great at dispersing and dissolving pigments and sunscreen actives. Most often you will meet this guy in light moisturizers, sunscreens or makeup products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis Oil",
    "description": "The emollient plant oil that comes from almonds . Similar to other plant oils, it is loaded with skin-nourishing fatty acids ( oleic acid - 55-86% and linoleic acid 7-35%) and contains several other skin goodies such as antioxidant vitamin E and vitamin B versions. It's a nice, basic oil that is often used due to its great smoothing, softening and moisturizing properties . It's also particularly good at treating dry brittle nails ( source )."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Triticum Vulgare Germ Extract",
    "description": "It's a plant extract that comes from wheat germ. Used as skin- and hair conditioner and skin protectant . Contains gluten, if you are allergic."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Benzoate",
    "description": "A helper ingredient that helps to make the products stay nice longer, aka preservative . It works mainly against fungi. It’s pH dependent and works best at acidic pH levels (3-5). It’s not strong enough to be used in itself so it’s always combined with something else, often with potassium sorbate ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pentylene Glycol",
    "description": "A multi-functional, silky feeling helper ingredient that can do quite many things. It's used as an emulsion stabilizer , solvent and a broad spectrum antimicrobial . According to manufacturer info , it's also a moisturizer and helps to make the product feel great on the skin. It works synergistically with preservatives and helps to improve water-resistance of sunscreens."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Panax Ginseng Root Extract",
    "description": "A traditional Korean medicine used for more than 2000 years. Regarding skin care, its main thing seems to be enhancing skin nutrition and metabolism as a result of improving blood circulation . It also contains biologically active components referred to as ginseng saponins (ginsenosides) that have potent antioxidant properties ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Retinyl Palmitate",
    "description": "It's an ester form of vitamin A (retinol + palmitic acid) that belongs to the \"retinoid family\" . The retinoid family is pretty much the royal family of skincare, with the king being the FDA-approved anti-aging ingredient tretinoin . Retinol is also a very famous member of the family, but it's like Prince George , two steps away from the throne. Retinyl palmitate will be then Prince Charlotte (George's little sister), quite far (3 steps) away from the throne. By steps, we mean metabolic steps. Tretinoin, aka retinoic acid, is the active ingredient our skin cells can understand and retinyl palmitate (RP) has to be converted by our metabolic machinery to actually do something. The conversion is a 3 step one and looks like this: retinyl palmitate --> retinol -- > retinaldehyde --> all-trans-retinoic acid As we wrote in our lengthy retinol description the problem is that the conversion is not terribly effective. The evidence that RP is still an effective anti-aging ingredient is not very strong, in fact, it's weak. Dr. Leslie Baumann in her fantastic Cosmetic Dermatology book writes that RP is topically ineffective . What's more, the anti-aging effectiveness is not the only questionable thing about RP. It also exibits questionable behaviour in the presence of UV light and was the center of a debate between the non-profit group, EWG (whose intentions are no doubt good, but its credibility is often questioned by scientists) and a group of scientists and dermatologists lead by Steven Q. Wang, MD,  director of dermatologic surgery at Memorial-Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre. Dr. Leslie Baumann wrote a great review of the debate and summarized the research available about retinyl palmitate here .  It seems that there is a study showing RP being photo protective against UVB rays but there is also a study showing RP causing DNA damage and cytotoxicity in association with UVA. We think that the truth lies somewhere in the middle , and we agree with Dr. Baumann's conclusion: \" sufficient evidence to establish a causal link between RP and skin cancer has not been produced. Nor, I’m afraid, are there any good reasons to recommend the use of RP \". We would add especially during the day! Bottom line : If you wanna get serious about retinoids, RP is not your ingredient ( retinol or tretinoin is!). However, if you use a product that you like and it also contains RP, there is no reason to throw it away. If possible use it at night, just to be on the safe side."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "BHA",
    "description": "It's the acronym for Butylated Hydroxy Anisole. It's a synthetic antioxidant that's used as a preservative . It's a somewhat controversial ingredient : The U.S. National Institutes of Health says that BHA is \"reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen based on evidence of carcinogenicity in experimental animals\" (source: wikipedia ). But, and this is a big but: these experiments were made on animals and BHA was used in high doses as part of their diet. There is no evidence that the same is true when used in tiny amounts in cosmetics products. So you probably have nothing to worry about, but if you are a better safe than sorry type there are plenty of nice products without BHA to choose from. :)"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyacrylamide",
    "description": "It's a film-forming and thickening polymer (a large molecule composed of many repeated subunits) that comes to the formula usually as part of an emulsifier, thickener trio (with C13-14 Isoparaffin and Laureth-7 , trade named Sepigel 305). This trio is an easy-to-use liquid that helps to create nice, non-tacky gel formulas ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethyl Linolenate",
    "description": "A type of oil soluble vitamin F that is used as an emollient . Read more at ethyl oleate ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "P-Anisic Acid",
    "description": "Though the official function of P-Anisic Acid is masking (meaning that it helps to mask not so nice smells in the product), according to manufacturer info it is rather used as a preservative. It is a skin friendly organic acid that works against fungi ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetearyl Alcohol",
    "description": "An extremely common multitasker ingredient that gives your skin a nice soft feel (emollient) and gives body to creams and lotions. It also helps to stabilize oil-water mixes (emulsions), though it does not function as an emulsifier in itself. Its typical use level in most cream type formulas is 2-3%. It’s a so-called fatty alcohol, a mix of cetyl and stearyl alcohol, other two emollient fatty alcohols.  Though chemically speaking, it is alcohol (as in, it has an -OH group in its molecule), its properties are totally different from the properties of low molecular weight or drying alcohols such as denat. alcohol . Fatty alcohols have a long oil-soluble (and thus emollient) tail part that makes them absolutely non-drying and non-irritating and are totally ok for the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetyl Palmitate",
    "description": "A white, waxy emollient that gives \"body\" to skincare formulas. Comes from coconut or palm kernel oil."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "BHT",
    "description": "It's the acronym for Butylated Hydroxy Toluene. It's a common synthetic antioxidant that's used as a preservative. There is some controversy around BHT. It's not a new ingredient, it has been used both as a food and cosmetics additive since the 1970s. Plenty of studies tried to examine if it's a carcinogen or not. This Truth in Aging article details the situation and also writes that all these studies examine BHT when taken orally. As for cosmetics, the CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review) concluded that the amount of BHT used in cosmetic products is low (usually around 0.01-0.1%),  it does not penetrate skin far enough to be absorbed into the bloodstream and it is safe to use in cosmetics."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Magnesium Chloride",
    "description": "A kind of salt that's used as a thickener in cosmetic products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Laureth-7",
    "description": "A not-very-interesting helper ingredient that is used as an emulsifier and/or surfactant . Comes from a coconut oil derived fatty alcohol, lauryl alcohol."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Vinegar",
    "description": "The thing that you put on your salad with some olive oil. But in a more scientific sense vinegar is usually a 5% solution of acetic acid. It's used in cosmetic products to adjust pH . Larg amounts of vinegar on the skin could be irritating and drying."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "C13-14 Isoparaffin",
    "description": "It's a petroleum derived emollient and thickener . It often comes to the formula as part of an emulsifier, thickener trio (with Polyacrylamide and Laureth-7 ). This trio is an easy-to-use liquid that helps to create nice, non-tacky gel formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Serine",
    "description": "Serine is an amino acid that most often comes to the formula as part of a moisturizing complex. It's a non-essential amino acid (meaning that our body can synthesize it) and serves as a water-binding ingredient. In general, amino acids are great skincare ingredients that play an important role in proper skin hydration but there is not much info out there about what specifically serine can do for the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetearyl Isononanoate",
    "description": "It's a clear, slightly yellowish oil (comes from coconut or palm kernel oil) that is used as a traditional, medium spreading emollient ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cochlearia Armoracia Root Extract",
    "description": "Horseradish seems to be a rarely used plant extract with little info about what it's doing in a cosmetic product. Some sources say that it's purifying and stimulating , while others say that it's antibacterial and anti-inflammatory . Paula Begoun thinks that horseradish is an irritant, but she does not cite any sources."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Lactate",
    "description": "The sodium salt of lactic acid . It's a great skin moisturizer and also used to regulate the pH value of the cosmetic formula. It's a natural ingredient approved by both ECOCERT and COSMOS."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Salicylate",
    "description": "The sodium salt of salicylic acid . CosIng (the official EU cosmetic ingredient database) says that it's a preservative and helps to make the product taste bad (called denaturant), while some manufacturer claims that it has exfoliating properties and is antimicrobial. It's good to know, that the salt of an exfoliant is a neutralized form, so if you want to go for exfoliation stick to the pure acid."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Arctium Lappa Root Extract",
    "description": "Burdock root is a goodie plant extract that has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Also, it has some anti-fungal and seborrhea regulation magic powers that make the ingredient especially useful for greasy and flaky skin and scalp."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Arnica Montana Flower Extract",
    "description": "A nice yellow flower living in the mountains. It has been used as a herbal medicine for centuries, though its effect on skin is rather questionable . It's most famously used to treat bruisings , but there are some studies that show that it's not better than placebo (source: wikipedia ).  Also, some consider it to be anti-inflammatory, while other research shows that it can cause skin irritation."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tea-Lactate",
    "description": "The salt form of lactic acid. It works as a moisturizer in skin care products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Rumex Acetosa Leaf Extract",
    "description": "Searching high and low, all we could find about Rumex Acetosa is that it's the fancy name for sorrel and its function in cosmetics products seems to be an emollient ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Phytic Acid",
    "description": "Though its name says acid, it's not really an exfoliant. It's a plant extract with some antioxidant properties. Its main thing in cosmetic products is to neutralize the metal ions in the formula (that usually get into there from water) that would otherwise cause some not so nice changes.  It's a natural alternative to sometimes bad-mouthed chelating agents, EDTAs ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sorbitol",
    "description": "It's a sweet tasting sugar substitute that helps your skin to hold onto water when used in cosmetic products. It also helps to thicken up products and give them a bit more slip."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Myrtus Communis Extract",
    "description": "Myrtle is a nice evergreen shrub that's native to the Mediterranian region. When it comes to skincare it seems to have some pros and cons . On the pro side, it has antimicrobial and antioxidant properties, works as an astringent and might be useful for acne-prone skin. On the con side, it contains essential oils and other not-so-nice components (like 1,8-cineole, linalool, eugenol) that can be a skin irritant and might be worth avoiding if your skin is sensitive. If you wanna know everything about this plant you can read this microbiological reasearch paper about it."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Allium Cepa Bulb Extract",
    "description": "You probably meet this guy more often in your kitchen than in the bathroom, but yes, onion extract is also used as a skincare ingredient. Its major skin benefit seems to be that it can improve the cosmetic appearance of postsurgical scars (there is also a scar-fading gel called Mederma, that has hardly anything else in it but onion extract). We also saw some manufacturer claims that onion is not only a scar healer, but it has also antibacterial and antifungal activity, it can help to reduce acne and stimulate hair growth ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Malic Acid",
    "description": "Malic acid comes from apple and is an AHA . If these magic three letters don’t tell you anything, click here and read our detailed description on glycolic acid , the most famous AHA. So malic acid is an exfoliant , that can - just like other AHAs - gently lift off the dead skin cells of your skin and make it more smooth and fresh. There is not much research out there about malic acid itself. We could find one comparative study, that compared the effectiveness of glycolic acid, lactic acid, citric acid and malic acid. The first two ones were the winners while malic and citric acid were less effective."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Commiphora Myrrha Resin Extract",
    "description": "A yellow-brown viscous liquid with a balsamic smell. It's a natural antiseptic, astringent and disinfectant . As an antibacterial, it might help acne prone skin and greasy hair.  As a strong fragrant gum, it is also a potential skin irritant ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethyl Oleate",
    "description": "It's a Vitamin F Ethyl Ester, that is used as an emollient . Coupled with other two forms of vitamin F ethyl ester ( ethyl linoleate and ethyl linolenate ), the trio is intended to treat dry, seborrheic skin with damaged lipid barrier and dry scalps with brittle and shine-less hair."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sulfur",
    "description": "A yellowish element that smells of rotten eggs and it might be familiar to you from the periodic table (has the symbol S in there).  It has a long history of medicinal use thanks to its antifungal, antibacterial and keratolytic activity .   It used to be a very common ingredient in the treatment of inflammation-related skin diseases such as acne, rosacea and seborrheic dermatitis , however, due to its malodorousness, it is less popular nowadays. Sulfur's precise mechanism of action is not known, but we do know that its effectiveness depends on its direct interaction with the skin surface, meaning the smaller the particle size, the better the effect. The United States Pharmacopeia lists two types of sulfur, sublimed and precipitated. The latter one has a smaller particle size and counts as a superior version. Sulfur is also a team-player and works well when combined with other anti-acne agents, such as salicylic acid or sodium sulfacetamide . In fact, the combination of 10% sodium sulfacetamide and 5% sulfur is the active ingredient duo of several Rx-only anti-acne products. As for the disadvantages , there is the rotten egg smell.  Also in higher concentrations, it might cause a mild burning sensation and dry skin .  If you are new to sulfur, patch testing it first is a good idea."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Thymus Vulgaris  Flower/​Leaf Oil",
    "description": "Thyme oil is an essential oil with some pros and cons to it. On the up side, it has potent antioxidant and antibacterial properties but on the downside, it has fragrant components that might irritate skin ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Gluconolactone",
    "description": "Gluconolactone is kind of an acid , even though you would probably not guess it from its name. It’s a PHA , or polyhydroxy acid. PHAs are close relatives to the famous AHAs, both in terms of similar chemical structure and similar effects on the skin. They are often marketed as new-generation AHAs . So if AHAs do not tell you anything, you can read all about them here . Go and read. We tell you, it’s worth the time. So the main promise of gluconolactone (and also its brother, the other most often used PHA, lactobionic acid) is that it has comparable awesome skin benefits to AHAs but without the irritation as a side effect. Sounds great, right? There was a study done in 2004 that compared a PHA skincare regimen and an AHA skincare regimen  for 12 weeks focusing on irritation and anti-aging benefits. The result? PHAs scored much better at irritation, stinging and burning (and much better means of course much less), and they scored very similar for anti-aging, skin-smoothing effects. There were only two aspects where the AHAs scored a bit better: pinch recoil and skin sallowness. Being gentle on the skin probably comes from the larger molecular size, that means less penetration and less irritation. In fact PHAs are so gentle that you can even use them if your skin is very sensitive (even if you have rosacea or atopic dermatitis) and they are also suggested post cosmetic procedure to prolong and enhance the skincare benefits. Another area where PHAs excel is skin moisturization . They are better at that than AHAs and can help to repair the skin barrier. They are also shown to work successfully together and enhance the benefits of other actives , including azelaic acid for rosacea or hydroquinone for hyperpigmentation. And that’s still not all. Gluconolactone also has antioxidant and chelating properties, which means that it can prevent oxidation of easily oxidised other things. Actually, it’s antioxidant effect is comparable to famous Vit C (though to be fair Vit C is awesome but not a particularly strong antioxidant in itself). And one more super interesting study result: as opposed to AHAs that increase sun sensitivity,  gluconolactone was shown not to do that. Not that we want to tell you not to use sunscreen if you use a gluconolactone exfoliant (please always use sunscreen!), but we thought this is interesting. Bottom line : Gluconolactone is a superstar and especially if your skin is sensitive it’s a must try . It will smooth your skin, even out the skin tone and even give anti-aging benefits and all this without irritation. Yep, must try."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethyl Linoleate",
    "description": "A type of oil soluble vitamin F that is used as an emollient . Read more at ethyl oleate ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Gluconate",
    "description": "The neutralized form of gluconic acid. It's a great ingredient to neutralize metal (especially iron and copper) ions in a cosmetic product. This helps to prevent discoloration of the formula over time or rancidity of cosmetic oils. It can also be a pH regulator and a humectant (helps skin to cling onto water). It's also used in oral care products where it reduces the bitterness of other ingredients. And it's natural, both Ecocert and Cosmos approved. (source: manufacturer info )"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Capsicum Frutescens Fruit Extract",
    "description": "The extract of cayenne pepper that contains capsaicin. According to manufacturer info it can stimulate the skin blood circulation that can be useful for anti-cellulite or massage products. Be careful with it if your skin is sensitive because it's also a skin irritant ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hexanoyl Dipeptide-3 Norleucine Acetate",
    "description": "A new tripeptide (meaning that it contains three building blocks called amino acids) that can do all kinds of good things for the skin, at least according to the ingredient's manufacturer . Its modest trade name is simply \"PerfectionPeptide P3\" :) and it can supposedly reactivate the natural desquamation process of the skin. Better desquamation means better skin quality with fewer irregularities and imperfections and in general fewer signs of aging. It also speeds up cell renewal that results in fresh, glowing skin , it intensely hydrates, refines skin texture and reduces wrinkle depth. Hence the name Perfection Peptide. (Don't forget, these are all claims coming from the manufacturer, so maybe take it with a little grain of salt. :))"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Yeast Extract",
    "description": "You probably know yeast from the kitchen where you put it into milk with a little sugar and then after a couple of minutes brownish bubbles form. That is the fungi fermenting the sugar . As for skin care, yeast contains beta-glucan that is a great soothing ingredient and also a mild antioxidant.  The yeast extract itself is a silky clear liquid that has some great moisturizing, skin protecting and film-forming properties on the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Soy Amino Acids",
    "description": "Soy Amino Acids are the little components that come from totally chopping up a soy protein. It is a low-molecular-weight water-binding ingredient , that can help to moisturize deeper layers of skin or hair."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lecithin",
    "description": "A very common ingredient that can be found in all cell membranes. In cosmetics it's quite the multi-tasker: it's an emollient and water-binding ingredient but it's also an emulsifier and can be used for stabilization purposes. It's also often used to create liposomes ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/​Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer",
    "description": "This long-named, polymer molecule (big molecule from repeated subunits) is a helper ingredient that's good at emulsifying and stabilizing oils into water-based formulas. It also acts as a thickening and gelling agent that creates nice, non-sticky and supple textures. It works over a very wide pH range (3-12) and can be used to thicken up low-ph formulas, such as exfoliants. Its recommended used range is 0.3-3%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Bisabolol",
    "description": "It's one of the active part s of Chamomile that contains about 30% of bisabolol. It's a clear oily fluid that is used in skincare as a nice anti-inflammatory and soothing ingredient."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Myristoyl Nonapeptide-3",
    "description": "A newish peptide with the promise of mimicking the effects of the skincare superstar, retinol (vitamin A) but without its negative side effects. Similar to retinol, Myristoyl Nonapeptide-3 is claimed to increase cell turnover and to promote the synthesis of collagen but without skin irritation or stinging. To back up its claim, the German manufacturer did a so-called gene array screening test, where they examined the effect of the molecule on 96 skin-related genes. They did screening for both retinoic acid (the active form of retinol) and our guy Myristoyl Nonapeptide-3. They found that retinoic acid upregulates 21 of the 92 studied genes , and amongst those, 16 genes are also upregulated by Myristoyl Nonapeptide-3 . So they trade named the molecule as Retinopeptide 189, as in a peptide that mimics the effects of retinoic acid. To further prove their point, Symrise (the manufacturer) went ahead and did some ex-vivo testing (meaning testing on human skin explants). They compared a 0.1% retinoic acid solution with 5% and 10% Retinopeptide 189 cream and found that the 10% cream induces a significant increase (43%) in collagen-1 that is comparable to the effect of 0.1% retinoic acid (which performed even better with more than a 50% increase). They also found that both retinoic acid 0.1% and Retinopeptide 189 5% cream increased epidermal cellular layers in the skin explants showing that both ingredients can increase cell turnover , however retinoic acid did significantly better both in active effects as well as side effects. Unfortunately, there are currently no in-vivo test results (at least with could not find any), so if you prefer the tried and true, stick with retinol . However, if you are the adventurous type or if your skin is sensitive and cannot tolerate retinoids, Myristoyl Nonapeptide-3 is a promising alternative."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate",
    "description": "A helper ingredient that helps to neutralize the metal ions in the formula (they usually come from water) so it stays nice longer. The special property of this particular ingredient is that it's more effective against more problematic ions, like Cu (copper) and Fe (iron) compared to less problematic ones like Ca (calcium)  and Mg (magnesium)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sorbitan Isostearate",
    "description": "A handy helper ingredient that helps water and oil to mix nicely together, aka emulsifier . It is especially recommended for protective, baby care and general purpose emollient creams. It also helps to disperse insoluble particles (think color pigments or zinc/titanium dioxide sunscreen) nice and even in cosmetic formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Chloride",
    "description": "Sodium chloride is the fancy name of salt. Normal, everyday table salt . If (similar to us) you are in the weird habit of reading the label on your shower gel while taking a shower, you might have noticed that sodium chloride is almost always on the ingredient list. The reason for this is that salt acts as a fantastic thickener in cleansing formulas created with ionic cleansing agents (aka surfactants) such as Sodium Laureth Sulfate . A couple of percents (typically 1-3%) turns a runny surfactant solution into a nice gel texture. If you are into chemistry (if not, we understand, just skip this paragraph), the reason is that electrolytes (you know, the Na+ and Cl- ions) screen the electrostatic repulsion between the head groups of ionic surfactants and thus support the formation of long shaped micelles (instead of spherical ones) that entangle like spaghetti, and viola, a gel is formed. However, too much of it causes the phenomenon called \"salting out\", and the surfactant solution goes runny again. Other than that, salt also works as an emulsion stabilizer in water-in-oil emulsions , that is when water droplets are dispersed in the outer oil (or silicone) phase. And last but not least, when salt is right at the first spot of the ingredient list (and is not dissolved), the product is usually a body scrub where salt is the physical exfoliating agent ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Alcohol Denat.",
    "description": "If you want to start a debate between skincare experts, mentioning alcohol will probably be a good way to do that (Btw, denat means denaturated and it's normal alcohol with some additives that make it poisonous and bad tasting so that people do not drink it.). It's a controversial ingredient that has definitely many immediate skincare benefits and some potential longer-term drawbacks. So let's see first the benefits , why it's so often used. First, it is a great solvent . There are some ingredients that do not dissolve in water or oil and alcohol is often the way to go. Second, it's great at creating cosmetically elegant, fast absorbing, thin formulas . For example creating a nice, non-oily sunscreen is still a big challenge to the cosmetic industry (because sunscreen ingredients are yucky and oily) and alcohol can help with this problem. Third, alcohol is a great astringent , leaves a refreshing feeling on the skin so it's very popular as a toner ingredient. And last but not least, it's antimicrobial, helps to disinfect the skin so it is common in after-shaves or products intended for acne-prone skin. It even works as a preservative that is often used in natural products. So now let's see what's not so good about it: First, it dries the skin . As an immediate effect for oily skin types that might sound like a benefit, but in the longer term alcohol often dries out the skin so much that the skin compensates with extra oil production. Famous dermatologist, Dr. Leslie Baumann in her Skin Type Solution book suggests avoiding alcohol if it's in the first 7 positions on the ingredient list. Skin care expert, Paula Begoun thinks that alcohol not only dries the skin but regular exposure to it damages the skin barrier and causes inflammation . Not everyone agrees with this. Michelle from Labmuffin did a great article detailing why the in-vitro studies on skin cells in a petri dish with alcohol do not apply to skincare in real life, and why a skincare product with 5-10% alcohol is totally ok. So the bottom line is that alcohol (and to further complicate we are talking only about simple, volatile, low molecular weight alcohols here) is debated . What seems to be a fact is that it's drying but it also has several benefits. Based on that it's up to you to decide if it's something to avoid or not."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pseudoalteromonas Exopolysaccharides",
    "description": "It's a biotechnological marine alternative to famous IT-moisturizer and humectant hyaluronic acid (HA). It's obtained by the fermentation of a marine bacterial strain. According to the manufacturer it's rich in the same monosaccharide, called glucuronic acid as HA,  hence it has a similar effect on the skin. Moisturization and wrinkle smoothing are the two main promises."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polysorbate 60",
    "description": "A common little helper ingredient that helps water and oil to mix together, aka emulsifier."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isohexadecane",
    "description": "A light, velvety, unique skin feel liquid that is a good solvent and also makes the skin feel nice and smooth (aka emollient ). It's often used in makeup products mixed with silicones to give shine and slip to the product. It's also great for cleansing dirt and oil from the skin as well as for taking off make-up."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6",
    "description": "It's a helper ingredient that helps to thicken up formulas and form a nice gel texture. It leaves a rich, elegant feel with a velvety finish on the skin and works over a wide pH range."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Bis-PEG-18 Methyl Ether Dimethyl Silane",
    "description": "Bis-PEG-18 Methyl Ether Dimethyl Silane is a silicone that is water dispersible (as opposed to most other silicones that are usually oil dispersible). It makes the skin smooth and nice ( emollient ), moisturizes , helps to reduce tackiness, and also has some foam boosting properties. It is often used in light, watery formulas to give them an extra silky feel ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Palmitoyl Tripeptide-38",
    "description": "It's a pretty new peptide trade-named MATRIXYL™ synthe ’6 . The manufacturer claims that it can boost the production of 6 major components of the skin matrix (collagen I, III, IV, fibronectin, hyaluronic acid and laminin 5) that result in more even skin and fewer wrinkles particularly on the forehead and crow's feet . Using 2% of the active for two months daily, women reported a decrease in wrinkles by 31% up to 100%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lactobionic Acid",
    "description": "Lactobionic acid is the brother or maybe the sister of gluconolactone . Usually, it’s called a PHA, though some studies call it bionic acid or aldobionic acid. Not that this matters too much. What matters is that it’s similarly awesome to gluconolactone. So go read about gluconolactone to get the idea. In a nutshell,  it’s a next generation AHA , with almost all the benefits and more and without the irritation. It gently lifts off dead skin cells and makes your skin smooth and even. It moisturizes and helps the skin barrier . Can be used on sensitive skin too or post cosmetic procedure.  In the long run, it has anti-aging benefits (though a tad less than AHAs), and it’s even an antioxidant. Must try, just like the other AHAs."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Copper Lysinate/​Prolinate",
    "description": "An essential amino acid - mineral complex that is part of the pretty new anti-aging complex called Neodermyl . The manufacturer claims that the complex is able to boost skin's own collagen I and III as well as elastin production . Read more details at methylglucoside phosphate ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methylglucoside Phosphate",
    "description": "It's a pretty new anti-aging ingredient that is a \" safe and pre-activated source of energy to feed aging skin cells \". It's part of an anti-aging complex trade named Neodermyl , where methylglucoside phosphate is combined with the essential amino acids proline, lysine and also copper. This complex is claimed to be able to increase the collagen I and III production of skin and even more surprisingly, also the elastin production . Both slow down with age and beeing able to boost the skin's own production of these super important proteins results in improved skin firmness and elasticity . This is a very big deal, especially the elastin part, as there is not yet a clinically proven active ingredient that is able to boost the skin's own elastin production. There are also very few ones (think vitamin C, glycolic acid, and retinol) that are proven to boost collagen.  The claims about Neodermyl are not yet confirmed in independent studies but the manufacturer did do some very convincing testing that showed a visible reduction of wrinkle depth and volume in just 15 days . If you are into anti-aging, this is a new active that might be worth a try."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ahnfeltia Concinna Extract",
    "description": "Red Marine Algae extract that works as a skin protectant and also helps to thicken up products . According to skincare manufacturer Indeed Laboratories , it's a nutrient-rich mineral that mildly stimulates circulation which helps famous IT-moisturizer, hyaluronic acid to penetrate into the skin deeper."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tamarindus Indica Seed Gum",
    "description": "Tamarind seed gum is a polysaccharide that moisturizes and smoothes the skin . According to manufacturer info , it also improves the skin's elasticity and leaves an extremely pleasant velvety feeling on the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrolyzed Yeast Extract",
    "description": "A chemically chopped up version of normal yeast extract that works as a skin moisturizer . It often comes to the formula as part of a moisturizing, skin smoothing complex trade named Optim Hyal . Combined with polyglucuronic acid and some helper ingredients the complex is obtained by bio-fermentation and - according to the manufacturer - it can stimulate the hyaluronic acid synthesis in the skin. (It does that by containing so-called Glycokines, specific signaling oligosaccharides that mimic the hyaluronic acid fragments in the skin.) And more hyaluronic acid means smoother, better moisturized and more supple skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglucuronic Acid",
    "description": "An oligosaccharide that works as a skin moisturizer . It's part of a moisturizing, skin smoothing complex trade named Optim Hyal that is supposed to optimize the hyaluronic acid content in the skin. More info at hydrolyzed yeast extract ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Saccharide Isomerate",
    "description": "A 100% natural and plant-derived moisturizer that mimics the natural carbohydrate fraction found in the upper layer of the skin. Its special magic power is to bind to the skin stronger and longer than other moisturizer ingredients do so it can keep the skin hydrated longer than usual ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Chlorphenesin",
    "description": "A little helper ingredient that works as a preservative. It works against bacteria and some species of fungi and yeast. It's often combined with IT-preservative, phenoxyethanol ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lactobacillus/​Eriodictyon Californicum Ferment Extract",
    "description": "Yerba Santa is a nice plant that's native to California and North Mexico. As for skincare, its leaves are rich in moisturizing mucopolysaccharides and glycoproteins . This paticular extract is obtained by fermenting the leaves of the plant with the bacteria Lactobacillus lactis. The fermentation helps to break down the complex bio-molecules in the plant and helps to isolate the beneficial components such as the glycoproteins. The extract is not only a simple moisturizer but it also enhances emolliency , gives skin a soft and smooth feel, helps to reduce tackiness and might reduce skin irritation . (source: manufacturer info )"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetyl Hydroxyethylcellulose",
    "description": "A cellulose-derived helper ingredient that is created by attaching a water-hating part (cetyl group) to the water-loving thickener, Hydroxyethylcellulose . The resulting thing, Cetyl Hydroxyethylcellulose is also a thickener but with some surface active properties (as part of the molecule is water-loving and part of it is oil loving). Thanks to its surface-active properties, it also works as an emulsion stabilizer ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Phospholipids",
    "description": "A type of lipid that's the major (about 75%) component of all cell membranes. As for skincare, it works as an emollient and skin-identical ingredient . It has a water-loving head with two water-hating tails and this structure gives the molecule emulsifying properties . It is also often used to create liposomes , small spheres surrounded by phospholipid bi-layer designed to carry some active ingredient and help its absorption."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrolyzed Sodium Hyaluronate",
    "description": "It's a super small , chemically chopped up version of sodium hyaluronate . Its trade name is miniHA, and its molecular weight is 10 kDa. This counts as really tiny given that \"normal\" HA has a molecular weight of 0.5-2 million Da. To be honest, low molecular weight (LMW), and especially this ultra-low molecular weight HA is a controversial ingredient . On the upside, it can penetrate the skin better (though 10kDa still counts as big!) and might be able to moisturize the deeper layers of the skin where normal HA cannot get. Also, according to the manufacturer of miniHA , it has better antioxidant activity than a 1.6MDa version HA and it also has better sun protection and after-sun repair abilities than the higher MW versions. It also works in synergy with higher molecular weight versions , and the combination of 0.1% 1.45MDa-HA + 0.1% 380 kDa-HA + 0.1% miniHA hydrated the skin significantly better than 0.3% 1.45MDa-HA alone. On the downside, the biological role of LMW-HA in the skin is being a pro-inflammatory signaling agent and there is a study by another manufacturer called Evonik showing that HA versions with smaller than 50kDa molecular weight might be pro-inflammatory when put on the skin. Granted, the study was only done on reconstituted human epidermis, so it might or might not be like this on real human skin. If you wanna get confused and read much more about hyaluronic acid and what the different molecular weight versions might or might not do, click here and read our excruciatingly long description ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydroxypropyl Cyclodextrin",
    "description": "A type of bucket or donut-shaped molecule with a water-loving outer side and an oil-loving inner side that is used mostly to encapsulate other actives in cosmetics."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Citrate",
    "description": "A little helper ingredient that is used to adjust the pH of the product. It also helps to keep products stay nice longer by neutralizing the metal ions in the formula (they usually come from water)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Leuconostoc/​Radish Root Ferment Filtrate",
    "description": "It's an alternative, natural preservative that comes from radishes fermented with Leuconostoc kimchii, a lactic acid bacteria that has been used to make traditional Korean dish, kimchi. During the fermentation process, a peptide is secreted from the bacteria that has significant antimicrobial properties . It is one of the more promising natural preservatives that can be used even alone (recommended at 2-4%), but it's not as effective as more common alternatives, like parabens or phenoxyethanol ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hexyl Cinnamal",
    "description": "A common fragrance ingredient that smells like jasmine . It is one of the “EU 26 fragrances” that has to be labelled separately because of allergen potential . Best to avoid if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Benzyl Salicylate",
    "description": "It’s a common fragrance ingredient that has a light floral smell .  It’s one of the “EU 26 fragrances” that has to be labelled separately (and cannot be simply included in the term “fragrance/perfume” on the label) because of allergen potential. Best to avoid if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Geraniol",
    "description": "Geraniol is a common fragrance ingredient . It smells like rose and can be found in rose oil or in small quantities in geranium, lemon and many other essential oils. Just like other similar fragrance ingredients (like linalool and limonene ) geraniol also oxidises on air exposure and becomes allergenic. Best to avoid if you have sensitive skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pseudoalteromonas Ferment Extract",
    "description": "A biotechnologically derived ingredient that is produced by the fermentation of a marine bacteria living in the cold Antarctic Ocean. According to the manufacturer's info, it seems to have two different sets of magic properties: The first set includes skin-protecting and anti-aging abilities : it can help to protect the skin from dryness and redness due to cold weather and it also promotes skin regeneration and smoother skin surface by stimulating protein synthesis in the skin.  More specifically, these proteins are type I and IV collagen and elastin, all super important stuff for wrinkle-free, young looking skin (though these results came only from in-vitro tests and might or might not apply to living human skin). As for in-vivo (tested on real people) efficacy, 1% Antarcticine (the trade name for the diluted version of the Pseudoalteromonas Ferment Extract) cream increased skin hydration by 14.8% in cold weather and 5% Antarcticine cream decreased the depth of wrinkles by 44% around the eyes. The second set of magic properties are all about oily skin regulation , such as reducing sebum production, shininess , and pore size . It acts through reducing Melanocortin 5 receptor , a protein important in sebum production. According to the in-vivo tests of the manufacturer, it both immediately reduces skin gloss as well as significantly reduces the number of active follicles and their total surface with ongoing use (by 9.5% and 27.2% after 28 days). Overall, an interesting, multifunctional ingredient both for anti-aging as well as oily skin control purposes."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cocamidopropyl Betaine",
    "description": "Super common ingredient in all kinds of cleansing products: face and body washes, shampoos and foam baths. Number one reason for its popularity has to do with bubbles . Everyone loves bubbles. And cocamidopropyl betaine is great at stabilizing them. The other reason is that it’s mild and works very well combined with other cleansing agents and surfactants. The art of cleansing is usually to balance between properly cleansing but not over-cleansing and cocamidopropyl betaine is helpful in pulling off this balance right. Oh, and one more nice thing: even though it’s synthetic it’s highly biodegradable. More info on CAPB on Collins Beaty Pages ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Silica",
    "description": "A white powdery thing that's the major component of glass and sand. In cosmetics, it’s often in products that are supposed to keep your skin matte as it has great oil-absorbing abilities. It’s also used as a helper ingredient to thicken up products or suspend insoluble particles."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citral",
    "description": "It’s a common fragrance ingredient that smells like lemon and has a bittersweet taste.  It can be found in many plant oils, e.g. lemon, orange, lime or lemongrass. It’s one of the “EU 26 fragrances” that has to be labelled separately (and cannot be simply included in the term “fragrance/perfume” on the label) because of allergen potential. Best to avoid if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Butylphenyl Methylpropional",
    "description": "A common fragrance ingredient that has a nice floral scent and also goes by the name Lilial. It is a known fragrance allergen and as of 1st of March 2022, it has been banned in the EU due to animal studies showing a possible link to infertility (in rats - so no need to panic even if you used a product before with Butylphenyl Methylpropional)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Benzyl Alcohol",
    "description": "It's one of those things that help your cosmetics not to go wrong too soon, aka a preservative . It can be naturally found in fruits and teas but can also be made synthetically. No matter the origin, in small amounts (up to 1%) it’s a nice, gentle preservative. Has to be combined with some other nice preservatives, like potassium sorbate to be broad spectrum enough. In high amounts, it can be a skin irritant, but don’t worry, it’s never used in high amounts."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Laureth Sulfate",
    "description": "It’s probably the most common cleansing ingredient of all . It’s usually the Chief Bubble Officer responsible for big bubbles in cleansing products through the foam it creates is a bit airy and loose and not as dense and luxurious as the foam created by infamous SLS . As for mildness, it goes somewhere in the middle. It’s often confused with sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) , but they are absolutely not the same. The SLES molecule has a bigger water-soluble head part that makes it milder and much less irritating. It is considered absolutely ok in the amount used in cosmetic products, though if you are looking for a mild facial cleanser, you have better chances with a formula without SLES. For an average shower gel? SLES works just fine."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone",
    "description": "It’s a common fragrance ingredient that is one of the “EU 26 fragrances” that has to be labelled separately (and cannot be simply included in the term “fragrance/perfume” on the label) because of allergen potential. Best to avoid if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Coumarin",
    "description": "A common fragrance ingredient that has a sweet, vanilla, nutty scent . When diluted it smells like freshly-mown hay. It’s one of the “EU 26 fragrances” that has to be labelled separately (and cannot be simply included in the term “fragrance/perfume” on the label) because of allergen potential. Best to avoid if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Stearic Acid",
    "description": "A common multi-tasker fatty acid . It makes your skin feel nice and smooth ( emollient ), gives body to cream type products and helps to stabilize water and oil mixes (aka emulsions)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 77891",
    "description": "Ci 77891 is the color code of titanium dioxide. It's a white pigment with great color consistency and dispersibility."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 77491",
    "description": "Red Iron Oxide is the super common pigment that gives the familiar, \"rust\" red color . It is also the one that gives the pink tones in your foundation. Chemically speaking, it is iron III oxide (Fe2O3)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium PCA",
    "description": "PCA stands for Pyrrolidone Carboxylic Acid and though it might not sound like it, it is a thing that can be found naturally in our skin. The sodium salt form of PCA is an important skin-identical ingredient and great natural moisturizer that helps the skin to hold onto water and stay nicely hydrated."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract",
    "description": "Chamomile probably needs no introduction as it's one of the most widely used medicinal herbs . You probably drink it regularly as a nice, calming cup of tea and it's also a regular on skincare ingredient lists. Cosmetic companies use it mainly for its anti-inflammatory properties . It contains the terpenoids chamazulene and bisabolol both of which show great anti-inflammatory action in animal studies. On top of that chamomile also has some antioxidant activity (thanks to some other active ingredients called matricine, apigenin and luteolin). Though chamomile is usually a goodie for the skin, it's also not uncommon to have an allergic reaction to it."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 77499",
    "description": "Black Iron Oxide is the super common inorganic (as in no carbon atom in the molecule) pigment that controls the darkness of your foundation or gives the blackness to your mascara. Blended with red and black iron oxides, it is essential in all \"flesh-toned\" makeup products. Chemically speaking, it is a mixture of iron II and iron III oxide. Btw, this guy, unlike the yellow and red pigments, is magnetic."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Butyrospermum Parkii Butter",
    "description": "Unless you live under a rock you must have heard about shea butter . It's probably the most hyped up natural butter in skincare today. It comes from the seeds of African Shea or Karite Trees and used as a magic moisturizer and emollient . But it's not only a simple emollient, it regenerates and soothes the skin, protects it from external factors (such as UV rays or wind) and is also rich in antioxidants (among others vitamin A, E, F, quercetin and epigallocatechin gallate). If you are looking for rich emollient benefits + more, shea is hard to beat."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acetyl Glucosamine",
    "description": "An amino acid sugar that can be found in the skin and does there good and important things. One of them is that it's a precursor for the biosynthesis of superstar moisturizer, hyaluronic acid . So acetyl glucosamine itself is also an important skin-identical ingredient and natural moisturizing factor . But that is not all, acetyl glucosamine has two other great properties proved by double-blind clinical trials. First, it's a promising ingredient against wrinkles: 2% can improve wrinkles, particularly in the eye area. Second, the same amount can also fade - always stubborn - brown spots. (Do not expect magic, though - the photos from the study show the difference after 8 weeks of daily use. The difference is visible, but not that big. It's always good to have realistic expectations. :))  Combined with skincare superstar niacinamide the duo is synergistic and is more effective at improving hyperpigmentation, so if you are after the skin-lightening benefit look out for products that contain both."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyquaternium-10",
    "description": "A cellulose derived polymer (a big molecule that consists of many parts) that can help to thicken up products , form a nice film on the skin or hair and is considered to be an excellent hair conditioner ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ubiquinone",
    "description": "Thanks to Nivea, Q10 is a pretty well-known ingredient and the fame and Beiersdorf's (the parent company of Nivea) obsession with it are not for no reason. It's an antioxidant found naturally in human cells where it plays a big role in energy production . In fact, it's so important for energy production that if taken as an oral supplement it has a caffeine-like effect and if taken at night you will probably not sleep very well (so you should take it in the morning). Q10 supplementation is not a bad idea: it not only gives you energy but research also shows that oral Q10 increases the Q10 level of the skin (of course, it decreases with age like pretty much every good thing in the skin) and may help to reduce wrinkles . If you are not for supplements, dietary sources include fish, spinach, and nuts. As for skincare, Q10 comes in the form of a yellow, oil-soluble powder that's shown to absorb into the upper layer of the skin and act there like an awesome antioxidant. It not only has preventative effects but might also be able to reduce the depth of wrinkles , though 0.3% Q10 was used in the study that counts as really high (products containing that much should be very yellow!)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Genistein",
    "description": "Genistein is a super active component of soybean . It has very potent antioxidant abilities and is proven to inhibit UVB-induced redness in human skin. It is a phytoestrogen (a plant-derived molecule with estrogenic effect) so it is especially useful for situations when natural estrogen levels are low, such as during and after menopause . Low estrogen levels can cause skin thinning and collagen loss and genistein might be able to help with that."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetyl Alcohol",
    "description": "A so-called fatty (the good, non-drying kind of) alcohol that does all kinds of things in a skincare product: it makes your skin feel smooth and nice (emollient), helps to thicken up products and also helps water and oil to blend (emulsifier). Can be derived from coconut or palm kernel oil."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ascorbyl Glucoside",
    "description": "A form of skincare superstar, vitamin C . If you do not know why vitamin C is such a big deal in skincare, we have a really detailed, geeky description that's good to read. :) So now you know that because pure vitamin C is such a diva (very unstable and hard to formulate) the cosmetic industry is trying to come up with some derivatives that have the badass anti-aging properties of vitamin C (antioxidant protection + collagen boosting + fading hyperpigmentation) but without the disadvantages. This is a hard task, and there is not yet a derivative that is really proven to be better in every aspect, but Ascorbyl Glucoside is one of the best options when it comes to vitamin C derivatives . Let's see why: First, it's really stable and easy to formulate, so the problems that come with pure vitamin C are solved here. Second, in vitro (meaning made in the lab, not on real humans) studies show that ascorbyl glucoside can penetrate the skin . This is kind of important for an anti-aging ingredient to do the job, so this is good news, though in-vivo (made on real humans) studies are still needed. Third, in-vitro studies show that after ascorbyl glucoside is absorbed into the skin it is converted to pure vitamin C (though the rate of conversion is still a question mark). It also shows all the three anti-aging benefits (antioxidant protection + collagen boosting + fading hyperpigmentation) that pure vitamin C does . Bottom line : ascorbyl glucoside is one of the best and most promising vitamin C derivatives that shows similar benefits to that of pure vitamin C, but it's less proven (in vivo vs. in vitro studies) and the extent of the benefits are also not the same."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Epigallocatechin Gallate",
    "description": "If EGCG does not tell you anything, green tea sure does. We have written about green tea in excruciating details, so if you wanna become an expert in the \"green tea in skincare\" topic, click here and read it . So now you know that EGCG is the magic ingredient in green tea. It's the most active polyphenol that green tea owes most of its magic properties to. It's a fantastic antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anticarcinogenic agent. Be happy, if you spot it on the ingredient list."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glycyrrhiza Glabra  Root Extract",
    "description": "You might know licorice as a sweet treat from your childhood, but it's actually a legume that grows around the Mediterranean Sea, the Middle East, central and southern Russia. It's sweet and yellow and not only used for licorice all sorts but it's also a skincare superstar thanks to two magic properties: Nr. 1 magic property is that it has skin-lightening or to say it another way depigmenting properties. The most active part is called glabridin . The topical application (meaning when you put it on your face) of 0.5% glabridin was shown to inhibit UVB caused pigmentation of guinea pigs. Another study even suggested that licorice is more effective than the gold standard skin-lightening agent hydroquinone. All in all, licorice is considered to be one of the safest skin lightening agents with the fewest side effects . There is just one catch regarding glabridin and licorice: the amount of glabridin in commercial licorice extracts can vary a lot. We have seen extracts with only 4% glabridin as well as 40% glabridin. The latter one is a very-very expensive ingredient, so if you are after the depigmenting properties try to choose a product that boasts its high-quality licorice extract. Nr. 2 magic property is that licorice is a potent anti-inflammatory . Glabridin has also some soothing properties but the main active anti-inflammatory component is glycyrrhizin . It’s used to treat several skin diseases that are connected to inflammation including atopic dermatitis, rosacea or eczema. Oh, and one more thing: glabridin seems to be also an antioxidant, which is just one more reason to be happy about licorice root extract on an ingredient list. Bottom line : Licorice is a great skincare ingredient with significant depigmenting, anti-inflammatory and even some antioxidant properties. Be happy if it's on the ingredient list. :)"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 77492",
    "description": "Yellow Iron Oxide is the super common inorganic (as in no carbon atom in the molecule) pigment that gives the yellow tones in your foundation. Blended with red and black iron oxides, it is essential in all \"flesh-toned\" makeup products. Chemically speaking, it is hydrated iron III oxide and depending on the conditions of manufacture, it can range from a light lemon to an orange-yellow shade ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate",
    "description": "The salt form of one of the main anti-inflammatory ingredients in the licorice plant, monoammonium glycyrrhizinate. It’s a yellowish powder with a nice sweet smell. It’s used mainly for its soothing and anti-inflammatory properties , but according to manufacturer info, it’s also sebum regulating so it's a perfect ingredient for problem skin products. Read more about licorice and why it's a skincare superstar here."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Carnosine",
    "description": "Though its name does not reveal it, Carnosine is a peptide , a small, two amino acid (β-Ala-His) one. It is naturally present in high concentrations in muscle and brain tissues, but the one used in cosmetic products is biomimetic, meaning that it is synthetically produced in a lab to copy the natural thing. A 2017 review paper on topical peptides writes about Carnosine that it is a \" well-documented aqueous antioxidant with wound healing activity \". Other than that we can write about manufacturer-done in-vitro (in the lab, not on real people) studies that show Carnosine to have anti-glycation properties . Glycation is the not-so-nice process that happens when we bombard our body with too much sugar that results in damaged body proteins and eventually in more wrinkles. Also, a manufacturer done in vitro study shows that carnosine might have collagen-boosing magic power. However, the 2017 research paper also mentions that even though Carnosine is a small molecule, it is water soluble and does not penetrate the skin past the top layers so we have some doubt if the collagen-boosting works in real life. We could find one anti-aging study made on real people that mentions Carnosine, but it was combined with a bunch of other anti-aging actives so it is pretty much impossible to know what Carnosine did or did not. One last thing to mention is that there is also a manufacturer done clinical study (done on real people) that shows carnosine being effective against the damages caused by infrared (IR) radiation . ( source )"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyquaternium-51",
    "description": "A biocompatible copolymer (a big molecule that consists of more than one type of building blocks) that has the same structure as important cell membrane ingredient, phospholipid . Polyquaternium-51 is a good skin moisturizer , leaves a silky, smooth feel on the skin and can help to reduce irritation caused by some not-so-nice ingredients (like surfactants)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ulmus Davidiana Root Extract",
    "description": "A nice plant extract that's used as a traditional oriental medicine in China and Korea . A 2006 study examined the cosmetic properties of the  polysaccharide extract and found a couple of promising things: The main components of the extract are water-binding sugars, namely  rhamnose, galactose, and glucose. After this, it's not very surprising that the extract itself is also a great skin moisturizer almost as good as superstar NMF, hyaluronic acid . But that's not all: the researchers also found that Ulmus extract has promising anti-inflammatory and photoprotective properties. Seems like a goodie plant extract."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Piper Methysticum Leaf/​Root/​Stem Extract",
    "description": "Kava kava is a crop of the western Pacific that has some analgesic (painkiller) properties . According to Paula's Choice , it can also cause skin irritation . A 2009 safety assessment of the ingredient concluded that \"the available data are insufficient to support the safety of these ingredients in cosmetics\"."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Betaine",
    "description": "A sugar beet-derived amino acid derivative with nice skin protection and moisturization properties . Betaine's special thing is being an osmolyte , a molecule that helps to control cell-water balance .  It is also a natural osmoprotectant, meaning that it attracts water away from the protein surface and thus protects them from denaturation and increases their thermodynamic stability. It also gives sensorial benefits to the formula and when used in cleansers, it helps to make them milder and gentler."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Amaranthus Caudatus Seed Extract",
    "description": "It's the seed extract of a plant called amaranth or love-lies-bleeding. It's a really ancient plant grown by Aztecs, Incas and Mayas as their main food and they called it “the golden grain”. They believed it had supernatural powers. Nowadays it's a popular health food because the seeds have great nutritional benefits and are high in protein. As for skincare there are two types of the seed extract: 1, The aqueous extract contains a high concentration of peptides and polysaccharides and helps to improve the combability and manageability of damaged hair . 2. The oily extract is more common and acts as other similar emollient plant oils. It's rich in non-saturated fatty acids (linoleic acid/omega-6 and oleic acid/omega-9) and squalene and is a great moisturizer and emollient for both skin and hair."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrogenated Lecithin",
    "description": "It's the chemically chopped up version of normal lecithin . Most often it's used to create liposomes and to coat and stabilize other ingredients."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrolyzed Corn Starch",
    "description": "It's the chemically chopped up version of corn starch. According to manufacturer info it helps to keep formulas together (binding), and improves foam quality (makes nice, creamy foam :)). It's also a blend of poly- and monosaccharides and works as a skin moisturizer giving products a nice soft feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Phellodendron Amurense Bark Extract",
    "description": "A traditional East Asian medicine that has a couple of recent studies to back up its positive effects on the skin. It seems to have potent anti-inflammatory activity , it's a mild antioxidant and also has strong anti-bacterial effect for acne causing bacteria, Propionibacterium acne."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Trehalose",
    "description": "A type of sugar that has water-binding properties and helps to keep your skin hydrated ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Beta Vulgaris Root Extract",
    "description": "Beetroot is a beautifully colored vegetable that you probably know from the kitchen. As for skincare - according to manufacturer info - it works as a natural moisturizer that might be able to increase the concentration of NMFs (natural moisturizing factors) in the upper layer of the skin giving skin both immediate and longer term hydration. According to Paula's Choice , it's also a colorant and a source of antioxidants ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cassia Alata Leaf Extract",
    "description": "Candle tree is a nice plant with beautiful yellow flowers that's native to Mexico. It's a medicinal tree that has very effective fungicidal properties and is used traditionally to treat fungal infections of the skin. Modern studies confirm antimicrobial as well as anti-inflammatory activity of the tree. According to manufacturer info it's even a great anti-aging plant extract that gives DNA protection from UV rays and supports the natural repairing process of the skin cells."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tromethamine",
    "description": "It's a little helper ingredient that helps to set the pH of the products to be right. It has an alkaline pH and can neutralize acidic ingredients."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acetic Acid",
    "description": "The acid found in vinegar . Can be a skin irritant and drying in larger amounts but in tiny amounts, it's used to set the pH of the cosmetic formula. Has also some disinfecting properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hexapeptide-9",
    "description": "An anti-aging peptide that can visibly reduce the length and depth of wrinkles, at least according to its manufacturer . In vitro (meaning it was done in the lab, not on real people) studies show that it enhances epidermal regeneration, collagen type I and III synthesis as well as the synthesis of other important skin proteins."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methylisothiazolinone",
    "description": "As you may guess, if something is only recommended in products that you rinse off (cleansers and shampoos), then it’s probably not the best ingredient for the skin. Methylisothiazolinone (MI) is a preservative that' super efficient against bacteria at surprisingly low concentrations. The problem with it though is that it can also sensitize and irritate the skin quite easily when it comes in leave-on formulas. Currently, some countries are considering to ban it entirely (like Denmark ) and the permitted use level is very low ( under 0.01% ). Luckily there are plenty of products on the market with other preservative options so if you are a better safe than sorry type it's probably best to avoid it."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "1,2-Hexanediol",
    "description": "A really multi-functional helper ingredient that can do several things in a skincare product: it can bring a soft and pleasant feel to the formula, it can act as a humectant and emollient , it can be a solvent for some other ingredients (for example it can help to stabilize perfumes in watery products) and it can also help to disperse pigments more evenly in makeup products. And that is still not all: it can also boost the antimicrobial activity of preservatives ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 19140",
    "description": "Ci 19140  or Tartrazine is a super common colorant in skincare, makeup, medicine & food. It’s a synthetic lemon yellow that's used alone or mixed with other colors for special shades. FDA says it's possible, but rare, to have an allergic-type reaction to a color additive. As an example, it mentions that Ci 19140 may cause itching and hives in some people but the colorant is always labeled so that you can avoid it if you are sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Raffinose",
    "description": "It's a so-called trisaccharide (consists of three monosaccharides: glucose , fructose , and galactose) that - similar to other sugar-type ingredients - works as a water-binding, moisturizer ingredient on the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 42090",
    "description": "CI 42090 or Blue 1 is a super common synthetic colorant in beauty & food. Used alone, it adds a brilliant smurf-like blue color , combined with Tartrazine , it gives the fifty shades of green."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ascorbyl Palmitate",
    "description": "A form of skincare superstar, vitamin C . Even though we are massive vitamin C fans,  Ascorbyl Palmitate  (AP) is our least favorite. (Btw, if you do not know what the big deal with vitamin C is then you are missing out. You must go and read our geeky details about it.) So, AP is one of the attempts by the cosmetics industry to solve the stability issues with vitamin C while preserving its benefits,  but it seems to fall short on several things. What's the problem? Firstly, it's stability is only similar to that of pure ascorbic acid (AA), which means it is not really stable. A great study in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology compared a bunch of vitamin C derivatives and this derivative was the only one where the study said in terms of stability that it's \"similar to AA\". Not really that good. Second, a study that examined the skin absorption of vitamin C found that ascorbyl palmitate did not increase the skin levels of AA . This does not mean that ascorbyl palmitate cannot penetrate the skin (because it can, it's oil soluble and the skin likes to absorb oil soluble things) but this means that it's questionable if ascorbyl palmitate can be converted into pure Vit C in the skin . Even if it can be converted, the palmitate part of the molecule is more than the half of it, so the efficacy will not be good and we have never seen a serum that contains a decent (and proudly disclosed) amount of AP.  We are highly skeptical what effect a tiny amount of AP has in a formula. Third, another study that wanted to examine the antioxidant properties of AP was surprised to find that even though AP does have nice antioxidant properties; following UVB radiation (the same one that comes from the sun) it also promotes lipid peroxidation and cytotoxicity . It was only an in-vitro study meaning that it was done on cell cultures and not on real people, but still, this also does not support the use of AP too much. The only good thing we can write about Ascorbyl Palmitate is that there is an in-vitro (made in the lab, not on real people) study showing that it might be able to boost collagen production. Regarding the skin-brightening properties of pure vitamin C, this is another magic property AP does not have, or at least there is no data, not even in-vitro, about it. Overall , Ascorbyl Palmitate is our least favorite vitamin C derivative . It is there in lots of products in tiny amounts (honestly, we do not really understand why), however, we do not know about any vitamin C serum featuring AP in high amounts. That is probably no coincidence. If you are into vitamin C, you can take a look at more promising derivatives here ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lactobacillus/​Pumpkin Ferment Extract",
    "description": "When you hear pumpkin you probably think of Halloween or autumn, but it turns out that many forms of pumpkin are also great skincare ingredients. This particular form is obtained by fermenting the pumpkin fruit with lactobacillus lactis . During the fermentation, many of the complex biomolecules are broken down into isolated phytochemicals and selective filtration techniques are used to isolate the proteolytic parts.  The result is pumpkin enzyme that is a gentle exfoliator that can be an alternative to AHAs . According to the manufacturer , 4% glycolic acid has a similar effect on cell renewal as 5% pumpkin enzyme. In an irritation test, the ingredient did not irritate even the sensitive eye tissue and was hardly more irritating than glycerin . All in all, pumpkin enzyme seems to be a promising gentle alternative to acid exfoliation."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Benzyl Benzoate",
    "description": "A common fragrance ingredient that has a faint sweet balsamic smell . It can also be a solvent and can fight against microbes and insects very well. It's one of the “EU 26 fragrances” that has to be labelled separately because of allergen potential . Best to avoid if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydroxycitronellal",
    "description": "A common fragrance ingredient that has a sweet scent somewhere between lily and fruity melon. Can be found in essential oils, such as lavender oil, orange flower oil or ylang-ylang. In cosmetics, it can be used up to 1%. It’s one of the “EU 26 fragrances” that has to be labelled separately (and cannot be simply included in the term “fragrance/perfume” on the label) because of allergen potential. Best to avoid if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Chondrus Crispus Extract",
    "description": "The extract of red seaweed that has nice film-forming, skin smoothing and moisturizing properties.​ The manufacturer claims that thanks to biomimetic properties between skin proteins and carrageenans it has a very long-lasting action and can form a \"second skin\". It also gives a \"slow-release\" effect to oil-loving active ingredients and measurably reduces trans-epidermal water loss (that's pretty much a synonym of saying that it moisturizes the skin)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lactobacillus/​Punica Granatum Fruit Ferment Extract",
    "description": "It's the fancy name for pomegranate enzyme that's obtained by fermenting the pomegranate fruit with Lactobacil­lus lactis. The fermentation process makes the desired phytochemicals readily available and selective filtration techniques are used to isolate the  proteolytic frac­tions. The end result is the enzyme that increases cell renewal and can be an alternative to acid exfoliation (though it is not as effective as glycolic acid even according to the manufacturer's measurements not to speak about the other benefits of glycolic acid)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein",
    "description": "A chemically chopped up version of wheat protein that consists mainly of amino acids (the building blocks), peptides (a couple of amino acids together), and proteins (lots of amino acids together). It has moisturizing and film-forming properties and  might be able to counteract the irritating effects of cleansing agents in cleansers and shampoos. It can also condition and repair damaged hair leaving it soft, silky and smooth."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Caprylhydroxamic Acid",
    "description": "A chelating agent that helps to preserve cosmetic products by neutralizing the metal ions (especially iron) in the formula (that usually get into there from water). Its special thing is that it also acts as a biostatic and fungistatic agent and remains active even at high pH. It is often coupled with antimicrobial glycols (such as propanediol ) to create a \" preservative free preservative system \" for cosmetic products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glutamylamidoethyl Imidazole",
    "description": "An anti-aging chrono pepti de that mimics sun exposure activation of the circadian genes (they are essential in having a proper biorhythm). The manufacturer recommends the ingredient for tired, stressed, jet-lagged skin or skin that lacks sun exposure. It's claimed to stimulate the skin's natural defense system and might help the skin to produce Vitamin D."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tetrahydrodiferuloylmethane",
    "description": "A standardized powdered extract from the roots of the Curcuma longa (Turmeric) plant (together with this and this ).  The trio is called Tetrahydrocurcuminoids (THC) and has skin-brightening, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant magic properties. Other turmeric extracts have brilliant yellow color that makes them difficult to use but this one is color-free."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tetrahydrobisdemethoxydiferuloylmethane",
    "description": "It's one of those ingredients that defies the *BS* theory that if you cannot pronounce it, it must be an evil synthetic and you should not put it on your face. It comes from the well-known Indian spice, turmeric and is part of a trio called Tetrahydrocurcuminoids (THC). You can read more about THC's good properties here ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tetrahydrodemethoxydiferuloylmethane",
    "description": "Comes from the well-known Indian spice, turmeric and is part of a trio called Tetrahydrocurcuminoids (THC). You can read more about THC's good properties here ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glycine",
    "description": "A non-essential amino acid (the building blocks of skin proteins, like collagen or elastin), that the body can produce itself, but its production decreases with age. When you put it all over your face, it works as a moisturizer and maybe more. According to great skincare blog Futurederm , glycine might help with wound healing and tissue repair and when used together with other amino acids, leucine and proline it might improve wrinkles . BTW, it's also a building block of a bunch of important and famous peptides, including copper-tripeptide-1 , palmitoyl tripeptide-1 or palmitoyl hexapeptide-12 ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Maltodextrin",
    "description": "It's a little helper ingredient coming from corn, rice or potato starch that can help to keep skin mat (absorbent), to stabilise emulsions , and to keep the product together (binding)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Eugenol",
    "description": "A colorless or yellowish oil that's used as a fragrance . It has a spicy scent and can be found for example in basil, clove or cinnamon oil. A 2006 in-vitro  (made in the lab not on real people) study examined if clove oil is cytotoxic and found that not only clove oil but also its main constituent, eugenol is cytotoxic even at very low concentration (0.03%). It’s also one of the “EU 26 fragrances” that has to be labelled separately (and cannot be simply included in the term “fragrance/perfume” on the label) because of allergen potential. Best to avoid at least in leave-on products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methylchloroisothiazolinone",
    "description": "This totally unpronounceable ingredient (let’s take a shortcut: MCI) is a super effective preservative with both antibacterial and antifungal effects that works at very low concentrations. The bad news with it though is that it can sensitize the skin easily (it’s a so-called non-fragrance allergen ). It’s not permitted to be used alone, but only with its BFF, methylisothiazolinone (MI), another icky preservative. Together they have a broad spectrum antimicrobial effect but are permitted to be used only in rinse-off products ( under 0.0015% )."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil",
    "description": "Sunflower does not need a big intro as you probably use it in the kitchen as cooking oil, or you munch on the seeds as a healthy snack or you adore its big, beautiful yellow flower during the summer - or you do all of these and probably even more. And by even more  we mean putting it all over your face as sunflower oil is one of the most commonly used plant oils in skincare . It’s a real oldie: expressed directly from the seeds, the oil is used not for hundreds but thousands of years . According to The National Sunflower Association , there is evidence that both the plant and its oil were used by American Indians in the area of Arizona and New Mexico about 3000 BC. Do the math: it's more than 5000 years – definitely an oldie. Our intro did get pretty big after all (sorry for that), so let's get to the point finally: sunflower oil - similar to other plant oils - is a great emollient that makes the skin smooth and nice and helps to keep it hydrated. It also protects the surface of the skin and enhances the damaged or irritated skin barrier . Leslie Bauman notes in Cosmetic Dermatology that one application of sunflower oil significantly speeds up the recovery of the skin barrier within an hour and sustains the results 5 hours after using it. It's also loaded with fatty acids (mostly linoleic (50-74%)  and oleic (14-35%)). The unrefined version (be sure to use that on your skin!) is especially high in linoleic acid that is great even for acne-prone skin . Its comedogen index is 0, meaning that it's pretty much an all skin-type oil . Truth be told, there are many great plant oils and sunflower oil is definitely one of them."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Rosa Damascena Flower Water",
    "description": "The flower water coming from the flowers of the Damask Rose . In general, flower waters (also called hydrosols) are diluted versions of essential oils coming from the same plant. They contain the same components but in much-reduced concentrations. Similar to its big sister, rose oil , rose water also has a lovely, relaxing scent . It contains some antioxidant and antimicrobial compounds , as well as some fragrant components . If your skin is super sensitive, it is a good idea to choose products without fragrant floral waters."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-7 Glyceryl Cocoate",
    "description": "A clear, light yellow water-loving oil that comes from coconut/palm kernel oil and glycerin. It's a mild cleansing agent popular in baby washes and sensitive skin formulas. It's also a so-called solubilizer that helps to dissolve oils and oil-soluble ingredients (e.g.essential oils or salicylic acid) in water-based formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-100 Stearate",
    "description": "A very common water-loving surfactant and emulsifier that helps to keep water and oil mixed nicely together. It's often paired with glyceryl stearate - the two together form a super effective emulsifier duo that's salt and acid tolerant and works over a wide pH range. It also gives a \"pleasing product aesthetics\", so no wonder it's popular."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Poloxamer 184",
    "description": "A synthetic polymer (a big molecule made of repeated units) that's used as a mild cleansing agent . It is also used in contact lens solutions and a regular on the ingredient lists of micellar cleansing waters. Chemically speaking, it is an interesting molecule with an oil-loving part in the middle surrounded by two water-loving parts. The numbers in the molecule refer to the overall molecular size and the water-loving part in it (40%). Poloxamer 184 is almost half-half oil and water-soluble, likes to form micelles (molecules gathered into a ball form with oil-loving parts inside and water-loving parts outside)  and is claimed to be an effective cleansing agent that is also mild on the skin and the eyes. If you wanna know more about poloxamers, we have some more info at Poloxamer 407 >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Xylitylglucoside",
    "description": "The main part of a moisturizing complex called Aquaxyl . Comes from two water-binding plant sugars, glucose and xylitol . According to the manufacturer, Aquaxyl is close to a magic moisturizer that not only simply moisturizes, but can \" harmonize the skin's hydrous flow \". This means that on the one side it can optimize water reserves by increasing important NMFs (natural moisturizing factors - things that are naturally in the skin and help to keep it hydrated) - like hyaluronic acid and chondroitin sulfate -  in the skin. On the other side, it also limits water loss by improving the skin barrier with increased lipid (ceramides and cholesterol) and protein synthesis. In vivo (made on real people) tests show that 3% Aquaxyl not only increases the water content of the outer layer instantly and in the long run but it also visibly improves cracked, dry skin and smoothes the skin surface after a month of treatment. The hydrating effect of Aquaxyl was also examined in a comparative study in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology. Four humectants were examined in combination with 5% glycerin in a hydrogel formula and one with 4% Aquaxyl performed as well as the well-known moisturizer, urea and somewhat better than the formula containing NMF components or hydrating plant extract called Imperata Cylindrica . All in all,  Aquaxyl is a goodie and if you have dehydrated, dry skin it's something to look at."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Symphytum Officinale Root Extract",
    "description": "A medicinal plant with analgesic (painkilling) and anti-inflammatory magic properties. It contains allantoin and rosmarinic acid that are probably responsible for its soothing power. It's often used in the field of sports for treating bruises or sprains . The questionable side of comfrey (that prevented us from giving it a goodie rating) is that it also contains pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PA). That guy has some proven toxic effect so for example in Germany the permissibale dose of PA is 100 μg/day and if the dose is between 10-100 μg/day the treatment is limited to 4-6 weeks per year. But do not panic: most probably your skincare product does not contain anywhere near that dose. For example, a German sport-ointment to treat ankle sprains contains only 0.35 μg/g PA, so even with four uses per day, the dose is way below 10 μg/g. The same is probably true for your skincare product."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polysorbate 80",
    "description": "A common little helper ingredient that helps water and oil to mix together, aka emulsifier. The number at the end refers to the oil-loving part and the bigger the number  the more emulsifying power it has. 20 is a weak emulsifier, rather called solubilizer used commonly in toners while 60 and 80 are more common in serums and creams."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Anhydroxylitol",
    "description": "A sugar derived moisturizer that's part of a moisturizing trio called Aquaxyl. You can read more about its magic properties at xylitylglucoside ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate",
    "description": "A clear, oil-soluble, \"cosmetically-elegant\" liquid that is the most commonly used chemical sunscreen. It absorbs UVB radiation (at wavelengths: 280-320 nm) with a peak protection at 310nm. It only protects against UVB and not UVA rays (the 320-400 nm range) – so always choose products that contain other sunscreens too. It is not very stable either, when exposed to sunlight, it kind of breaks down and loses its effectiveness (not instantly, but over time - it loses 10% of its SPF protection ability within 35 mins). To make it more stable it can be - and should be - combined with other sunscreen agents to give stable and broad-spectrum protection (the new generation sunscreen agent, Tinosorb S is a particularly good one for that). Regarding safety, there are also some concerns around Octinoxate. In vitro (made in the lab not on real people) and animal studies have shown that it may produce hormonal (estrogen-like) effects. Do not panic , the studies were not conducted under real life conditions on real human people, so it is probably over-cautious to avoid Octinoxate altogether. However, if you are pregnant or a small child (under 2 yrs. old), choose a physical ( zinc oxide / titanium dioxide ) or new-generation Tinosorb based sunscreen, just to be on the super-safe side. :) Overall , Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate is an old-school chemical sunscreen agent. There are plenty of better options for sun protection today, but it is considered \"safe as used\" (and sunscreens are pretty well regulated) and it is available worldwide (can be used up to 10% in the EU and up to 7.5% in the US)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Xylitol",
    "description": "A type of sugar that's part of a moisturizing trio called Aquaxyl. You can read more about its magic properties at xylitylglucoside ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ammonium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate",
    "description": "There is not much info about this guy in itself other than it helps to thicken up products and stabilize oil-in-water emulsions . It usually comes to the formula as part of some thickener complex. For example, coupled with isohexadecane and polysorbate 80 , the trio forms an instant gel upon mixing with water."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Benzoic Acid",
    "description": "An Ecocert-approved, natural preservative that counts as gentle and non-irritating to the skin. Usually, it comes to the formula as part of a preservative blend as it's not enough on its own."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-75",
    "description": "A little helper ingredient that gives the formula a good slip and helps to solubilize other ingredients. It also has binding, softening and moisturizing properties. Comes in the form of water-soluble white powder."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lactobacillus Ferment",
    "description": "Lactobacillus ferment is an interesting probiotic ingredient with some promising properties. First, according to a 2009 Estee Lauder patent , it’s a DNA repair enzyme and it can help to protect the skin against environmental aggressors . Second, still according to Estee Lauder research but now from 2012 the ingredient has anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory properties and holds promise in the treatment of acne and rosacea. For the former one 5% was needed to show effectiveness, but for reducing skin sensitivity already 1% showed results. The anti-acne effect is confirmed also by US manufacturer, Barnet , that says that Lactobacillus ferment is helpful in killing harmful bacteria and creating a healthy balanced microflora. Compared to well-known anti-acne and anti-inflammatory salicylic acid the probiotic worked faster at reducing the size and redness of acne lesions. It also goes by the trade name Leucidal Liquid SF and can serve in the formula as a natural preservative. Bottom line: It’s not the most proven ingredient (yet) but definitely a very promising one especially if you have sensitive skin, acne or rosacea."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acetyl Hexapeptide-8",
    "description": "If you see a cosmetic product that claims that it has \" Botox-like effect \" then two things are almost certain: one, the product overpromises and two, it contains Argireline. So this one is the famous peptide that's marketed by its manufacturer as the \"Botox in a jar\". The basis for this claim is that it targets the same wrinkle forming mechanism ( wrinkles caused by facial muscle movement ) as Botox, but the way it works is very different. In addition, the extent to which it can prevent muscles from contracting (and to smooth wrinkles) is very different (otherwise why would anyone use still Botox?). The manufacturer did several studies to prove that Argireline really works and it does (just not as well as Botox). In-vivo (made on real people) tests showed that using 10% Argireline solution around the eyes for 15 days decreased wrinkles depth by 17%, while a 5% Argireline formula applied for 28 days did almost the same with a decrease in wrinkle depth by 16.26% . A Spanish University also did some research and found that Argireline increased the level of skin moisturization and decreased both the depth and width of wrinkles \"significantly\". This means, Acetyl Hexapeptide-8 does have some ability to smooth wrinkles (but not as well as Botox - sorry, if we sound like a broken record). Also, we have to agree with TruthInAging , that it's not a collagen builder and not a preventer of structural aging (think vitamin C , AHAs or retinol ); it's just a quick fix. If you are looking for one, this could be your thing. If you are more of a \"let's treat this aging thing properly\" type, then it's probably not your thing."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Caffeine",
    "description": "Hello, our favorite molecule that helps us wake up in the morning and then keeps us going through the day. As a super well-known stimulant from coffee , tea and plenty of other soft drinks, Caffeine needs no introduction. So we will skip right to the part where we talk about what the hell it does in so-so many cosmetic products. Looking at the research, we were surprised to find how versatile Caffeine is. It is a small, water-loving molecule with pretty good skin penetration abilties. Once in the skin, it has nice antioxidant properties , meaning that it reduces the formation of evil free radicals and it might even be useful in preventing UV-induced skin cancers. A well-known thing about Caffeine is that it improves the microcirculation of the blood vessels . Though conventional wisdom and anecdotal evidence says that this property is helpful for dark under-eye circles and puffy eyes , we have to mention that the double-blind research we have found about a 3% caffeine gel concluded that \" the overall efficacy of the selected caffeine gel in reducing puffy eyes was not significantly different from that of its gel base .\"  But you know, the proof is in the pudding. Another thing Caffeine is used for in body care products is its anti-cellulite effects . In theory, it can speed up the lipolysis process (the \"fat burning\"  by our cells) and stimulate the draining lymph system that might lead to the improvement of cellulite. But here again, the evidence that it actually makes a measurable, let alone visible,  improvement on actual human beings is limited (we could find only some animal skin studies or caffeine being combined with other actives). Last, but not least, we have to write about caffeine and hair growth . The theory is that it can inhibit the activity of the 5-α-reductase enzyme that plays an important role in hair loss and allows a renewed growth phase of the hair. We have found some recent and promising research to back this up. A 2017 study compared a 0.2% caffeine liquid with a 5% Minoxidil  (an FDA approved active to treat baldness) solution and found that  \" a caffeine-based topical liquid should be considered as not inferior to minoxidil 5% solution in men with androgenetic alopecia \", or English translation means that the caffeine liquid was pretty much as good as the FDA-approved Minoxidil stuff. Not bad! Overall , we think that caffeine is a very versatile and biologically active ingredient. Even though some of its effects are more hyped up than backed up, it is still a nice to have on many ingredient lists."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Betula Alba Bark Extract",
    "description": "It's the extract from the silver-white bark of the Birch tree that grows on moors in North and Middle Europe and in North America. It contains tannins and triterpenes that give the extract antioxidant, anti-irritant and astringent magic properties. There is also research showing that birch bark extract can improve the skin barrier , increase skin hydration and reduce trans-epidermal water loss.  Can be a useful ingredient both for dry and oily skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Silybum Marianum Extract",
    "description": "The extract of a plant with nice purple flowers that's loaded with the phytochemical called silymarin . You have probably never heard of silymarin but let us tell you it's a pretty awesome ingredient. There are quite a lot of research showing it can do all kinds of good things when taken orally : it has a proven ability to protect you from liver damage, and it also shows powerful antioxidant, anticarcinogenic, protective and regenerative properties with no more side effects than placebo. But what about skincare? Well, there is less research about its topical use but it definitely deserves the goodie status: it's a potent antioxidant, an anti-inflammatory agent and it's  also a great UV-protectant . It's useful as a complementary treatment for rosacea, keeping the skin hydrated and it's also a super nice addition to any sunscreen product thanks to its unique UV-protecting abilities."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Anthemis Nobilis Flower Extract",
    "description": "There are two primary types of Chamomile, the German and the Roman. Both has soothing properties, but the German one contains more anti-inflammatory actives (like chamazulene). The anti-inflammatory action of the Roman Chamomile is due to phenolic compounds and - according to manufacturer info - it also has some nice skin toning properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cyclohexasiloxane",
    "description": "A light-feeling, volatile (meaning it does not absorb into the skin but evaporates from it) silicone that gives skin a unique, silky and non-greasy feel . It has excellent spreading properties and leaves no oily residue or build-up."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PPG-5-Ceteth-20",
    "description": "A helper ingredient that can solubilize challenging oils and oil-loving actives into cleansing products. It also has emollient, emulsifying , and wetting properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Oleth-10",
    "description": "A useful ingredient that helps water and oil to mix nicely together ( emulsifier ). It has a liquide-pasty texture and is recommended for skincare, haircare and shaving products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dimethicone",
    "description": "Probably the most common silicone of all. It is a polymer (created from repeating subunits) molecule and has different molecular weight and thus different viscosity versions from water-light to thick liquid. As for skincare, it makes the skin silky smooth , creates a subtle gloss and forms a protective barrier (aka occlusive). Also, works well to fill in fine lines and wrinkles and give skin a plump look (of course that is only temporary, but still, it's nice). There are also scar treatment gels out there using dimethicone as their base ingredient. It helps to soften scars and increase their elasticity. As for hair care, it is a non-volatile silicone meaning that it stays on the hair rather than evaporates from it and smoothes the hair like no other thing. Depending on your hair type, it can be a bit difficult to wash out and might cause some build-up (btw, this is not true to all silicones, only the non-volatile types)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydroxyethyl Urea",
    "description": "A derivative of Urea , that works as a strong moisturizer and humectant meaning that it helps the skin to cling onto water and thus to make it hydrated and elastic. According to manufacturer's data ,  Hydroxyethyl Urea has a similar moisturizing ability to glycerin (measured at 5%), but it feels nicer on the skin as it is non-sticky and non-tacky and gives a lubricous and moist feeling to the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-8",
    "description": "A smallish polymer molecule (created from repeated units of Polyethylene glycol, aka PEG) that's used as a solubilizer and viscosity control agent . It is a clear, colorless liquid that is water-soluble and water-binding (aka humectant) and can help to solubilize sparingly-water soluble things (e.g. vanilla, perfumes) into water-based formulas. Thanks to its water-binding ability, it also prevents the drying out of formulas , especially when combined with the fellow hygroscopic agent, sorbitol ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate",
    "description": "A form of skincare superstar, Vitamin C . If you do not know, what the big deal about Vitamin C is, click here and read all about it , we will wait here for you. So now you know that pure vitamin C (aka ascorbic acid, AA) is really unstable and hard to formulate so the cosmetics industry is coming up with a bunch of derivatives to solve the problem and Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate (or MAP) is one of them. MAP does solve the stability problem: it's stable up to pH 7, so far so good. What is not so good is that, as the great review study about vitamin C derivatives in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology writes, MAP is \"at very best, poorly absorbed in comparison to AA.\" Moreover,  derivatives not only have to be absorbed into the skin, they also have to be converted into pure AA. The good news is that in-vitro data shows that MAP does convert , but the bad news is we do not really know if the same is true on real, living human skin. Even if it does, we don't know how good the conversion rate is (but to be fair the same is true for all other derivatives ). Regarding the three magic abilities of pure vitamin C (antioxidant, collagen booster, skin brightener), there is no published data about MAP's antioxidant or photoprotection capabilities. We have better news about the other two things: in-vitro data shows that MAP can boost collagen synthesis similar to AA (though in the case of AA it's proven in-vivo) and even better, MAP is proven to work as a skin brightener in-vivo (on real people). Bottom line : when it comes to vitamin C derivatives, MAP is definitely an option. We especially recommend it if you are after skin brightening as this seems to be the strongest point of MAP."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Behentrimonium Methosulfate",
    "description": "In itself, it's an antistatic (stops your hair from flying around because of electricity), hair conditioning and softening ingredient used mainly in haircare products. Coupled with Cetearyl Alcohol , they form an easy to handle, super stable emulsifier duo that has exceptional spreadability and gives a pleasant final touch to the products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ceramide NP",
    "description": "One of the many types of ceramides that can be found naturally in the upper layer of the skin. Ceramides make up about 50% of the goopy stuff that's between our skin cells and play a super important role in having a healthy skin barrier and keeping the skin hydrated . It works even better when combined with its pal, Ceramide 1. We wrote way more about ceramides at ceramide 1, so click here to know more."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cholesterol",
    "description": "It's one of the important lipids that can be found naturally in the outer layer of the skin. About 25% of the goopy stuff between our skin cells consists of cholesterol . Together with ceramides and fatty acids, they play a vital role in having a healthy skin barrier and keeping the skin hydrated. Apart from being an important skin-identical ingredient, it's also an emollient and stabilizer ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 14700",
    "description": "A common colorant that gives products a nice red color."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ceramide EOP",
    "description": "Ceramides get quite a lot of hype recently and good news: there is a reason for that. But before we go into the details, let's just quickly define what the heck ceramides are: They are waxy lipids that can be found naturally in the outer layer of the skin (called stratum corneum - SC). And they are there in big amounts! The goopy stuff between our skin cells is called extracellular matrix that consists mainly of lipids. And ceramides are about 50% of those lipids (the other important ones are cholesterol with 25% and fatty acids with 15%). Ok, so now we know what ceramides are, let's see what they do in our skin: research shows clearly that they play a super important role in keeping the skin barrier healthy and the skin hydrated . If ceramides in the skin are decreased, more water can evaporate from the skin and there is less water remaining in the skin. So ceramides form kind of a \"water-proof\" protecting layer and make sure that our skin remains nice and hydrated. Now the question is only this: If we put ceramides all over our face do they work as well as ceramides already naturally in our skin? Well, the answer is probably a no, but they do work to some extent. The BeautyBrains blog made a fantastic article about ceramides and they have listed a couple of examples about studies showing that ceramides - especially when used in certain ratios with cholesterol and fatty acids  - do hydrate the skin and can help to repair the skin barrier . So far we were writing about ceramides in plural. It's because there are lots of different ceramides, a 2014 article writes that currently 12 base classes of ceramides are known with over 340 specific species. Chemically speaking, ceramides are the connection of a fatty acid and a sphingoid base and both parts can have different variations that result in the different types of ceramides. Our current one, Ceramide 1, or more recently called Ceramide EOP, was the first one that was identified in 1982 and it's a special snowflake. It contains the essential fatty acid, linoleic acid and has a unique structure. It's believed that ceramide 1 plays a \"binding role\" in the lipid layers of the extracellular matrix. Along with ceramides 4 and 7, they also play a vital role in epidermal integrity and serve as the main storage areas for linoleic acid (a fatty acid that's also very important for barrier repair). Oh, and one more thing: alkaline pH inhibits enzymes that help ceramide synthesis in our skin. So if you use a soap and you notice your skin is becoming dry, now you know why."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Stearyl Alcohol",
    "description": "A handy multi-tasker, white to light yellowish oil-loving wax that works very well in oil-in-water emulsions.  It makes your skin feel nice and smooth (emollient), stabilizes oil-water mixes and gives body to them. Oh, and one more thing: it's a so-called fatty alcohol - the good, emollient type of alcohol that is non-drying and non-irritating. It is often mixed with fellow fatty alcohol, Cetyl Alcohol , and the mixture is called Cetearyl Alcohol in the ingredient list."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ceramide AP",
    "description": "A type of ceramide that can be found naturally in the upper layer of the skin. Ceramides make up 50% of the goopy stuff that's between our skin cells and play a super important role in having a healthy skin barrier and keeping the skin hydrated. We have written way more about ceramides at ceramide 1, so click here to know more ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Potassium Phosphate",
    "description": "It’s a little helper ingredient that helps to set the pH of a cosmetic formulation to be just right."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-40 Stearate",
    "description": "A common water-loving surfactant and emulsifier that helps to keep water and oil mixed nicely together."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate",
    "description": "A helper ingredient that's used as a co-emulsifier (meaning next to other emulsifiers in the formula it helps water and oil to mix) and as a stabilization agent for foams . Also, has some antimicrobial activity so it can help to boost the effectiveness of the preservative system."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Phytosphingosine",
    "description": "It's a type of lipid, a so-called sphingoid base that can be found naturally in the upper layer of the skin . It's found both in \"free-form\" and as part of famous skin lipids, ceramides . There is emerging research about Phytosphingosine that shows that it has antimicrobial and cell-communicating properties and is considered part of the skin's natural defense system . A 2007 study showed that Phytosphingosine even works against evil acne-causing bacteria, Propionibacterium acnes and shows promise as a complementing active ingredient in treating acne-prone skin thanks to its anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial activities. A nice one to spot in the ingredient list. :)"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methylparaben",
    "description": "The most common type of feared-by-everyone-mostly-without-scientific-reason parabens . It's a cheap, effective and well-tolerated ingredient to make sure the cosmetic formula does not go wrong too soon . Apart from the general controversy around parabens (we wrote about it more here ), there is a 2006 in-vitro (made in the lab not on real people) research about methylparaben (MP) showing that when exposed to sunlight, MP treated skin cells suffered more harm than non-MP treated skin cells . The study was not done with real people on real skin but still - using a good sunscreen next to MP containing products is a good idea. (Well, in fact using a sunscreen is always a good idea. :))"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Propylparaben",
    "description": "A very common type of feared-by-everyone-mostly-without-scientific-reason parabens . It's a cheap, effective and well-tolerated ingredient to make sure the cosmetic formula does not go wrong too soon ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/​VP Copolymer",
    "description": "A kind of polymer (big molecule from repeated subunits) that helps to create beautiful gel-like textures . It's also a texturizer and thickener for oil-in-water emulsions. It gives products a good skin feel and does not make the formula tacky or sticky. It works over a wide pH range and is used between 0.5-1.2%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 17200",
    "description": "A super common synthetic colorant that adds a purple-red color - similar to red beet - to a product."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isopropyl Myristate",
    "description": "A  clear, colorless oil-like liquid that makes the skin feel smooth and nice (aka emollient) and it does so without it being greasy. What's more, it can even reduce the heavy, greasy feel in products with high oil content. It's also fast-spreading meaning that it gives the formula a good, nice slip. It absorbs quickly into the skin and helps other ingredients to penetrate quicker and deeper. Thanks to all this, it's one of the most commonly used emollients out there. There is just one little drawback: it has a high comedogenic index (5 out of 5...), so it might clog pores if you're prone to it."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate",
    "description": "An often used emollient with a light and silky feel . It's very mild to both skin and eyes and spreads nicely and easily. It's often used in sunscreens as it's also an excellent solvent for sunscreen agents."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil",
    "description": "A mildly viscous, amber-colored liquid with fatty odor, made from Castor Oil and polyethylene glycol (PEG). If it were a person, we’d say, it’s agile, diligent & multifunctional. It’s mostly used as an emulsifier and surfactant but most often it is used to solubilize fragrances into water-based formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dicaprylyl Carbonate",
    "description": "A clear, colorless, almost odorless oil that spreads nicely and easily and gives a velvet dry skin feel . It is good friends with sunscreen agents and helps to solubilize them. Also, it makes sunscreens feel lighter and spread easier."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Myristyl Myristate",
    "description": "It's a waxy emollient with a melting point near to skin temperature. It gives body and consistency to the formula and leaves a velvety feel on the skin. It has a high comedogenicity index (5 out of 5), so it might clog pores if you are prone to it. Famous dermatologist, Dr. Leslie Baumann also writes in her book, The Skin Type Solution to avoid this ingredient if you are acne-prone."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate",
    "description": "Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate is a stable, oil-soluble form of skincare big shot Vitamin C . If you do not know, why Vitamin C is such a big deal in skincare, click here and read all about it . We are massive vitamin C fans and have written about it in excruciating detail. So now, you know that Vitamin C is great and all, but it's really unstable and gives cosmetics companies many headaches. To solve this problem they came up with vitamin C derivatives, and one of them is Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate (let's call it THDA in short). It's a really promising candidate (see below), but while reading all the goodness about it in a minute, do not forget that derivatives not only have to be absorbed into the skin but also have to be converted to pure vitamin C (ascorbic acid or AA) and the efficacy of the conversion is often unknown. In addition, vitamin C's three magic properties (antioxidant, collagen booster, skin brightener) are all properly proven in-vivo (on real people), but for the derivatives, it's mostly in-vitro studies or in the case of THDA, it's in-vitro and done by an ingredient supplier. With this context in mind let's see what THDA might be able to do. First, it is stable (if pH < 5), easy to formulate, and a joy to work with for a cosmetic chemist. Second, because it's oil-soluble, its skin penetration abilities seem to be great . So great in fact, that it surpasses the penetration of pure vitamin C threefold at the same concentration and it penetrates successfully into the deeper layers of the skin (that is usually important to do some anti-aging work). There is also in-vitro data showing that it converts to AA in the skin. Third, THDA seems to have all three magic abilities of pure vitamin C : it gives antioxidant protection from both UVB and UVA rays, it increases collagen synthesis (even more than AA) and it has a skin brightening effect by reducing melanogenesis by more than 80% in human melanoma cell cultures. So this all sounds really great, but these are only in-vitro results at this point. We could find Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate mentioned only in one published in-vivo study that examined the anti-aging properties of a silicone formula containing 10% AA and 7% THDA. The authors theorized that the 10% AA is released slowly from the silicon delivery system and probably stays in the upper layer of the skin to give antioxidant benefits, while THDA penetrates more rapidly and deeply and gives some wrinkle-reducing benefits. The study was a small (10 patients), double-blind experiment, and the formula did show some measurable anti-aging results. However, it is hard to know how much pure vitamin C or THDA can be thanked. Bottom line : a really promising, but not well-proven vitamin C derivative that can be worth a try especially if you like experimenting (but if you like the tried and true, pure vitamin C will be your best bet)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Phenyl Trimethicone",
    "description": "A silicone fluid that gives a nonoily, easy to spread emolliency to the formulas. It is also used as a water repellent additive and to reduce the tackiness and stickiness of other ingredients. It also imparts gloss, softness and better manageability to hair."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Avena Sativa Kernel Extract",
    "description": "When you hear oatmeal, you probably think of breakfast, but the finely ground version of whole oat kernels, aka colloidal oatmeal, can do good things for your skin, especially if it's dry, itchy or prone to skin-rashes or eczema . Oat is loaded with compounds good for the body , inside or outside, such as soothing agent beta-glucan (5%),  lipids (3-11%) including barrier repairing omega-3 and 6 fatty acids or phenolic antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agents ( avenanthramides ). The soothing, antioxidant and skin-protecting abilities of oat are so well-established that it is an active natural ingredient covered by the FDA OTC Skin Protectant monograph in the US, meaning that colloidal oatmeal can be claimed as an active ingredient on the INCI list and Aveeno is a mass-market brand built around oat-containing products. If your skin is dry, irritated, inflamed or eczema-prone, colloidal oatmeal is something to try."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Zea Mays Starch",
    "description": "A corn-derived, white to yellowish, floury powder that works as a handy helper ingredient to create nice feeling emulsions . It gives a generally pleasant skin feel, has some mattifying effect (though rice starch is better at that), it reduces greasiness and tackiness and helps the formula to spread easily without whitening or shininess."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sorbitan Oleate",
    "description": "A mainly oil-loving, vegetable raw material based ingredient that helps water and oil to mix together, aka emulsifier . It can also function as a wetting and dispersing agent helping insoluble particles such as color pigments or inorganic sunscreens (zinc/titanium dioxide) to disperse nice and even in liquids. Chemically speaking, it comes from the attachment of sorbitan (a dehydrated sorbitol (sugar) molecule) with the unsaturated fatty acid Oleic Acid , that creates a partly water (the sorbitan part) and partly oil soluble (oleic part) molecule."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glyceryl Behenate/​Eicosadioate",
    "description": "A waxy, solid, white stuff that is used as an oil gelling agent to create smooth, nice gel textures. The recommended use level is 2-5% according to the manufacturer ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Linoleic Acid",
    "description": "The famous omega-6 fatty acid , the mother of all ω-6 fatty acids in our body. It is a so-called polyunsaturated fatty acid meaning it has more than one (in this case two) double bonds and a somewhat kinky structure that makes LA and LA-rich oils a thin liquid. It is also an essential fatty acid meaning our body cannot synthesize it and has to take it from food. This is not hard at all as plenty of nuts (such as flax, poppy or sesame seeds) and vegetable oils (such as sunflower or safflower) are rich in LA. The hard thing seems to be eating enough omega-3-s , more specifically eating a healthy ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 , but that is a topic for a what-is-good-to-eat-site and not for us. As for linoleic acid and the skin , LA is a really important little guy found naturally in our skin. It is the most abundant fatty acid in the epidermis and it serves as a structural precursor for important skin lipids called ceramides . Knowing this, it will not come as a surprise that Linoleic acid has a central role in the structure and function of stratum corneum permeability, aka healthy skin barrier .  LA deficiency leads to an impaired more permeable skin barrier and the topical application of LA-rich sunflower oil can fix this issue rapidly (while oleic-rich olive oil did not have the same barrier repairing effect). LA is not only important for dry, barrier damaged skin types but also for acne-prone skin . Research shows that problem skin has lower levels of linoleic acid (and higher levels of oleic acid ) than normal skin. So LA-deficiency in the skin seems to be connected not only to an impaired skin barrier but also to acne and smearing LA all over your face might help with your problem skin. A double-blind study using a 2.5% LA gel for 4 weeks found a 25% reduction in the size of microcomedones, the tiny blocked pores that can later lead to acne. If that was not enough, we have one more thing to report about LA.  It lightens hyperpigmentation (aka UVB caused sun spots) both by blocking the melanin production of melanocytes (the skin cells that make the pigment melanin) and by enhancing the desquamation of melanin pigment from the upper layers of the skin. Overall , linoleic acid is a multi-functional skin goodie with barrier repairing, acne-reducing, and skin-lightening magic abilities. It's a nice one to spot on the ingredient list pretty much for any skin type."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Mangifera Indica Seed Oil",
    "description": "The soft solid, off-white to ivory butter or oil coming from the kernel (the seed inside of the seed) of the Mango. Similar to many other plant oils, it's a great moisturizing and nourishing emollient oil . It has medium spreadability and gives skin a creamy-dry feel. It's loaded with a bunch of good-for-the-skin stuff : it contains almost all of the essential amino acids , has several antioxidant phenolic compounds (including famous antioxidant ferulic acid ) and is a rich source of nourishing fatty acids (like stearic and oleic acid). All in all, a skin goodie especially for dry skin types."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cera Alba",
    "description": "It's the yellow, solid stuff that you probably know from beeswax candles. It's a natural material produced by honey bees to build their honeycomb. As for skincare, it's used as an emollient and thickening agent . It's super common in lip balms and lipsticks."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Borago Officinalis Seed Oil",
    "description": "We feel that this one is a bit under the radar probably because the Borage plant is not very well known. Maybe because its name isn't as cool as some others, it's hard to compete with kukui or baobab, not to mention murumuru. But let us tell you when it comes to skin care, borage seed oil is one of the best oils that can happen to your skin . Especially, if it's dry, sensitive , easily irritated, often itchy or eczema prone. So what is so special about it? It is the richest known plant source of the super important essential fatty acid, gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) . GLA is soothing and nourishing , and can repair even severely dry and irritated skin, but it's pretty rare and borage contains by far the most of it (17-28%). Next to GLA, it also contains more common fatty acids, like linoleic (36%), oleic (18%) or palmitic acid (10%). If your skin is dry and sensitive, this one is totally for you."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Camellia Oleifera Seed Oil",
    "description": "A beautiful golden-yellow oil coming from the Camellia tree . It's a 5 -10 meters high tree with spectacular white flowers native to Asia. It's pretty common there and also used as cooking oil or salad dressing. Sometimes Camellia oil is referred to as \" the olive oil of Asia \". So what can it do for the skin? Similar to many other great non-fragrant plant oils, it's a great emollient and moisturising oil for dry skin. It's light in texture, absorbs fast into the skin and leaves it soft and supple. It contains a bunch of good-for-the-skin stuff : it's very rich (70-85%) in nourishing and moisturising fatty acid, oleic acid (though if you are acne-prone be careful with oleic acid ), contains significant amount of antioxidant vitamin E (0.15%) as well as great emollient and antioxidant squalene (2-3%). All in all, a skin goodie especially for dry skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Parabens",
    "description": "Unless you live under a rock, you have probably heard of parabens. Until about 10 years ago they were the most commonly used preservatives, as they are non-irritating, very effective, and cheap. Then 2004 came and a research paper came out that tested 20 human breast tumors and found parabens in all of them. This was before the era of social media (btw, it's the year Facebook was founded) but this research still managed to go viral and caused parabens to become the evil, cancer-causing preservative in people's head. Cosmetic companies do want to do what we want to buy and as we did not want to buy products, containing parabens anymore, they started to use alternatives, like the current IT-preservative, phenoxyethanol . It's much easier to replace parabens than trying to go into lengthy explanations about why the 2004 research is misunderstood and how there are lots of data showing that parabens are totally ok. As people got so interested, the FDA wrote a little article about parabens stating, \" (the) FDA believes that at the present time there is no reason for consumers to be concerned about the use of cosmetics containing parabens. \" We think the above is pretty much the gist of the topic but if you feel like reading about parabens all day today, here is a handy list for you to get you started: Parabens on Wikipedia The perils of parabens by cosmetic chemist Perry Romanowski on the great The Beauty Brains blog Spotlight on parabens by Nicki Zevola on the Futerederm blog Fact-Check Friday: What’s The Deal with Parabens in Cosmetics? on the great LabMuffin blog"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Aleurites Moluccana Seed Oil",
    "description": "Having such a cool name and coming from Hawaii how could this oil be not good? Well, it is good. It's absorbed excellently by the skin and is used traditionally by the Hawaiians to soothe sunburn and other inflammations. Research confirms this : it's shown to have anti-inflammatory, pain reducing, and wound healing properties . It's also a particularly rich source of moisturizing essential fatty acids linoleic and linolenic (about 42 and 32%) and it's not so rich in oleic acid - around 15% - that can be good even for acne prone skin ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Oryza Sativa Bran Oil",
    "description": "The oil coming from the bran of rice. Similar to many other emollient plant oils, it contains several skin-goodies : nourishing and moisturizing fatty acids ( oleic acid :  40%, linoleic acid : 30%, linolenic acid :1-2%), antioxidant vitamin E , emollient sterols and potent antioxidant gamma-oryzanol ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Moringa Oleifera Seed Oil",
    "description": "The oil coming from the seeds of the Moringa tree, a big white-flowered tree native to India. It's a yellow oil similar to olive oil . It's rich in nourishing and moisturizing fatty acid, oleic (75%) and also contains behenic acid (up to 8%) that makes moringa very stable and gives the oil a long shelf life . It blends easily with essential oils and can also help to stabilize scents so it's a popular oil in the perfume industry."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Theobroma Cacao Seed Butter",
    "description": "Theobroma means \"food of the gods\" in Greek though probably \"treat of the people\" would be more spot on. The cacao fruits and especially the seeds in it need no introduction as everyone knows them as the magical raw material of the magical sweet treat, chocolate (the flavour is composed of more than 1200(!) substances, and the exact chemical nature of it is not really understood, so it's indeed magic. :)). As for skincare, cocoa butter counts as a rich emollient that can moisturize and nourish even the driest skin (think chapped hands or lips). It's solid at room temperature and melts nicely when you smear it on. It's loaded with good-for-the-skin things: it contains fatty acids , mainly oleic (35%), stearic (34%), and palmitic (25%) and it also has antioxidant vitamin E and polyphenols . An ex-vivo (made on human skin but not on real people) study examined the cocoa polyphenols and found that 0.5-0.75% of them improved skin tone and elasticity and had a similarly positive impact on GAGs (important natural moisturizing factors in the skin) and collagen synthesis than a commercial high-end moisturizer (it was an Estee Lauder one). All in all, cocoa butter is a goodie, especially for very dry skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Adansonia Digitata Seed Oil",
    "description": "Baobab is a really big, iconic tree native to Africa (here is a nice image of it ). It's the largest succulent plant in the world and almost all parts of it have traditional medicinal uses in Africa. The seed oil, similar to other plant oils, is loaded with things that are good-for-the-skin : it contains skin regenerating vitamin A , antioxidant vitamin E, and vitamin D3 that helps with calcium absorption. It's rich in n ourishing fatty acids oleic (30-40%), linoleic (24-34%) and palmitic (18-30%). Its moisturizing benefits are impressive, it absorbed into the skin quickly and might even improve skin elasticity. A great oil for drier skin types and excellent for eczema and psoriasis ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ricinus Communis Seed Oil",
    "description": "Castor oil is sourced from the castor bean plant native to tropical areas in Eastern Africa and the Mediterranean Basin. It is an age-old ingredient (it’s over 4,000 years old!) with many uses including as a shoe polish, food additive and motor lubricant. You would be reasonable to think that putting shoe polish on your face wouldn’t be the best idea, but it turns out castor oil has some unique properties that make it a stalwart in thick and gloss-giving formulas (think lipsticks and highlighters). So what is so special about it? The answer is its main fatty acid, called ricinoleic acid (85-95%).  Unlike other fatty acids, ricinoleic acid has an extra water-loving part (aka -OH group) on its fatty chain that gives Castor Oil several unique properties. First, it is thicker than other oils , then its solubility is different (e.g. dissolves in alcohol but not in mineral oil), and it allows all kinds of chemical modifications other oils do not, hence the lots of Castor oil-derived ingredients . It is also more glossy than other oils, in fact, it creates the highest gloss of all natural oils when applied to the skin. Other than that, it is a very effective emollient and occlusive that reduces skin moisture loss so it is quite common in smaller amounts in moisturizers. While it is very unlikely (and this is true for pretty much every ingredient), cases of reactions to castor oil have been reported, so if your skin is sensitive, it never hurts to patch test."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Rosa Damascena Flower Cera",
    "description": "It's a waxy, solid material coming from Rose . In general, floral waxes are created in the same process as floral absolutes. An absolute is a super concentrated version of an essential oil . Instead of distillation, a solvent extraction method is used: First, an organic solvent is added to the plant material. Second, this solution is filtered and concentrated and a waxy mass, called concrete is produced. Third, the concrete is treated in alcohol and the soluble fraction becomes the absolute while the insoluble parts give the floral wax. So the Rose Wax is a solid emollient with some protecting and softening power . It does not contain too much of the fragrant compounds (read more at the essential oil ) as most of them are in the absolute, but if your skin is very sensitive it still might be better to avoid it."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pelargonium Graveolens Leaf Oil",
    "description": "A yellow to brownish essential oil coming from the leaves of Rose Geranium . It contains flavonoid and phenolic compounds that give the oil antibacterial and antifungal properties. The main components though are fragrant ones - citronellol (33%), geraniol (26%) and linalool (10%) - so it might be a good idea to avoid if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Daucus Carota Sativa Root Extract",
    "description": "The oil-soluble extract coming from the edible, orange part of the carrot . It is created by macerating the carrot root in a carrier oil such as sunflower or olive oil, and the resulting thing (base oil + carrot root extract) is often called carrot oil or carrot root oil. (Not to be confused with carrot seed oil , that can be fixed or essential and comes from the seeds.) The root extract is known for containing the orange pigment beta-carotene , aka provitamin A. It is a famous molecule for being a potent antioxidant, suntan accelerator and having skin-regenerative abilities . Carrot oil also contains vitamin E and some fatty acids that give the oil further antioxidant and barrier repairing properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the popular garden plant Calendula or Marigold. According to manufacturer info , it's used  for many centuries for its exceptional healing powers and is particularly remarkable in the treatment of wounds. It contains flavonoids that give the plant anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Eucalyptus Radiata Leaf Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from Eucalyptus Radiata. It is a different species than the much more commonly used Eucalyptus Globulus , but the chemical structure of the essential oils are surprisingly similar. The main component here is also eucalyptol (84%) giving the oil camphoraceous aroma and antibacterial and expectorant properties . Also similar to Eucalyptus Globulus , its EU sensitiser total percentage is 5% (due to limonene) and counts as non-senstiising amount essential oils."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Alcohol",
    "description": "Simply alcohol refers to ethanol and it's a pretty controversial ingredient . It has many instant benefits: it's a great solvent, penetration enhancer , creates cosmetically elegant, light formulas , great astringent and antimicrobial . No wonder it's popular in toners and oily skin formulas. The downside is that it can be very drying if it's in the first few ingredients on an ingredient list. Some experts even think that regular exposure to alcohol damages skin barrier and causes inflammation though it's a debated opinion. If you wanna know more, we wrote a more detailed explanation about what's the deal with alcohol in skincare products at alcohol denat. (it's also alcohol, but with some additives to make sure no one drinks it)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Oil",
    "description": "The famous tea tree oil. One of the best known essential oils which comes from Australia where it has been used for almost 100 years for its antiseptic and anti-inflammatory actions . Legend has it that the medicinal benefits of the oil were considered so important that Australian soldiers were supplied with some tea tree oil in their World War II military kit. Similar to other essential oils, tea tree oil is a very complex chemical mixture consisting of about 100 components , the major ones being terpinen -4- ol (40%), γ-Terpinene (23%) and α-Terpinene (10%). Terpinen-4-ol is considered to be the main active component but as a great article in Clinical Microbiology Reviews states \" while some TTO components may be considered less active, none can be considered inactive \" and most components contribute to TTO's strong antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal effects . Regarding skincare and tea tree oil, its most well-known effect is probably being a well established anti-acne ingredient . Multiple studies confirm that TTO is effective against the evil acne-causing bacteria called P. acnes and the effectiveness of 5% TTO gel is comparable to the gold standard anti-acne treatment, 5% Benzoyl Peroxide lotion. You need to be a bit more patient with TTO, though, as its effects come slower but also with fewer side effects. Regarding TTO and sensitive skin , we say that you should be careful . Even if your skin is not sensitive you should never put undiluted TTO on your skin . Luckily, it contains only very small amounts of the common allergens (such as limonene), but irritant and allergic reactions still happen, especially by oxidation products that occur in older or not properly stored oil.  So if you have some pure TTO at home, know that storage matters, keep it in a cool, dry, dark place and use it up in a reasonable amount of time. Overall , we do not often give a goodie status to essential oils, but we feel that TTO's unique antibacterial and anti-acne properties with its minimal allergen content warrant an exception. If your skin is acne-prone, TTO is something to experiment with."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Aurantium Amara Flower Water",
    "description": "It's the flower water coming from the flowers of bitter orange (which is the sister of the sweet orange we all know and eat). In general, flower waters (also called hydrosols) are diluted versions of essential oils coming from the same plant. They contain the same components but in far less of a concentration. So - similar to its essential oil big sister - orange flower water contains a lot of fragrant components and has a nice, sweet scent . It has some skin toning properties and can help to relax the body . If your skin is super sensitive, it's a good idea to choose products without fragrant floral waters."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Potassium Alum",
    "description": "An inorganic salt that has strong astringent properties. It's also a deodorant (there are deo sticks consisting only of potash alum) and is often used in aftershave products as it can stop the bleeding from minor shave cuts."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from the leafs of the lovely herb, rosemary. It contains several fragrant components, including the well-known irritant, camphor (around 15%). It has a nice smell , is a potent antioxidant and it's also an antimicrobial agent . If your skin is sensitive, it's probably a good idea to avoid it."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Styrax Tonkinensis Resin Extract",
    "description": "The resin extract coming from a small, nice tree with white flowers living in South-East Asia. The resin has a nice sweet vanilla-like aroma (contains vanillin) and is used in perfumes as a fixative agent (it can help to slow down the evaporation of the other fragrant components making the scent more long lasting). It contains potential allergen components benzyl benzoate and benzyl cinnamate, so it's best to avoid if you have sensitive skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Mentha Piperita Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from steam distillation of freshly harvested, flowering peppermint sprigs. Its major component is menthol that gives the oil its well-known refreshing and cooling properties. Peppermint oil is traditionally used as an inhalant for cold and coughs and there is also some clinical data validating its use against headaches by rubbing a peppermint oil cream on the forehead. As for skincare, other than the nice grassy-minty smell and the refreshing sensations , we cannot write good things. It can be a skin irritant , so much so that it is a well-known counterirritant for muscle pains creating mild surface irritation to make things better in the deeper layers. But for everyday skincare, counterirritation is not something you wanna do, so we think that peppermint oil is better to avoid, especially if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Melissa Officinalis Leaf Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil from the leaves of lemon balm. It has a sweet, fresh, citrus-like fragrance that is lovely to smell but when it comes to skincare, it's a mixed bag . Thanks to its tannin and polyphenol components, it has antiviral, antibacterial and antifungal effects. In-vitro (made in the lab, not on people) studies have also shown that it has high concentrations of antioxidants . The downside is that 50-70% of the oil consists of fragrant components (citronellal, geranial, and neral) that might irritate sensitive skin ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Rosa Damascena Flower Oil",
    "description": "We are big fans of all kinds of roses as ornamental plants but when it comes to skincare, it is a mixed bag . Before we list out the good and the not so good, here is an interesting thing. The oil content in rose is very, very low so distilling rose essential oil requires huge amounts of rose flowers. It has such a wonderful scent that there are no comparable synthetic alternatives. You can probably guess that this means rose essential oil is expensive.... very very expensive . So the good things: thanks to its wonderful scent the high-end perfume industry loves rose oil. Also, we (humans :)) love rose oil. We love its scent so much that it can heal headaches, depression , stress, and even grief. Rose oil contains more than 95 compounds, among them flavonoids, anthocyanins, vitamin C, and quercetin that are all known for their medicinal properties and great antioxidant effects. Similar to many other essential oils, it has antimicrobial properties too. Now, the not-so-good thing? Out of the 95 compounds, the major ones are citronellol and geraniol , fragrant components that might irritate sensitive skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Persea Gratissima Oil",
    "description": "The oil coming from the pulp of one of the most nutritious fruits in the world, the avocado. It's loaded with the nourishing and moisturizing fatty acid , oleic (70%) and contains some others including palmitic (10%) and linoleic acid (8%). It also contains a bunch of minerals and vitamins A, E and D . Avocado oil has extraordinary skin penetration abilities and can nourish different skin layers. It's a very rich, highly moisturizing emollient oil that makes the skin smooth and nourished. Thanks to its vitamin E content it also has some antioxidant properties. As a high-oleic plant oil, it is recommended for dry skin ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Farnesol",
    "description": "With a sweet, light and floral scent, Farnesol is a popular fragrancing ingredient to make your cosmetics that bit nicer to use. It starts its life as a colorless liquid that can either be synthetically created or extracted from loads of plants like citronella, neroli, ylang-ylang, and tuberose. The reason we list it as icky is because Farnesol is one of the “EU 26 fragrances” that has to be labeled separately (and cannot be simply included in the term “fragrance/perfume” on the label) because of allergen potential, so it is best avoided if you have super sensitive skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Vitis Vinifera Seed Oil",
    "description": "A goodie plant oil coming from the polyphenol-rich seeds of the grape. It's a light emollient oil that makes your skin feel smooth and nice and also contains a bunch of good-for-the-skin stuff . It's a great source of antioxidant polyphenols , barrier repair fatty acid linoleic acid (about 55-77%, while oleic acid is about 12-27%) and antioxidant, skin-protectant vitamin E ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Calendula Officinalis Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the popular garden plant Calendula or Marigold. It's used traditionally as a s kin-repairing and soothing plant extract . Click here to read more at the calendula flower extract ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Peel Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from the peel of the bergamot orange . It's a common top note in perfumes and contains (among others) fragrant compounds limonene (37%), linalyl acetate (30%) and linalool (8.8%). Fragrant compounds smell nice but are common allergens and can be a problem for sensitive skin types. The bigger problem with bergamot oil though, is that it also contains furanocoumarins (more specifically, bergapten and bergamottin ) that have well-documented phototoxic effects . A phototoxic reaction is a not nice one causing red, edematous lesions on the affected area. We think it is a good idea to avoid bergamot oil but if you have a product that you love, make sure to use it at night only. Nowadays, furanocoumarin-free versions of bergamot oil are also available and more and more common, and they usually go by the INCI name Bergamot Fruit Oil."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Daucus Carota Sativa Seed Oil",
    "description": "The oil coming from the seeds of the carrot, the orange root vegetable we all know and eat regularly. This oil is a really tricky one, as it can refer to two types of oil that can both be extracted from the carrot seeds: the essential oil (about 0.83% yield) and the fixed oil (about 7.84% yield). The two seed oils are very different and to make matters even worse these two oils are also very different from carrot root oil , or carrot oil, that is basically carrot root extract macerated in a carrier oil such as sunflower or olive oil and is the one that contains the vitamin A precursor, carotene. Let's start with the fixed oil : it's a nice emollient plant oil that is loaded with moisturizing fatty acids (petroselinic acid - 60% and linoleic acid - 12% are the main ones). Other important components are carotol (30%) and daucol (12%) that give the seed oil antifungal and antioxidant properties. Browsing cosmetic manufacturer info , the oil is also often described as revitalizing, toning and stimulating . As for the essential oil , it is a light yellow colored oil with a rich, spicy and earthy fragrance. Its main component is carotol (about 65%) but similar to other essential oils, it is a chemically complex mixture with lots of compounds in small amounts. The essential oil also has antifungal and antioxidant properties but also contains fragrant components that might irritate sensitive skin types."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Vitis Vinifera Fruit Extract",
    "description": "When it comes to grape and skincare, the seed extract and the seed oil steals most of the show. The reason for that is that the seed contains the majority of the skin goodies, the antioxidant superstar polyphenols. The fruit also contains some, but it's less potent. However - according to manufacturer info - the fruit extract is not only an antioxidant , but it's also a soothing, moisturizing and nourishing agent ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Oenothera Biennis Oil",
    "description": "The oil coming from the seeds of the nice, little, yellow-flowered plant called Evening Primrose . Similar to other plant oils, it's loaded with nourishing and moisturizing fatty acids . It's a very rich source of linoleic acid (66-76%), and also contains the soothing and healing superstar fatty acid, gamma-linolenic acid (aka GLA, 7-12%) (Btw, the richest known source of GLA is the borage oil , but evening primrose still counts as a very good source of it). It also contains oleic acid, but not too much around 6-15%. Since the 1980's, EPO is a well-known food supplement and there are quite a lot of studies examining what happens if you take it orally. It seems to be helpful with a bunch of  things: atopic dermatitis, dry eyes, brittle nails, sunburn and even acne. As for the skin, it's a great hydrating plant oil, that can also reduce inflammation and irritation . It's a superb healing agent that can truly help dry skin, not just on the surface by covering it (and not letting water to evaporate) but by initiating structural changes within the skin. If that's not enough, it also helps skin cell regeneration . All in all, a real goodie especially for dry, easily irritated skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Urtica Dioica Leaf Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the herb stinging nettle. According to manufacturer info , it's anti-allergenic and is loaded with several good-for-the-skin stuff: it contains firming and toning mineral salts, anti-irritant flavonoids, and astringent and anti-bacterial gallic acid. It's recommended for treatment of oily skin and even stimulation of hair growth."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Taraxacum Officinale Leaf Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the leaves of dandelion. It's a folkloric medicine for the treatment of liver and kidney disorders and we could find several studies confirming its liver-protecting, \"detoxifying\" effect . What we could not find is information on what dandelion is doing in cosmetic products. Our best info is that it \"enhances the clarity of skin\" by helping the detoxification of the liver (though we have to admit we are a bit sceptical about this)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the lovely herb, rosemary. It contains lots of chemicals, including flavonoids, phenolic acids, and diterpenes . Its main active is rosmarinic acid , a potent antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory . It has also anti-bacterial, astringent and toning properties. The leaves contain a small amount of essential oil (1-2%) with fragrant components, so if you are allergic to fragrance, it might be better to avoid it."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hippophae Rhamnoides Fruit Oil",
    "description": "The oil coming from the pulp of the sea buckthorn berry. It has a pretty unique fatty acid composition: 65% is a combination of the rare Omega-7, aka palmitoleic acid and the more common palmitic acid . Fatty acids give the oil nice moisturizing and skin-protecting abilities. But that's not all the goodness of sea buckthorn oil. It contains antioxidant superstar, Vitamin E (in multiple forms), antioxidant (and orange color giving) pigments beta-carotene and lycopene , as well as skin-soothing and replenishing beta-sitosterol . Btw, used undiluted, it will make your skin orange. All in all, a goodie emollient plant oil."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Calophyllum Tacamahaca Oil",
    "description": "An oil coming from cool places like Tahiti, Bora Bora, and the island of Polynesia. Similar to other more common plant oils, it's loaded with nourishing and moisturizing fatty acids ( oleic acid : 40%, linoleic acid : 35%, palmitic acid : 15% and stearic acid : 11%). Its unique thing is that it contains calophyllic acid that gives the oil extra healing and regenerating effects. A manufacturer even claims that tamanu oil can protect small capillary vessel and is recommended for redness and rosacea-prone skin ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Potassium Hydroxide",
    "description": "It's a very alkaline stuff that helps to set the pH of the cosmetic formula to be just right. It's similar to the more often used sodium hydroxide and pretty much the same of what we wrote there applies here too."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Palmitic Acid",
    "description": "A fatty acid that can be found naturally in the skin. In fact, it's the most common saturated fatty acid found in animals and plants. As for skincare, it can make the skin feel nice and smooth in moisturizers (emollient) or it can act as a foam building cleansing agent in cleansers. It's also a very popular ingredient in shaving foams."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lauric Acid",
    "description": "A 12 carbon length fatty acid that can be found naturally in coconut milk, coconut oil, laurel oil, and palm kernel oil. It's also in breast milk. As a skincare ingredient, it can be used as an emulsifier or as a cleansing agent . What's more, there is emerging research about lauric acid being a good anti-acne ingredient .  A 2009 study found that the lowest concentration to prevent evil acne-causing P. acnes growth of lauric acid is over 15 times lower than that of gold standard anti-acne ingredient benzoyl peroxide. Though the studies are only in-vitro (made in the lab, not on real people), and it also has a high comedogenicity index, it might be worth a try if you are prone to inflamed acne (the type that's caused by P. acnes bacteria)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Myristic Acid",
    "description": "A 14 carbon length fatty acid that can be naturally found in nutmeg, palm kernel oil, coconut oil and butter fat. It's used as a foam building cleansing agent . Paula Begoun writes that it can be a bit drying to the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate",
    "description": "A mild and non-drying cleanser that gives skin a nice and soft after-feel. It also has great foaming properties, comes from coconuts and it's biodegradable."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Microcitrus Australasica Fruit Extract",
    "description": "This is a cool looking fruit coming from the Australian sub-tropical rainforests. Caviar lime really is the perfect name for it. You have to click here and look at it . As for skincare, we could not find too much info about it, but this manufacturer claims that it's a source of AHAs and can gently exfoliate the skin for a smoother, brighter and even skin complexion."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice Powder",
    "description": "A spray-dried or freeze-dried version of Aloe Leaf Juice . The point of both drying methods is to make water evaporate from the juice and leave just the \"useful\" components behind. So the aloe powder has similar soothing, emollient and moisturizing properties as the juice. You can read a bit more about the juice here."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate",
    "description": "A naturally derived, readily biodegradable cleansing agent that gives a rich, creamy foam, is milder to the skin than most sulfate-based cleansers and provides a luxurious, silky skin-feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cocos Nucifera Water",
    "description": "Coconut Water is the liquid inside the coconut and/or the juice pressed from the coconut fruit . It is a really nice and refreshing beverage loaded with good for the body and the skin things . It is about 95% of water and the other 5% are things such as skin-moisturizing sugars, skin nourishing amino acids, minerals, vitamins and phytohormones (kinetin) . This adds up to coconut water being a nice moisturizing and nourishing ingredient on the skin and it is also claimed to have some antioxidant and anti-glycation properties ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Helianthus Annuus Extract",
    "description": "When it comes to sunflower and skincare, the seed oil is the common and well-known one. But according to manufacturer info , the seed extract also contains a bunch of skin goodies, including anti-inflammatory minerals, moisturizing and soothing amino acids, sugars and proteins as well as antioxidant polyphenol derivatives."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrullus Lanatus Fruit Extract",
    "description": "We love a cold slice of watermelon on a hot summer day and we love watermelon as a skincare ingredient. It's really full of good-for-the-skin stuff : it contains a bunch of vitamins (A, B, C and E) , mineral salts (K, Mg, Ca and Fe) , amino acids citrulline and arginine and antioxidant carotenoids and phenolics . It's especially rich in potent antioxidant, lycopene (a type of carotenoid), the cool pigment that's responsible for the red color of the watermelon. According to manufacturer info , in-vitro (made in the lab not on real people) studies show that watermelon extract gives significant DNA protection against UV damage . The in-vivo (made on real people) study also confirmed this and the watermelon formula showed 25% increase in skin protection compared to placebo. All in all, a cool fruit extract with potent antioxidant magic abilities."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Styrax Benzoin Resin Extract",
    "description": "The resin extract coming from a nice tree with white flowers native to Sumatra in Indonesia. It's the brother of Siam Benzoin that also comes from a type of Styrax tree. They have a similar composition but this one contains more cinnamic acid. It also contains fragrant compounds and it is used as a perfuming ingredient . It's better to avoid if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cyclopentasiloxane",
    "description": "A super commonly used 5 unit long, cyclic structured silicone that is water-thin and does not stay on the skin but evaporates from it (called volatile silicone). Similar to other silicones, it gives skin and hair a silky, smooth feel . It's often combined with the non-volatile (i.e. stays on the skin) dimethicone as the two together form a water-resistant, breathable protective barrier on the skin without a negative tacky feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Superoxide Dismutase",
    "description": "Superoxide Dismutase - or in short SOD - is the body's smart antioxidant enzyme that protects the cells from highly reactive, cell-damaging superoxide radicals (O2−). You have probably read the terms \"free radicals\" and \"antioxidants\" a thousand times, and you know that free radicals are the evil guys, and antioxidants are the good guys. So superoxide radical is a very common free radical that can cause all kinds of cell damages and superoxide dismutase is an enzyme that catalyzes the conversion of superoxide radicals into molecular oxygen and hydrogen peroxide (btw, this one has to be further converted by other antioxidant enzymes, called catalases). The extra nice thing about SOD is that it remains intact during the neutralization process and can continue its magic, while non-enzymatic antioxidants (like vitamin E ) are used up during neutralization. The efficacy studies of topical SOD are promising. In-vitro (made in the lab) tests show that SOD is a more effective antioxidant than vitamin E , green tea extract , and MAP . There is also an in-vivo (made on real people) study that measured how SOD can reduce the redness caused by UV rays and it was much more effective than vitamin E ( pure or acetate form) and ascorbyl palmitate . All in all, SOD is a really potent antioxidant and slathering it all over yourself is a great way to give the skin a little extra help in protecting itself from all the bad environmental things out there."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Laminaria Saccharina Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from Laminaria Saccharina, a brown algae . According to manufacturer info , it's loaded with a bunch of good-for-the-skin things : alginates are polysaccharides (a big molecule from repeating sugar units) that are water-loving and can form a protective film on the skin. This means moisturizing, skin protecting and soothing magic properties. The extract also contains another polysaccharide called laminarin , that has decongestant and lipid-reducing action that might be useful for combination, acne-prone skin types. The third major type of actives in the Laminaria Saccharina Extract are phenolic compounds that have antioxidant and soothing properties. They can also trap heavy metal ions, and give sensitive skin some protection against polluted urban air."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Carbomer",
    "description": "A pre-neutralised form of super common thickener, Carbomer . This means that it forms viscous gels immediately upon addition to water (while Carbomer has to be neutralized with a base), but it can also be harder to disperse evenly in the formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Salix Alba Bark Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the bark of the White Willow, a big (25 m/80 ft.) tree that likes to live on riverbanks. It's famous for containing anti-inflammatory natural salicylates ( this powder , for example, is standardized to contain 53-65%), a close chemical relative to famous exfoliant salicylic acid . Thanks to its salicin content, willow bark is often touted as a natural alternative to salicylic acid, though it's quite questionable how effective it is as a chemical exfoliant in the tiny amounts used in cosmetics. Apart from soothing salicin, it also contains flavonoids and phenolic acids that give willow bark tonic, astringent, and antiseptic properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Aurantium Amara Flower Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from the flowers of bitter orange (which is the sister of the sweet orange we all know and eat). It contains several fragrance components including linalool (around 30%) and limonene (around 10%) and has a lovely sweet smell . As it's an essential oil with lots of fragrant components, be careful with it if your skin is sensitive ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dimethicone/​Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer",
    "description": "A white, elastomeric silicone powder that gives a nice silky and powdery feel to the products. It also has some oil and sebum absorption capabilities."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyacrylate-13",
    "description": "A helper ingredient that functions as a film-forming polymer (big molecule from repeated subunits). It usually comes to the formula as part of a thickener-emulsifier trio paired with Polyisobutene and Polysorbate 20 . The three togeather have excellent thickening properties with remarkable emulsifying-stabilising abilities. They also have a nice silicone feel with glide-on spreading."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Vitis Vinifera Seed Extract",
    "description": "We wholeheartedly support the rise of seedless grapes as fruit snacks, but when it comes to skincare, we are big fans of the seeds. They contain the majority of the skin goodies that - similar to green tea - are mostly polyphenols (but not the same ones as in tea). The most abundant ones in grape are called proanthocyanidins, and 60-70% of them are found in the seeds (it's also often abbreviated as GSP - grape seed proanthocyanidins). In general, the darker the fruit, the more GSPs and other flavonoids it contains. So what's so special about GSPs? Well, they are super-potent antioxidants , much stronger than Vitamin C or Vitamin E. And if that's not enough, GSPs and other flavonoids in grape also show UV protecting and anti-cancer properties . It's definitely a goodie to spot on the INCI list."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrolyzed Collagen",
    "description": "The chemically chopped up version of the big protein molecule, collagen . It is often derived from fish or bovine sources and works as a nice moisturizer and humectant that helps the skin to hold onto water. To understand a bit more what Hydrolyzed Collagen is, you have to know that proteins are large chains of amino acids connected with so-called peptide bonds. These bonds can be broken up when a water molecule is added and the resulting thing is a mix of shorter length amino acids, also called peptides. So Hydrolyzed Collagen is not really collagen, it is rather an undefined and varying mix of largish peptides . Based on a manufacturer's data, the whole, soluble collagen has an average molecular weight of 300 000 Da, while this chopped up mixture has an average MW of 12 000 Da (still pretty big). The main thing of these largish peptides is to act as water-binding agents , and to make the skin nice and smooth (aka emollient). Hydrolyzed Collagen is also often used in cleansers as it can make harsh surfactants milder and in hair conditioners as it improves the flexibility and manageability of hair. If you wanna know more about collagen in cosmetics, we have a shiny explanation about soluble collagen here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Silybum Marianum Seed Oil",
    "description": "The emollient plant oil coming from Milk Thistle , the yearling plant with purple flowers. Similar to many other plant oils,  its main fatty acids are barrier-repairing linoleic (53%) and skin-nourishing oleic (21%) and also contains some antioxidant vitamin E (600 mg/kg). It is claimed to be a cosmetically elegant oil that spreads easily and absorbs quickly into the skin. The manufacturer also recommends the oil for skin types suffering from chronic inflammatory disorders such as psoriasis or acne."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyisobutene",
    "description": "A polymer (big molecule from repeated subunits) that's used as a gloss improver for lipsticks and lipglosses. Its stickiness also helps lip products to stay on longer. Combined with polyacrylate-13 and polysorbate 20 , it forms a very effective tickener-emulsifier trio."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methyl Gluceth-20",
    "description": "A corn sugar derived, water-soluble, pale yellow syrup, that nicely moisturizes the skin. It has a light and smooth skin feel , it is non-tacky, and it can improve the after-feel of the formula. It is also mild and gentle, popular in sensitive skin formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glyceryl Caprylate",
    "description": "A 100% plant derived, natural (Ecocert approved) multi-functional ingredient that has emollient and moisturizing properties, can work as a co-emulsifier (meaning that next to other emulsifiers it can help water and oil to mix)  and even more importantly has a strong antimicrobial activity . Thanks to this last thing, it allows a lower percentage of traditional preservative or it might even be able to completely replace them."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Opuntia Ficus-Indica Seed Oil",
    "description": "The emollient plant oil coming from the seeds of the cactus commonly called Prickly Pear or Nopal Fig. It is a native to Mexico cactus with large, sweet fruits that are used to create jam and jellies. About  18–20% of the peeled fruits are seeds, and the seeds contain only about 3-5% oil. This means that the oil is rare and expensive as a ton of fruit (and it is literally a ton) is needed to yield 1 liter of it. As for its composition, its three main fatty acids are barrier-repairing linoleic (60-70%), nourishing oleic (9-26%), and saturated fatty acid, palmitic (8-18%). It is also rich in antioxidant vitamin E (110mg/100g) and in anti-inflammatory sterols (beta-sitosterol, campesterol).  As a high-linoleic oil, it has a light skin feeling , absorbs easily into the top layer of the skin and gives a velvety skin feel ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sorbitan Olivate",
    "description": "An ester coming from sorbitol and the fatty acids of olive oil. It is part of the popular emulsifier trade named Olivem 1000 that is well-known for generating biomimetic liquid crystal structures . We have more info on Olivem 1000 at Cetearyl Olivate >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate",
    "description": "Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate is an antioxidant molecule used in small amounts (less than 0.8%) to help products stay nice longer. More specifically, it is great at preventing discoloration or other types of oxidative degradation . It is a trendy alternative to often bad-mouthed synthetic antioxidant and stabilizer, BHT ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Asiaticoside",
    "description": "One of the main biologically active components of the famous medicinal plant, Centella Asiatica, aka Gotu Kola . It has well established wound healing and antioxidant activities. In-vitro (made in the lab) studies also show that Asiaticoside stimulates GAGs (glycosaminoglycans - polysaccharides that are part of the liquidy stuff between our skin cells) production as well as collagen I synthesis. Read more at Gotu Kola >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sclerotium Gum",
    "description": "A big sugar molecule (polysaccharide) that is used as a natural thickening and gelling agent . It is similar to more commonly used Xanthan Gum , and the two are also often combined to create gel formulas or to stabilize emulsions."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetearyl Olivate",
    "description": "An ester that comes from Cetearyl alcohol and the fatty acids of olive oil. It often comes to the formula coupled with Sorbitan Olivate as the two together form the well-known, natural emulsifier trade named Olivem 1000. Other than helping oil and water to blend, the main thing of Olivem 1000 is generating liquid crystal structures that are similar to the lipid structures of the stratum corneum (the outermost layer of the skin). Thanks to this, Olivem 1000 doubles as an active ingredient with significant moisturizing, barrier-repairing and soothing properties. It also helps to deliver water-soluble actives such as caffeine more effectively, and can even boost SPF in sunscreen formulas. Its typical use level is 1-5% and has wide compatibility with other actives and oils. Overall, a real multi-tasker with nice sensorial properties. No wonder it is so popular."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Shea Butter Ethyl Esters",
    "description": "An \"eco-designed\" emollient ester coming from shea butter . While pure shea butter is a rich emollient that might feel greasy on the skin, this one is designed for its light, silky-soft feeling . The manufacturer claims that it has a great sustainability profile, long lasting stability and a unique, light and silky feel that's ideal as a base for modern, eco-friendly body lotions and facial care products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pelargonium Graveolens Leaf/​Flower Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from the leaves and flowers of Rose Geranium .  It has a lovely scent with a mix of rose and citrus. Like most essential oils, it contains antioxidant and antimicrobial components , but the main ones are fragrant constituents (like citronellol and geraniol ). Be careful with it, if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Oleic/​Linoleic/​Linolenic Polyglycerides",
    "description": "A polyglyceride created from sunflower oil using green, Ecocert approved technology. Oils are mostly made up of triglyceride molecules: a glycerin and three fatty acids attached to it. So this guy is like a modified oil where the manufacturer changed up the fatty acids attached to the glycerin . Thanks to carefully selecting and arranging the fatty acids, the manufacturer claims that it had created an active ingredient that's not simply an emollient but a water-binding and skin-plumping active ingredient . It's also great in lip care formulas as it has high gloss and excellent stick."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Agonis Fragrans Branch/​Leaf Oil",
    "description": "An essential oil coming from Western Australia with a citrus, spicy, floral scent . Its special property is to be very \"balanced\" meaning it has a near perfect 1:1:1 ratio of oxides, monoterpenes, and monoterpenols (though it's not clear what the benefit of this is). The manufacturer claims that the oil has antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory , analgesic, expectorant, immune enhancement, and emotional balance properties. It does contain fragrant components like linalool or limonene so if your skin is sensitive be careful with it."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Rosa Damascena Absolute",
    "description": "The super concentrated version of Rose Essential Oil (you can read here a bit more about what an absolute is and how it's prepared). So what we wrote there is pretty much true here as well: it's very expensive , smells heavenly , but it's a mixed bag when it comes to skincare. On the upside, it has antioxidant and antimicrobial compounds and on the downside, most if it is fragrant compounds that might hurt sensitive skin types ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Melaleuca Teretifolia Branch/​Leaf Oil",
    "description": "An essential oil with a lemony scent with warm, honey notes . Contains fragrant components - among others citral, geranial, neral - so it might be a good idea to avoid if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Rosa Rubiginosa Seed Oil",
    "description": "The oil coming from the seeds of the wild rose bush most common in the southern Andes in Chile (btw, Rosa Rubiginosa, Rosa Eglanteria and Rosa Mosqueta all refer to the same oil, however, the more commonly used Rosa Canina is a bit different). Similar to many other great plant oils, it is a nice nourishing and moisturizing oil loaded with fatty acids (linoleic acid - 44%, linolenic acid - 34% and oleic acid - 14%). What makes rosehip oil a special snowflake among all the plant oils out there is that it also contains the miracle active, trans-retinoic acid, aka tretinoin . It is the main bioactive component of the oil and has all kinds of magic abilities including restoring and regenerating tissues (the oil is great for scars and burns), decreasing wrinkles , helping acne and even normalizing pore size. Just one more note: a study found that the tretinoin content of rosehip seed oil greatly depends on the extraction method. The oil coming from cold pressing contained seven times more tretinoin (0.357 ml/l) than the oil from organic solvent extraction. Always go for the cold-pressed version!"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lavandula Angustifolia Oil",
    "description": "We have to start by writing how fascinated we are by the amazing lavender fields of Provance and we do love pretty much everything about lavender: its look, its color, its scent.... but, when it comes to skincare, lavender is a questionable ingredient that you probably do not want in your skincare products. First, let us start with the pros: it has a lovely scent , so no wonder that it is popular as a fragrance ingredient in natural products wanting to be free from synthetic fragrances but still wanting to smell nice. The scent of lavender is famous for having calming and relaxing properties and some smallish scientific studies do support that. Inhaled volatile compounds seem to have a soothing effect on the central nervous system and studies have shown that lavender aromatherapy can improve patient's anxiety and experience in hospitals. Another pro is that lavender oil has some nice antimicrobial and antibacterial properties . It also has some local pain relieving and muscle relaxing magical powers . Lavender oil is also often claimed to have anti-inflammatory properties. We have found a study confirming this but it was the essential oil of the leaves and not the much more commonly used flowers and the two differ in their main chemical compounds very much. (The main components of the flower essential oil are linalyl acetate and linalool [around 80% the two together] while it is 1,8-Cineole [around 65%] in the essential oil of the leaves.) Now, let us look at the cons: similar to a bunch of other essential oils, the main components of lavender oil are potentially irritating fragrant components . The two main components are linalyl acetate (about 50%) and linalool (about 35%) and both autoxidise on exposure to the air forming strong contact allergens. To make things even worse, lavender oil seems to be cytotoxic from concentrations as low as 0.25% (concentration up to 0.125% were ok). There is also an often cited Japanese study that made patch tests with lavender oil for 9 years and found a huge increase in lavender oil sensitivity in 1997 (from 1.1% in 1990 to 8.7% in 1997 and 13.9% in 1998). This was the year when using dried lavender flowers in pillows, wardrobes, and elsewhere became fashionable in Japan, so it seems that increased exposure to lavender results in increased risk of sensitivity . Overall, it makes us sad to write bad things about such a lovely plant, but when it comes to skincare, you will be better off without lavender."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PPG-26-Buteth-26",
    "description": "A helper ingredient that usually comes to the formula coupled with PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil . The two together work as surfactants and oil solubilizers . It's a non-sticky duo that works at low concentration and is often used to solubilize fragrance components into water-based formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Olea Europaea Fruit Oil",
    "description": "You probably know olive oil from the kitchen as a great and healthy option for salad dressing but it's also a great and healthy option to moisturize and nourish the skin , especially if it's on the dry side. Similar to other emollient plant oils, it's loaded with nourishing fatty acids: oleic is the main component (55-83%), and also contains linoleic (3.5-20%) and palmitic acids (7-20%). It also contains antioxidant polyphenols, tocopherols (types of vitamin E) and carotenoids and it's one of the best plant sources of skin-identical emollient, Squalene . Overall, a great option for dry skin but less so for acne-prone or damaged skin ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Carrageenan",
    "description": "A natural polysaccharide (big sugar molecule) coming from red edible seaweeds. It is used as a helper ingredient for its gelling, thickening and stabilizing properties ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lonicera Caprifolium Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the Italian Honeysuckle that has beautiful, very fragrant cream and pink colored flowers. Coupled with Japanese Honeysuckle , the reason this plant duo is in cosmetic products is not the usual one. It's not there to be an antioxidant or soothing agent or to give a nice scent but because it contains a natural form of paraben called parahydroxy benzoic acid (PHBA) and serves as a broad-spectrum antimicrobial preservative . Though PHBA is not identical to well-known parabens (like methylparaben ), it also contains the same benzene ring that is the problematic part of parabens ( read more here ). If you are someone who avoids parabens, Honeysuckle has to be on your \"NO list\" as well."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-12 Dimethicone",
    "description": "A fluid silicone that reduces surface tension. It can improve oil (or silicone) in water emulsions with faster absorption, better spreading, and a lighter feel ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acacia Senegal Gum",
    "description": "A natural polymer (big molecules from repeated subunits) that is harvested from the Acacia tree in the sub-Saharan region in Africa. It's a great thickening and binding agent . Often coupled with xanthan gum , as it helps to reduce its unpleasant stickiness."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Zinc Pca",
    "description": "If you have oily, acne-prone skin, Zinc PCA is one of the actives to put on your \"TO TRY\" list. It's a synergistic association of two great things: Zinc and L-PCA. The Zinc part is there to help normalize sebum production and limit the proliferation of evil acne-causing bacteria . L-PCA stands for pyrrolidone carboxylic acid and it's a key molecule in the skin that helps with processes of hydration and energy (it's actually an NMF, a natural moisturizing factor). L-PCA is not only there to hydrate the skin, but it also helps to increase the efficacy and bioavailability of zinc. An in-vivo (done on real people) test done by the manufacturer shows that Zinc PCA reduces sebum production statistically significantly after 28 days of application (1% was used in the test), and in-vitro (made in the lab) measurements show that Zinc PCA has strong anti-microbial activity against P. acnes (between 0.1-0.25%) and other bacterial strains. If that would not be enough there is also a 2011 research paper saying that based on in-vitro (made in the lab, not on real people)  findings Zinc PCA might be a promising anti-aging active that helps with the production of type I collagen (and we all know more collagen = firmer skin). All in all, definitely a goodie for oily, acne-prone skin ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lonicera Japonica Flower Extract",
    "description": "Lonicera Japonica, or Japanese Honeysuckle as normal people call it, is a white-flowered honeysuckle known for being a traditional Chinese medicine . Modern research confirms that the plant has a super complex chemical composition with more than 140 compounds identified with possible anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antiviral, antioxidative and hepatoprotective activities. As for Lonicera Japonica Flower Extract in skin care, it can have two main roles. The first one is being an anti-inflammatory and soothing ingredient, probably due to chlorogenic acid , a polyphenol thought to be the main bioactive component of the flower. The other possible role is being a natural preservative . If this is the case, it is coupled with its Italian Honeysuckle cousin to form a broad spectrum antimicrobial preservative blend. You can read about this more here ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Biosaccharide Gum-2",
    "description": "An interesting polysaccharide (a big sugar molecule) obtained by bacterial fermentation. Its sugar sequence is rich in rhamnose, galactose, and glucuronic acid. According to its manufacturer , Biosaccharide Gum-2 is a protecting agent against the damages from external aggressors that accelerate skin aging and it's a booster of skin comfort stimulating the release of pleasure molecules."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Octyldodecanol",
    "description": "A clear, slightly yellow, odorless oil  that's a very common, medium-spreading emollient . It makes the skin feel nice and smooth and works in a wide range of formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-20 Methyl Glucose Sesquistearate",
    "description": "A mild , water-loving emulsifier that's safe for sensitive skin or eye-care formulations. It helps to create low viscosity oil-in-water emulsions, ideal for milks, serums, and sprayable formulations. It's derived from natural sources and  gives a light, satiny afterfeel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Zinc Palmitoyl Nonapeptide-14",
    "description": "It's part of a peptide complex called \"Renaissance\" whose name was inspired by \"Re-birth for Skin\". The manufacturer claims that his peptide powder is almost magic and can increase the ability of skin to renew, regenerate, redensify , rebuild and restore skin tissue. The result is younger skin in 4 weeks with 38% more \"skin compactness\" or firmness. The peptide powder is supposed to be suitable for scar minimising as well."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dimethyl Isosorbide",
    "description": "A little helper ingredient that can boost the performance and enhance the delivery of active ingredients in a formula. It can penetrate deep layers of the skin helping actives to do the same. It's especially useful to help active ingredients for self-tanning (DHA), anti-acne or skin-whitening to penetrate deeper and work better."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Copper Tripeptide-1",
    "description": "Compared to A-list skincare superstars (think vitamin C , glycolic or retinol ), copper-tripeptide seems to be the new and exciting thing, but in fact, it has been around for a long time, since 1973 to be exact. Before we dive in, let's just quickly see what the heck copper-tripeptide-1 is, or GHK-Cu? The GHK part is a three amino acid peptide of glycine-histidine-lysine that can be found naturally in yucky bodily fluids (if you are wondering in plasma, saliva, and urine). The Cu part is the copper, an essential trace element in the human body (and in all living things). It turns out GHK and Cu love each other, and if they meet, they form a complex that is called copper-tripeptide. Wound healing and anti-inflammatory properties The guy who discovered GHK-Cu is called Dr. Pickart and in the first 15 years of his GHK-Cu studies, he found out that it helps wound healing and has anti-inflammatory properties. His work resulted in the FDA-approved Iamin hydrating gel to treat acute and chronic wounds. Helping wound healing does not seem like a big deal. If you read around INCIDecoder you can read the same about plenty of other ingredients, but GHK-Cu does have a special feature; it can stimulate the breakdown of unhealthy , too large collagen in scar tissue and can help stimulate nice and healthy normal collagen production.  And less bad collagen and more good collagen results in smoother, nicer skin. Helps good collagen production Helping collagen production is a big deal in anti-aging skincare and there are very few ingredients that are really proven to do so. Copper-tripeptide is only half-way proven at this point but there are definitely promising results about it. Dr. Pickart himself made a successful in-vitro (made in test tubes, not on real people) study in 1988 showing that CHK-Cu can stimulate collagen synthesis. There is an even more promising study from 1998 that was done on people and compared vitamin C, tretinoin, and copper-tripeptide. Do you know which one won? Copper tripeptide. After one month, it increased collagen production in 70% of people, while vitamin C only in 50% and tretinoin only in 40%. More anti-aging magic properties If the above isn't enough, there is more. GHK-Cu seems to have a complex role in skin health and tissue repair . It does not only help collagen synthesis but also the synthesis of other important skin-identical ingredients like elastin, proteoglycans, and glycosaminoglycans . It also has an antioxidant effect by stimulating the antioxidant enzyme superoxide dismutase and preventing the release of oxidation-promoting iron. There are also a couple of facial studies showing that GHK-Cu containing creams can do pretty much everything you need for younger looking skin. It can tighten loose skin and improve elasticity, density, and firmness. It can reduce fine lines as well as deeper wrinkles. It can improve skin clarity and even reduce hyperpigmentation. Improving Hair Growth While studying the wound healing properties of GHK-Cu, Dr. Pickart also noticed that after treating skin wounds there was an enlargement of the hair follicles of the skin at the wound edge. This led him to discover that skin remodelling copper peptides (SRCPs) can also stimulate hair growth. It works by stimulating follicular cell proliferation that results in larger hair follicles that produce longer and thicker hair .  SRCPs also keep the hair follicles longer in the active, anagen phase and shorter in the inactive, dormant phase. So what's the catch? Well, most studies done on copper-tripeptide are in-vitro (meaning in the lab and not on real people) or on animals . Results may or may not be the same on us, people. There are some facial studies that are promising, but they are quite small and not designed to the strictest standards (by which we mean double blind, placebo controlled.) Another catch is that when it comes to facial anti-aging skin care stimulating hair growth is not really a good thing (unless of course, more facial hair is ok for you). Dr. Pickart himself tells this about the issue:  \"The SRCPs increase the size of hair follicles but do not convert the small vellus hair follicles that produce fine, nearly invisible hair (98% of body hair) into terminal follicles (2% of body hair) that produce thick, long hair. The enlarged hair follicles produce the stem cells needed to rebuild skin. Many women have used our facial products for 5 years without problems.\" Reading around on skincare forums, some did see slightly more facial hair some not . This is again something that you have to try and see. Last but not least there is an \"urban legend\" about the possibility to overdose on copper peptide resulting not in younger but older looking skin. We could not find any study or research paper about this but Dr. Todorov on smartskincare writes this : \"..excessive use can have an opposite effect by increasing the levels of free copper and/or by triggering excessive production of metalloproteinases. Free copper promotes free radical damage and collagen breakdown leading to accelerated skin aging. Metalloproteinases can digest collagen and elastin, weakening the skin and causing sag. These problems do not seem to occur among the majority of copper peptide users. However, there are anecdotal reports indicating that such side-effects might happen with overuse, incorrect use, or even normal use in sensitive individuals. Ideally, a sufficiently large study is needed to better quantify these risk.\" There you have it! If you are still here, congrats, you just became a GHK-Cu expert. :) It is definitely a very interesting and promising ingredient, so if you are into anti-aging and like to experiment this is something for you. If you prefer the \"tried and true\", stick to your retinol treatment."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Palmitoyl Decapeptide-21",
    "description": "A peptide that is part of an active peptide complex called \"Renaissance\". It is supposed to increase skin compactness and firmness. You can read more about \"Renaissance\" at Zinc Palmitoyl Nonapeptide-14 ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Phenylpropanol",
    "description": "A naturally occurring floral component with a delicate scent that can mask the odor of other raw materials but is not noticeable in the final product. It also has remarkable antimicrobial and preservative boosting abilities and can help to create \"preservative-free\" formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Decapeptide-22",
    "description": "A peptide consisting of four amino acids (arginine, glutamine, glycine, and proline). It's part of an active peptide complex called \"Renaissance\" that is supposed to increase skin compactness and firmness. You can read more about \"Renaissance\" at Zinc Palmitoyl Nonapeptide-14 ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Diglycerin",
    "description": "The big brother of glycerin . It's also a natural moisturizing factor that reduces water evaporation from the upper layer of the skin and helps to keep water in the skin so that it stays nicely hydrated . Compared to glycerin, it has a larger molecular structure (kind of a double glycerin). Thanks to this, it penetrates slower into the skin but gives longer lasting moisture and less sticky, better skin-feel ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ogliopeptide-78",
    "description": "A synthetic peptide containing 11 amino acids consisting of alanine, glutamine, glycine, isoleucine, lysine, proline and valine. It's part of an active peptide complex called \"Renaissance\" that is supposed to increase skin compactness and firmness. You can read more about \"Renaissance\" at Zinc Palmitoyl Nonapeptide-14 ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Alteromonas Ferment Extract",
    "description": "A so-called exopolysaccharide (high-molecular-weight polymers) secreted by a microorganism living in hydrothermal deep vents. The manufacturer claims that it soothes and reduces irritation to sensitive skin against chemical (such as drying acne treatments or strong chemical exfoliants), mechanical (such as micro-cuts after shaving) and UVB aggressors."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Alteromonas Ferment Filtrate",
    "description": "A so-called exopolysaccharide (a natural big molecule secreted  by microorganisms) coming from a marine bacteria living in the French Polynesia. It goes by the trade name Exo-H and the manufacturer claims that it can stimulate the production of hyaluronic acid, lipids, and filaggrin in the skin. They are all important natural skin components for proper skin hydration and barrier repair. In-vivo (made on human) test made on 15 volunteers also showed that Exo-H quickly improves skin hydration and maintains the effect for at least 6 hours."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PPG-12-Buteth-16",
    "description": "It's a neat helper ingredient that gives emolliency , solvency, and slip to the cosmetic formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pentapeptide-18",
    "description": "A five amino-acid peptide that is claimed to target expression wrinkles that appear due to facial movements . Its effect is similar to the older and more famous Argireline peptide . They achieve similar results but in a different way. The two together work in a synergistic way (the solution is trade named Argirelox) hindering the muscle contraction process in two different stages. The in-vivo (made on real people) test by the manufacturer showed that after 28 days 5% Leuphasyl alone reduced wrinkles by 11% and 5% Leuphasyl + 5% Argireline reduced wrinkles on average by 25% with max values up to 47%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Retinol",
    "description": "If you like to read about skincare (and if you are here, it seems that you do :)), we are sure that you have already read a lot about retinol. It is the ingredient everyone keeps talking about and there is a reason for that: it is the most proven anti-aging superstar available over the counter. If you want to dig a bit deeper and really understand retinol, you have to start with tretinoin . We have written a nice geeky description about it, so click here, and read all about it . So now you know that tretinoin , or retinoic acid, as it's often called, is the real, proven, FDA-approved anti-aging magic ingredient and tretinoin and retinol are both retinoids. They are not exactly the same, but they belong to the same family. With that in mind, we will focus here on the differences, and on how the anti-aging effect of retinol measures up against the anti-aging effect of tretinoin. Retinol vs tretinoin: the big difference Tretinoin is so damn effective because our skin cells have so-called retinoid receptors that interact directly with tretinoin but they cannot interact with retinol. Retinol itself is not active , and it has to be converted to retinoic acid to actually do something. In theory, our skin has metabolic machinery to do the conversion which is a two-step process : retinol -- > retinaldehyde --> retinoic acid . Once the conversion is complete, retinol becomes tretinoin and can do the same thing as we have detailed in our tretinoin description BUT this two-step conversion process is not very effective and the effectiveness varies from person to person. This means that retinol is much weaker than tretinoin , and it's also possible that retinol doesn't do much for you, because your skin is a lazy converter, while tretinoin still happily works. Retinol vs tretinoin effectiveness So retinol (in theory) becomes retinoic acid in the skin and from there it can work it's tretinoin-magic . There are several studies proving that retinol does exhibit biological activity and causes similar changes to the skin than tretinoin (0.1% retinol concentration gives already nice results) but the question is more the extent of the effects . Luckily there are a few studies to give us an idea. A study from 1997 compared the penetration and the effectiveness of retinol and retinoic acid and found that retinol penetrates better and \" retinol at 0.25% may be a useful retinoid for application without occlusion because it does not irritate but does induce cellular and molecular changes similar to those observed with application of 0.025% retinoic acid .\" Another 2015 study confirms the ballpark number that retinol is about 10 times less potent than tretinoin . It compared 0.25%, 0.5%, and 1.0% retinol with the commonly available tretinoin concentrations (0.025%, 0.05%, and 0.1%). The authors of the study concluded that \" results from this comparison study suggest that this sustained-release retinol complex containing multiple agents for optimal irritation control provides comparable improvements to tretinoin in the appearance of photo damage . \" A third study that we think is interesting and worth mentioning is one that did not try to determine what concentration of retinol is similar to what concentration of retinoic acid, but went the other way and compared the effects of equal concentrations (0.1%) of retinol and retinoic acid . The result of this study was that \"topical retinol treatment induces similar changes in skin histology and skin related gene and protein expression as seen with retinoic acid application, and the magnitude is more than half of that from retinoic acid treatment \". Of course, not only the anti-aging effects but the side effects (like irritation, skin flaking, dryness, redness) are also milder with retinol . A mild retinol product (around 0.1%) is still proven effective and very tolerable. You have to be more careful (introduce it gradually!) with stronger versions (around 1% retinol) where both the effects and the side effects can come close to that of tretinoin. Bottom line : Retinol is not the same as retinoic acid or tretinoin. It's less potent but still works great . If you are into anti-aging and like the tried and true (and are not pregnant), a good retinol (or retinoid) product should be in your skincare routine."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Coceth-7",
    "description": "A helper ingredient that helps water and oil to mix together . It usually comes to the formula as part of a solubilizer trio coupled with PPG-1-PEG-9 Lauryl Glycol Ether and PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil . The three form an easy to handle liquid that works with many types of oils and gives good sensorial properties to the formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acetylarginyltryptophyl Diphenylglycine",
    "description": "A four amino acid tetrapeptid e that is designed to treat sagginess and unfirmness in mature skin. It works by inhibiting an enzyme (elastase) that breaks down proteins (e.g. collagen) as well as by stimulating type I collagen synthesis. According to the manufacturer's in-vivo (made on real human) test , applying 4% Relistase for 8 weeks on mature women (avg. age 49) resulted in 14% improvement in skin elasticity and in increased skin tightness by 15.6%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1",
    "description": "A really famous peptide that is part of Matrixyl 3000 , the most sold peptide complex in the word. Before we go and find out what the big deal with Matrixyl 3000 is, let's just focus on Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 itself for a bit. It's a small three amino acid (they are the building blocks of all proteins) peptide with the amino sequence of glycine-histidine-lysine, or GHK. GHK is attached to palmitic acid (a fatty acid) to increase oil solubility and skin penetration. The GHK part is the important one as it's a type I collagen fragment . When collagen naturally breaks down in the skin, the resulting peptide fragments signal to the skin that it should get to work and create some nice, new collagen. Adding in collagen fragment peptides, like GHK, might trick the skin into thinking that collagen has broken down and it's time to create some more . Therefore, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 is believed to be able to stimulate collagen production in the skin, and more collagen means fewer wrinkles and younger looking skin. In Matrixyl 3000 , Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 is coupled with Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 and the duo works in synergy to reduce wrinkles and give younger looking skin . According to the manufacturer's in-vivo (made on real people) test , applying 3% Matrixyl 3000 twice a day for 2 months resulted in all of the following things: 39.4% reduction in surface occupied by deep wrinkles 32.9% reduction in main wrinkle density 19.9% reduction in main wrinkle average depth 16% improvement in roughness 16.2% in lifting effect 5.5% improvement in elasticity 15.5% improvement in skin tone Manufacturer results, of course, always have to be taken with a pinch of salt, but if you like peptides, the Matryxil 3000 duo is one of the best-proven and most well-known ones and it's something that is worth trying."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dipeptide Diaminobutyroyl Benzylamide Diacetate",
    "description": "This awfully long named ingredient is, in fact, a pretty small molecule. It's a tripeptide (a three amino acid peptide)  with molecular weight less than 500 Da, meaning that it's small enough to penetrate nicely and easily into the skin. It belongs to the \"Botox in a jar\" type of peptides (similar to Argireline or Leuphasyl ) targeting wrinkles caused by facial movements , like laughter lines or crow’s feet. According to the manufacturer's in-vivo (made on real people) studies , 4% Syn-Ake used for 28 days resulted in 21% smoother and 15-20% less wrinkled skin with max values up to 52%. The smoothing effect was measurable on 80% of the volunteers, while the wrinkle reduction effect was evident on 73%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Valine",
    "description": "An essential amino acid (a building block of skin proteins like collagen) that our body cannot produce itself but has to take from external sources, like diet. It's a branched chain amino acid that is claimed to enhance energy, increase endurance and aid in muscle tissue recovery and repair when taken as a supplement. It's not clear what valine does when you put it on the skin, but as all amino acids, it must be at least a great skin hydrator ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Proline",
    "description": "A non-essential amino acid (meaning that our body can produce it) that's also one of the major building blocks of collagen. According to the Futurederm blog , it might be able to improve wrinkles when combined with other amino acids, glycine and leucine"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Threonine",
    "description": "An essential amino acid that's also a key building block of collagen and elastin. When taken orally, it helps the digestive and intestinal tracts function more smoothly and also helps the absorption of nutrients. As for skincare, it is not clear what it does other than being a skin hydrator ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Arginine",
    "description": "A semi-essential (infants cannot synthesize it, but adults can) amino acid that is one of the primary building blocks of hair keratin and skin collagen. It's a natural moisturizing factor , a skin hydrator and might also help to speed up wound healing . Arginine usually has a positive charge (cationic) that makes it substantive to skin and hair (those are more negatively charged surfaces) and an excellent film former.  Thanks to the positive charge, it also creates a complex with AHAs (AHAs like to lose a hydrogen ion and be negatively charged, so the positive and the negative ions attract each other) that causes a \"time-release AHA effect\" and reduces the irritation associated with AHAs ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Phenylalanine",
    "description": "An essential amino acid that the body cannot produce itself but has to take from the diet. Combined with UVA exposure, phenylalanine is used in the treatment of vitiligo (a pigmentation disorder where patches of the skin lose the pigment)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7",
    "description": "A four amino acid peptide with the amino sequence of glycine-glutamine-proline-arginine. It is attached to palmitic acid (a fatty acid)  to increase oil solubility and skin penetration. It works by reducing the production of the signal molecule , interleukin-6 (IL-6) which promotes inflammation in the skin and less inflammation means slower degradation of important things (like collagen) that results in younger looking skin for a longer time. It works in synergy with its pal, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 in the famous Matrixyl 3000 complex. You can read some more about the famous duo here."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isoleucine",
    "description": "A branch-chained, essential amino acid that can be found in things like almond, cashew or soy protein. When taken orally it may promote protein synthesis. As for skincare - like all the amino acids - it's a skin-identical ingredient and moisturizer . It also seems to be useful as a barrier repair ingredient ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-12",
    "description": "A six amino acid peptide that is claimed to improve firmness and skin tone . Its amino acid sequence is Val-Gly-Val-Ala-Pro-Gly that is also called the \"spring fragment\" and is repeated six times in the important skin protein, elastin molecule. The manufacturer made a double-blind, one-month long clinical study on 10 women and found that twice a day application of 4%  Biopeptide El improved skin firmness by 33% and skin tone by 20%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pca",
    "description": "PCA stands for Pyrrolidone Carboxylic Acid and though it might not sound like it, it is a thing that can be found naturally in our skin. In fact, after amino acids, it is the second biggest NMF component of the skin with 12% being PCA of the NMF composition of normal skin.  So similar to other NMFs, it's a skin goodie that helps the skin to hold onto water and stay nicely hydrated."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Rubus Fruticosus Seed Oil",
    "description": "The oil coming from the delicious blackberry fruit. Like many other plant oils, it's loaded with a bunch of good-for-the-skin stuff : nourishing and moisturizing fatty acids ( oleic acid: 15-19%, linoleic acid: 61-64% and linolenic acid 15-17% ), antioxidant vitamin E (about 1500-2000 mg/kg that counts as great!) and emollient and barrier helping phytosterols (like beta-sitosterol, campesterol and stigmasterol). If that is not enough, it also contains great skin-identical ingredient squalene (170mg/kg ) and antioxidant carotenoids (33 mg/kg). All in all, a high-quality, high-linoleic oil that's great for nourishing and moisturizing the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Eriocephalus Punctulatus Oil",
    "description": "A beautiful blue essential oil coming from Cape Chamomile (a type of Chamomile native to South Africa). In aromatherapy , anti-inflammatory and skin-healing properties are attributed to the oil though we could not find any research to confirm this. What we could find is some research on the composition of the oil that contains an unusually large amount of compounds (over 220). More than 50% of the oil consists of so-called aliphatic esters and about 37% is the terpenoid portion. It contains only 0.2% of the anti-inflammatory agent, chamazulene that also gives the oil its nice blue color. BTW, the oil is chemically significantly chemically different from the German Chamomile oil , and a bit more similar to the Roman Chamomile oil ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Salvia Hispanica Seed Oil",
    "description": "Chia seeds are in fashion and there is a reason for that. They are not only a superfood for your body but putting the oil all over your face seems to be a good idea too. Its unique property is that it's the richest known botanical source of skin moisturizing and probably anti-inflammatory alpha-linolenic acid (contains 50-60%). It also contains barrier repairing linoleic acid (17-26%) and only a small amount of very nourishing but potentially acne causing oleic acid (7%). Thanks to its great fatty acid content, chia seed oil counts as a great skin hydrator and it can help to maintain a healthy skin barrier function . According to manufacturer's info , it can even alleviate itchy skin . If that is not enough, it also contains a couple of nice antioxidants , including Alpha-Lipoic Acid, Coumaric and Caffeic Acid . All in all, a nice plant oil with a unique fatty acid composition and some nice antioxidants."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Anthemis Nobilis Flower Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from the second most common type of chamomile, the Roman Chamomile. It also contains the biologically active anti-inflammatory components , bisabolol, and chamazulene , but less than the more commonly used German Chamomile .  It's not clear what Roman Chamomile knows that the German one does not."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Chamomilla Recutita Flower Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from the German Chamomile . It's loaded with the famous anti-inflammatory agent, bisabolol (approx. 50%) and contains 5% of soothing, antiallergic and blue color giving chamazulene . It also contains about 120 other things, including 28 terpenoids and 36 flavonoids (including some antioxidants like quercetin). As for skincare, the essential oil is used mainly for it's anti-inflammatory and soothing properties ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Aspartic Acid",
    "description": "A non-essential amino acid  (important building block of collagen and elastin) that hydrates the skin . It is also used to set the pH of the cosmetic product (buffering)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Histidine",
    "description": "A semi-essential amino acid meaning that enough has to be eaten from it so that the body does not use up essential amino acids (that our body cannot produce itself) to synthesize it. It has an important role in regulating the immune defense, allergic reactions, and inflammatory processes in the body. As for skincare, it's a skin moisturizer that might also protect from some skin infections ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from the sweet orange . In the case of orange (and citruses in general), the essential oil is mainly in the peel of the fruit, so it's pretty much the same as the orange peel oil (also has the same CAS number - a unique ID assigned to chemicals). Its main component is limonene (up to 97%), a super common fragrant ingredient that makes everything smell nice (but counts as a frequent skin sensitizer)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydroxypinacolone Retinoate",
    "description": "Hydroxypinacolone Retinoate (HPR) is the newest member of the \"royal family of skincare\" ( see who is who on this cool retinoids family tree ), the retinoid family . The queen of the family is the FDA-approved anti-aging superstar, retinoic acid, aka tretinoin and HPR seems to be a gentle but influential sister princess to the queen. Good to know: the trade name of HPR is Granactive Retinoid. The manufacturer produces it as 10% active and 90% solvent called dimethyl isosorbide . When a product claims 2% Granactive Retinoid, it means 0.2% Hydroxypinacolone Retinoate (and 1.8% dimethyl isosorbide) on the ingredient list. It's a so-called retinoic acid ester, meaning that it's directly related to retinoic acid. If you've already read our description about retinol or retinyl palmitate , you know that the active ingredient our skin cells can interpret is retinoic acid. Other forms of retinoids have to be converted by our metabolic machinery to do something. That's not the case with HPR. It binds directly to the retinoid receptors of the skin cells to work its skincare magic. The big promise of HPR is that it's similarly active as retinoic acid (no conversion needed, remember) but without the irritation . According to the manufacturer's tests , 24 hours of an occlusive patch with 0.5% HPR resulted in significantly lower irritation than 0.5% retinol.  Also, there was a \"dramatic reduction of lines and wrinkles\" after applying 0.2% HPR around the eyes twice a day for 14 days. These results sound sooo promising that we don't blame you if you wanna run out right now and get an HPR formula to slather on your face.  But, before you do, you have to know that the info we have about HPR at the moment is mainly from the manufacturer, whose tests may or may not be accurate or properly designed (such as controlled, double-blind and conducted on an appropriate number of people). As HPR is pretty new there isn't that much independent research we could find yet. We found two Italian studies both examining the efficacy of HPR combined with other things (retinol in both cases, and papain in one of them) for the treatment of acne. Both studies found the formulas effective but they contained other things too, so it's hard to judge how well HPR did. Regarding anti-aging, there is a pretty recent, Estee Lauder sponsored study that compared the in-vitro (not on real human beings but on skin models) collagen-boosting effectiveness of Hydroxypinacolone Retinoate, tretinoin , good old retinol and retinyl palmitate (RP). The results are pretty encouraging showing that  \" HPR had greater levels of gene transcription than retinol and RP (RP) at the same concentrations ... however, HPR did not achieve gene transcription levels of ATRA (tretinoin) .\"  But, a much higher dose might be tolerated from HPR and the highest dose of HPR out-performed tretinoin. Pretty encouraging, though we are very much waiting for a study to confirm all this on real human beings. Bottom line : We are really happy to see some innovation happening with retinoids, and we think Hydroxypinacolone Retinoate is a super promising rising star, but it’s not fully proven yet. If you are someone who likes to experiment and try out the newest things, grab your running shoes and try some HPR containing serum now (see product list below :)). If you like the tried and true, however, stick to retinol and tretinoin for now and re-examine the question in a couple of years when (hopefully) more research will be available. Are you into Retinoids? Read our shiny description about other members of the retinoid family: Retinyl Propionate : the most promising retinol ester out there Retinyl Retinoate : a super interesting retinol-retinoic acid hybrid molecule Tretinoin : the FDA-proven, well-known active ingredient Retinol : the good old vitamin A molecule Retinyl Palmitate : a super common, but our least fav member of the retinoids"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cananga Odorata Flower Oil",
    "description": "Sweet, exotic and floral, it’ no surprise that Ylang Ylang is a popular essential oil . It is coming from the yellow, fragrant flowers of the Cananga tree native to tropical Asia and, similar to other essential oils, it is a chemically complex mixture with several pros and cons. Unfortunately, these are a bit tricky to pin down as the composition varies largely depending on where it is sourced, how the oil is extracted and the grade of it that is used in the product, but we’ll do our best! Let’s start with the easy stuff.  The main components are fragrant molecules , including super common linalool (1-19%), benzyl benzoate (2-10%) and several others adding up to a max amount of 37.6% of EU sensitizers . The most expensive Extra grade is the most fragrant (has more benzyl acetate and cresyl methyl ether) and is used in high-end perfumes, while the First and Second grades are less fragrant, and used mainly in cosmetics. Other than smelling nice and making cosmetic formulas also smell nice , Ylang Ylang might have some antimicrobial and antioxidant benefits and also works as an insect repellent. Its nice smell is also commonly known as being relaxing and calming (also backed up by a few recent studies), but it is an aromatherapy use case (when inhaled) so this probably does not count much skincare-wise. On the other hand, the nice smell also means allergen fragrant components and 37.6% of EU sensitizers counts as quite high and the oil is considered to have high skin sensitization potential . It is a good idea to avoid if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Berberis Vulgaris Root Extract",
    "description": "A medium sized (1-3m tall) shrub with edible, red berries. Pretty much all parts of it (root, bark, leaf and fruit) have been used as folk medicine for a long time to treat everything from heart diseases to anxiety. As for the root extract and skincare, barberry root contains alkaloids (the most important one is berberine ) that have significant antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties . There is one more interesting thing: an animal study from 1993 found that berberine can reduce lipogenesis (63% by 10(-4) M berberine) in the sebaceous glands of hamsters. This might be the reason why some traditional Japanese-Chinese herbal medicine with berberine seem to work against acne vulgaris . If you are acne-prone, barberry root extract might be something to try."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lens Esculenta Fruit Extract",
    "description": "Lentil extract that has nice moisturizing properties on the skin. According to manufacturer info , it contains vitamin B5 and trisaccharides . Most often lentil comes to the formula as part of a moisturizing trio together with watermelon and apple . The three of them is called AquaCell and is claimed to give 24 hours hydration and to reduce fine lines after only 2 hours. After 2 weeks 3% Aquacell increased key elements in the skin significantly: citrulline by 440%, Sodium PCA by 180%, Sodium Lactate by 60%. Moisture in the skin increased by 35%, dryness decreased by 60% and skin cohesion increased by 50%"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ananas Sativus Fruit Extract",
    "description": "A goodie fruit extract coming from the lovely pineapple. It contains a bunch of good-for-the-skin stuff: bromelain and fruit acids have mild exfoliant properties, and fruit sugars and amino acids give the pineapple fruit nice moisturizing and soothing properties. There is also a pineapple extract called pineapple ceramide on the market that's claimed to be loaded with a glucose linked ceramide derivative called glucoceramide. According to the manufacturer, glucoceramide is not only a skin moisturizer but it also helps to lighten the skin and make it more smooth ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Coco-Caprylate/​Caprate",
    "description": "A light emollient ester (C8-10 fatty acids connected to C12-18 fatty alcohols) that absorbs quickly and leaves a dry but silky finish on the skin. In terms of skin feel, it is similar to Dicaprylyl Carbonate , another commonly used light emollient."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Scutellaria Baicalensis Root Extract",
    "description": "A traditional Chinese herbal medicine loaded with potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory flavonoids such as baicalin, baicalein, and wogonin . If that would not be enough, Skullcap Root is also claimed to have antimicrobial and antifungal properties (also against P.acnes and Malassezia furfur ) as well as some skin-brightening activity . A multi-functional skin-goodie."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Algae Extract",
    "description": "We have to admit that Algae Extract is not our favorite ingredient name. It does comply with the INCI standard (the official list about how ingredients on the product labels have to be called, the thing we help you to decode here :)), but there are about 20 000 different kinds of algae and an extract from them can be made in another 10 000 ways. So, Algae Extract can be anything from La Mer's \" Miracle Broth \" to a simple brown algae extract that helps to smooth the hair . The official description in the Europiean Cosmetic Ingredient listing is this: \"an extract of various species of Algae; Extract of the Seaweed, Fucus vesiculosus, Furaceae\". Its official functions include being a humectant (helps skin to attract water), emollient (makes skin feel smooth and nice) and skin conditioner (a catchall phrase for saying it does something good for the skin). A 2015 research paper on the potential of uses of algae in cosmetics summarizes that algae are rich sources of biologically active metabolites including antioxidants, anti-inflammatory agents, alginates, polysaccharides, and carotenoids . Currently, algae extracts are mostly used as moisturizing and thickening agents, but algae also have great potential to combat skin aging , pigmentation as well as working as an antimicrobial. We have also browsed through Prospector to see what manufacturers say about their algae. There is, for example, an algae extract trade-named Lanablue that comes from blue-green algae (green algae is rare, less than 1% of the total macroalgae in the world) and is claimed to have retinoid like effects (i.e. reduce wrinkles, smooth skin) but without the side effects (though it seems now that the INCI name of Lanablue was changed to Aphanizomenon Flos-Aquae Extract ). There is another algae extract from another manufacturer that comes from red algae (much more common, about 40% of total macroalgae worldwide) and is claimed to have not only moisturizing but also skin smoothing and densifying effects. Here is a brown algae extract (the most common type, about 59% of macroalgae), also just called Algae Extract on the product label that is simply claimed to be a free radical scavenger, aka antioxidant. These were just three random examples from three manufacturers all called Algae extract even though they all come from different algae with different claims. Anyhow, the point is this; there are tons of different types of Algae Extracts out there. Unless the brand tells you what they use, it's impossible to know for sure. The most probable scenario for the Alge Extract is that it works as a moisturizer and emollient and it might have some additional anti-aging properties ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Coconut Alkanes",
    "description": "Coconut Alkanes is a volatile (something that does not absorb into the skin but evaporates from it), naturally derived vegetable alkane coming from renewable sources. It is a light, oily liquid that works as an emollient and gives a smooth skin feel . It's often combined with another emollient called Coco-Caprylate/Caprate and the two together can serve as a great replacement for some volatile silicones, like Cyclopentasiloxane ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tremella Fuciformis Sporocarp Extract",
    "description": "A polysaccharide (a big sugar molecule) coming from the edible fruit bodies of the Silver Ear mushroom in China . Legend has it, imperial Concubine Yang Kuei- fei - the most beautiful woman in Chinese history - used it for her facial care. So Tremella Extract is a big molecule (more than 1M Da molecular weight) with sugar constituents of Mannose, Xylose , and Glucuronic acid (20%). The last one is the most important one, as Glucuronic acid is also a major component in hyaluronic acid (HA). Thanks to this, Tremella is claimed to be an awesome moisturizer with slightly greater water-holding capacities than HA itself. This is quite a big deal as HA is known for its crazy water-holding capacity (up to 1000 times its own weight). Not only that but Tremella also seems to have some antioxidant effect, it's not sticky (humectants do tend to be sticky) and it leaves skin moist and smooth . No wonder, Concubine Yang Kuei-fei liked this mushroom."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Butyroyl Hyaluronate",
    "description": "It's a newish hyaluronic acid derivative, that's claimed to give long-lasting moisturizing effects and enhance skin elasticity."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pyrus Malus Fruit Extract",
    "description": "Apple needs no introduction as one of the most common fruits on planet Earth. It's not only a healthy fruit snack, it's also a goodie if you put in all over your face. It's loaded with proteins, starch, sugars, acids, vitamins and salts . The sugars (mainly fructose, glucose, sucrose) give apple fruit extract nice moisturizing and smoothing properties, while the acids (mainly malic  and gallic acid) give it mild exfoliant, skin brightening and antibacterial properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tasmannia Lanceolata Fruit/​Leaf Extract",
    "description": "Tasmanian Pepper is a nice shrub living under hard conditions in the mountains of the Southeastern lands of Australia. It has small, round, purple-black berries that when dried, look like black pepper. Hence the name. As for skincare, the berries contain a couple of great actives. The primary one is called polygodial that has potent anti-inflammatory, anti-allergic and antimicrobial activity. According to the manufacturers in-vivo (made on real people) tests , Tasmanian Pepper Extract can relieve itching and burning sensation to a great extent (79% and 58% decrease) almost instantly (after only 5 mins). It also contains anthocyanins , that are well-known antioxidants . The berries are claimed to have an antioxidant power 3x greater than blueberries. A third active in the berries is called rutin , an anti-inflammatory agent that can strengthen capillaries . Thanks to this, Tasmanian Pepper might be able to help reduce dark undereye circles . All in all, an interesting plant extract with soothing and antioxidant activity."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Inulin Lauryl Carbamate",
    "description": "A polymeric (big molecule from repeated subunits) emulsifier that comes from Inulin , a naturally occurring polysaccharide found in the roots and rhizomes of several plants. The emulsifier is obtained by adding oil-loving chains onto inulin. The resulting copolymer can emulsify high amounts of oil and can stabilize oil droplets or non-water soluble particles so that they do not clump together in the formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tetradecyl Aminobutyroylvalylaminobutyric Urea Trifluoroacetate",
    "description": "A small, three amino acid synthetic tripeptide with a molecular weight smaller than 500 Da (500 Da is often referred to as the limit for proper skin penetration ). The manufacturer claims that it can boost the synthesis of hyaluronic acid in the skin (up to 300% based on in-vitro tests) that is important for proper skin hydration and plumpness. It can also improve collagen fiber quality by increasing some structural skin elements (so-called proteoglycans ), like decorin and lumican. The peptide is suggested for firming and remodelling treatments, as well as against skin sagging . It's also marketed as a \"needle-free hyaluronan booster\"."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dehydroacetic Acid",
    "description": "A helper ingredient that helps to make the products stay nice longer, aka preservative . It works mainly against fungi and has only milder effect against bacteria. It is Ecocert and Cosmos approved, works quite well at low concentrations (0.1-0.6%) and is popular in natural products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isodecyl Neopentanoate",
    "description": "A  low molecular weight dry, silky emollient ester that gives a light and non-greasy feel to the formulas. It's great at reducing the oily or heavy feeling caused by certain ingredients such as sunscreen agents or pigments. It also gives improved emolliency, spreadability and a smooth, elegant feel on the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "C13-15 Alkane",
    "description": "A biodegradable emollient that gives a fresh gliding sensation and a powdery after feel. It works well with all kinds of oils including natural and silicone oils."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sucrose Laurate",
    "description": "A sugar ester (sucrose + lauric acid) that works as an emulsifier and oil thickener . It's a great ingredient to make oily gel cleansers that turn to milk on contact with water. It's also 100% natural and combined with glycerin and oils (trade name Sucragel), it gives the basis for a gentle, yet effective, moisturizing oily gel cleansers. According to the manufacturer's 20 person study , skin is twice as hydrated 2 hours after using a Sucragel based cleanser compared to using a moisturising Sodium Laureth Sulfate cleanser."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acrylates/​Ethylhexyl Acrylate Crosspolymer",
    "description": "A softening and texturizing agent that can also absorb high amounts of excess oil produced by the skin. It leaves a mat, soft and velvety feel on the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dodecane",
    "description": "A natural based very light and highly spreading emollient that can be an alternative to water-thin, volatile silicone, Cyclopentasiloxane ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isononyl Isononanoate",
    "description": "An emollient ester with a rich and creamy but non-greasy skin feel . It makes skin supple and protects dry skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethylene/​Propylene/​Styrene Copolymer",
    "description": "A helper ingredient that's used as an oil gelling agent together with its sibling, Butylene/Ethylene/Styrene Copolymer . These two together can be combined with different types of hydrocarbons (e.g. mineral oil or different emollient esters) to form gels with different sensorial and physical properties. The resulted hydrocarbon gels can improve skin occlusivity (and reduce trans-epidermal water loss) and they are also excellent to form suspensions."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Silica Dimethyl Silylate",
    "description": "It's a water-hating, fumed silica that works as a thickener for oils and it can also suspend particles in oils . Also, increases the gloss of castor oil that can be useful for makeup products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Butylene/​Ethylene/​Styrene Copolymer",
    "description": "A helper ingredient that's used as a gelling agent together with a hydrocarbon and its sibling, Ethylene/Propylene/Styrene Copolymer . Read more there ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Trihydroxystearin",
    "description": "A hydrogenated castor oil derivative that is used as an oil gelling agent . It can thicken up both oils as well as silicones."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glucomannan",
    "description": "Glucomannan is a polysaccharide (a big sugar molecule) coming from the Konjac plant . It has great water-absorbing capacity and is one of the key ingredients in the plumping and smoothing active called Ultra Filling Spheres by BASF . The magic filling spheres have two active parts: a kind of LMW hyaluronic acid  (<40 kDa) and the konjac root powder or glucomannan. The latter one is a big molecule (> 200 kDa) that has outstanding water-absorbing capacities.  These two combined form small spheres which after drying, are transformed into the active spheres. Thanks to their high hygroscopic properties, the spheres can expand rapidly in the presence of the skin’s water reserve and they can plump up the skin and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethyl 2,2-Dimethylhydrocinnamal",
    "description": "It's a fragrance ingredient that goes by the trade name Florazon. It smells like \" fresh air \" or \" marine air \" and works well in compositions with white flower note. It's also a top note booster and good for watery-fruity compositions."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Alpha-Arbutin",
    "description": "An optical isomer of naturally occurring arbutin (or beta-arbutin). Just like its sibling, alpha-arbutin is also a skin-brightening, depigmenting agent . Researching the difference between the two kinds of arbutin, you can read in multiple places on the internet that alpha-arbutin is stronger in effect. Unfortunately, it's never backed up with a credible source. :(  Our own research resulted in conflicting results: a study from 1995 found that alpha-arbutin is 10x as effective on mouse melanoma as beta-arbutin. On the other hand, a more recent study from 2015 found that beta-arbutin is more effective both on mouse melanoma cells and on human melanoma cells (btw, kojic acid was the most effective on human melanoma cells). None of the studies we could find is in-vivo (made on real people) anyways, so who knows. We think you cannot go wrong with trying both beta- and alpha-arbutin and see if one works better for you than the other."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethylhexyl Palmitate",
    "description": "A super common, medium-spreading emollient ester that gives richness to the formula and a mild feel during rubout. It can be a replacement for mineral oil and is often combined with other emollients to achieve different sensorial properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Curculigo Orchioides Root Extract",
    "description": "A plant extract coming from a nice yellow flower from the shady forests of Asia. It's a traditional medicinal plant with a bunch of magic properties: it's claimed to be aphrodisiac, anti-inflammatory, sedative, antioxidant, hepatoprotective, and even anticancer. As for skincare, the root extract is loaded with sugars and a phenolic glycoside called curculigosides . According to manufacturer info , Golden Eye-Grass can modulate the internal mechanism of skin's pH control . The right pH of the skin (slightly acidic SC) is really important for lipid-processing enzymes to work correctly and thus to maintain a strong and healthy skin barrier. And a good skin barrier means less sensitive, less reactive and more healthy skin . Definitely an interesting plant and goodie if you have sensitive skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Gallyl Glucoside",
    "description": "Gallyl Glucoside is a glycosylated form of gallic acid (i.e. attaching the sugar molecule, glucose to gallic acid) coming from oak leaves. It is known for its antioxidant and soothing properties and usually comes to the formula combined with other plant-derived glucosides."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Arbutin",
    "description": "A pretty well-known and often used ingredient with the magic ability to fade brown spots . It's used traditionally in Japan and can be found naturally in a couple of plants , including the leaves of pear trees, wheat and bearberry . Arbutin seems to work its magic and hinder the pigmentation process at the second step of it. An enzyme called tyrosinase is needed to create melanin (the pigment that causes the brown spots) and while several other skin lightening agents work to inhibit the synthesis of tyrosinase itself (like vitamin C or licorice ), arbutin lets tyrosinase be and rather hinders the melanin-forming activity of the enzyme . (So it might be a good idea to combine arbutin with some direct tyrosinase inhibitors for more skin lightening effect.) All in all, arbutin is one of the better-known skin brightening agents, that's probably worth a try if pigmentation is an issue for you."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Epigallocatechin Gallatyl Glucoside",
    "description": "It's a \"bioengineered\" version of superstar green tea polyphenol, EGCG (EGCG attached to a glucose molecule). According to the manufacturer , it's a highly water soluble, stabilized and purified form that's easier to formulate but it keeps the great antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits of  regular EGCG. It's  Ecocert approved."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Disodium Acetyl Glucosamine Phosphate",
    "description": "It's a \"bioengineered\" from of skin building block N-acetylglucosamine-6-phosphate (NAG6P) that is used by the skin to synthesize important skin-identical humectants like GAGs and hyaluronan . According to the manufacturer's in-vitro and ex-vivo (made in the lab not on real people) tests , NovHyal can boost GAGs production both in the upper and middle layer of the skin by 84% in 10 days. It can also increase hyaluronic acid synthesis by 282% in just 2 days. Sounds good, though some in-vivo tests (made on real people) would be nice."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Rosa Canina Seed Oil",
    "description": "The oil coming from the seeds of dog-rose , a wild rose species native to Europe, northwest Africa and western Asia. It's a nice emollient, moisturizing plant oil loaded with skin-nourishing fatty acids (linoleic acid - 51%, linolenic acid - 19% and oleic acid - 20%). If you start to dig a bit deeper into the rosehip oil topic, you will soon see that there are lots of species of rose , and it's all a bit confusing to know what the differences and similarities between the oils of the different roses are. As far as our research can tell, here is the gist. In skincare t wo major types of rosehip oil are used: 1. Rosa Rubiginosa that is a synonym for Rosa Eglanteria and for Rosa Mosqueta. We will call it RR from now on. 2. Rosa Canina , or RC The oil content and composition of RR and RC is similar, but there are some differences: RR contains 8% of oil, while RC contains a bit more, 10%. However, the quality of RR oil seems to be a bit bette r: it contains 78% essential unsaturated fatty acids while RC contains only 71%. Also, the linoleic-oleic ratio of RR is better (3.3 vs 2.5) that might be important if your skin is acne-prone (as linoleic acid is good for acne and oleic is not). There is one more important thing to mention: RR oil is famous for containing the miracle active, tretinoin. Though Wikipedia puts RR and RC oil under the same article called as Rose hip seed oil , the referenced research about tretinoin content examines only Rosa Rubiginosa. We looked for a research paper explicitly stating that Rosa Canina also contains tretinoin, but could not find one, so we can neither deny nor confirm it. What we could find is a paper mentioning the tocopherols (vitamin E) and carotenoids (pro-vitamin A) content of Rosa Canina oil that gives it some nice antioxidant properties. All in all, it is a great emollient plant oil with great fatty acids beneficial for any skin type."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Mandelic Acid",
    "description": "An AHA , that comes from bitter almond and is named after the German name of almond, “mandel”. If you have never heard of AHAs (where have you been? :)) then go ahead and read all about the most famous representative, glycolic acid . We will wait. When it comes to skincare you have to know about AHAs. So go and read it , and let’s meet here afterward. Hey, welcome back! Now that you are an AHA and especially a glycolic acid expert we will just focus on the main differences between mandelic acid and glycolic acid . The first difference is that mandelic acid has a bigger molecular structure than glycolic acid . Because of this it can penetrate less deeply and works more on the skin surface. Most probably this is the reason why mandelic acid is more gentle on the skin. But this does not mean that mandelic acid is not an effective exfoliator. It is. It can gently lift off dead skin cells from the surface that results in smoother and more even complexion . Compared to glycolic acid the exfoliation action is slower but also safer . Even sensitive skin types tolerate mandelic acid pretty well. Another distinct feature of mandelic acid among the AHAs is that it has well-known antibacterial properties . Because of this, it's a promising ingredient in treating acne . Also mandelic acid has effective skin brightening properties, and it seems to be particularly effective in lightening post inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH) . A study from 2009 has compared a 35% glycolic acid peel with 20% salicylic acid + 10% mandelic acid peel (SMP) on skins with active acne and post acne scarring and hyperpigmentation. SMP proved to be more effective both in treating acne lesions and hyperpigmentation and with fewer side effects. Of course salicylic acid is a superstar ingredient but still it is a promising result for mandelic acid. Another promising study for mandelic acid and its ability to fight acne is a Polish study from 2015. It's not an independent study and it's also not placebo-controlled (or double blind), but still better than nothing. It examined the effectiveness of 5% and 10% mandelic acid (for 60 days) and found that \"both are safe and effective for the treatment of acne \".  Mandelic acid was the most effective at decreasing the number of pustules (-60% in 60 days), but it also worked to a lesser extent for inflammatory nodules (-30%) and comedones (-20%). Other good to know things are pretty similar to other AHAs: it’s effective at home pH range is 3-4 , you should use a sunscreen next to it, and experiment a bit how much and how often your skin can tolerate it. According to manufacturer info, daily use is suggested up to 10% . Oh, one more thing: as opposed to glycolic acid mandelic acid is light sensitive so choose a product with proper opaque packaging. Bottom line : mandelic acid is a less researched, but a very promising AHA. Just like other AHAs it gently exfoliates, but it also has antibacterial effect and seems to be an especially good choice for acne prone, problem skin ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pelargonium Graveolens Flower Oil",
    "description": "The fragrant essential oil coming from the flowers of Rose Geranium . Like most essential oils, it contains antioxidant and antimicrobial component s, but the main ones are fragrant constituents (like citronellol and geraniol ). Be careful with it, if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Kigelia Africana Fruit Extract",
    "description": "Kigelia Africana is a big tree (up tp 20m tall) native to Africa that has sausage-like fruits, hence the nickname \"sausage tree\". It's a traditional medicinal plant used to heal pretty much everything: it's used for its anticancer, antiulcer, anti-aging, antioxidant, and anti-malarial properties. Modern scientific studies do confirm plenty of its therapeutic properties. It contains a bunch of active phytochemicals (e.g.fatty acids, coumarins, caffeic acid, sterols, and flavonoids) that give the fruit extract anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and antibacterial properties . According to manufacturer info , Kigelia Fruit also has great firming properties and can be used to \"tone and firm the bust\" (that is claimed to be also a traditional use in Africa) and to improve skin firmness and elasticity."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Behenyl Alcohol",
    "description": "A fatty alcohol (the non-drying type with a long oil loving chain of 22 carbon atoms) that is used to increase the viscosity of the formula and it also helps the oily and the watery parts to stay nicely mixed together (called emulsion stabilizing )."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glyceryl Stearate Citrate",
    "description": "Glyceryl stearate citrate is similar to the super common skincare ingredient glyceryl stearate , and is similarly used to help combine waters and oils (emulsifier) and to make your skin feel nice and soft (emollient). The main difference between glyceryl stearate citrate and its cousin glyceryl stearate is that this one has a citric acid molecule also attached to its glycerin . This makes it what chemists call a diacylglycerol, which is a fancy word for two acids (in this case, citric acid and stearic acid) attached together with a glycerin bridge. But when it comes to cosmetics, all you need to know is that both glyceryl stearate citrate and glyceryl stearate are safe, tried and true emulsifiers . Expect to see them in formulas with both water-based and oil-based ingredients (think moisturizers and lotions)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Nylon-12",
    "description": "An  odorless, slightly yellowish powder that's used as a polymer microsphere (a tiny little ball from repeated subunits). It gives products an elegant, silky texture and better slip. It can also scatter light to blur fine lines while letting enough light through so that the skin still looks natural."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pogostemon Cablin Leaf Oil",
    "description": "If you are into perfumes, you must know patchouli as an important essential oil in the perfume industry. It boasts a pleasant woody, earthy and camphoraceous scent and has fixative properties (makes the fragrance long-lasting). Its composition is pretty unique: it does not contain any of the EU's 26 most common fragrance allergens, but its most important components are patchoulol (30%) and alpha- patchoulene (6%) which are responsible for its aroma and antifungal properties . Among essential oils, the allergen profile of patchouli counts as pretty good (much better than ylang-ylang or lemongrass oils), but if your skin is sensitive, it's still best to avoid it."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydroxypropyl Tetrahydropyrantriol",
    "description": "A \"green chemical\" developed by L'oreal in 2006. It comes from the sugar molecule, xylose that can be found in beechwood. According to L'Oreal's claims, Pro-Xylane can boost the production of important skin-building blocks called GAGs (aka glycosaminoglycans , important NMFs ) in the extracellular matrix (the goopy stuff between our skin cells) that results in better hydrated and firmer skin ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Prunus Armeniaca Kernel Oil",
    "description": "The emollient plant oil coming from the kernel (the seed of the seed) of the delicious apricot fruit. Like other plant oils, it contains antioxidant vitamin E and nourishing fatty acids (mostly oleic acid 54-74%, linoleic acid 12-35% ). It's a nice general purpose emollient, has nourishing and moisturizing properties (as a high oleic oil it's ideal for dry skin types) and is quite easily absorbed into the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sorbic Acid",
    "description": "A mild, natural preservative that usually comes to the formula together with its other mild preservative friends, such as Benzoic Acid and/or Dehydroacetic Acid . Btw, it's also used as a food preservative."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dimethiconol",
    "description": "A thick, high molecular weight silicone that is usually diluted in another, lighter silicone fluid (like dimethicone or cyclopentasiloxane ). The dimethiconol containing silicone blends leave a silky smooth, non-greasy film on the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dimethicone Crosspolymer",
    "description": "A high-molecular-weight silicone elastomer (rubber-like elastic material) that is usually blended with a base silicone fluid (such as dimethicone or cyclopentasiloxane ) to give the formula a silky smooth feel and to act as a thickening agent."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate",
    "description": "A vegetable based co-surfactant that helps to create mild cleansing formulas ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isopropyl Isostearate",
    "description": "An oily liquid (ester) that makes your skin nice and smooth, aka emollient . It is described as highly emollient or substantive, but with a light and easy spreading and nonoily skin feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetearyl Glucoside",
    "description": "A sugar based emulsifier that's especially great for low viscosity lotions or even sprays. It's effective in small amounts, only 1-1.5% is needed to form an emulsion. The resulting cream or lotion has great cosmetic properties with good spreadability and an enhanced soft skin feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4",
    "description": "A pretty famous and better-researched peptide consisting of five amino acids (the building blocks of all proteins). It was created in a joint effort by the French ingredient supplier, Sederma and the cosmetics industry big shot, Procter&Gamble. The amino acid sequence of the peptide is lysine–threonine–threonine–lysine–serine (KTTKS). Sometimes, it's also called collagen pentapeptide, as it's a subfragment of skin-structure-giving type I collagen . The KTTKS amino sequence is then attached for better oil solubility and skin penetration to palmitic acid and BOOM; we get Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4. Though most research is manufacturer sponsored, the clinical studies about Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4 are promising.  In short, it can reduce fine lines, wrinkles and improve skin texture significantly (and at crazy low concentrations, the studies were done with just 3 ppm that is 0.0003%). There are also studies comparing Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4 with anti-aging gold standard, retinol . One of them compared 3ppm Pal-KTTKS with 700 ppm (0.07%) retinol and found that they showed similar wrinkle improving ability with the peptide showing better skin tolerability. Bottom line, if you are into peptides, this is a good one to try."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Acrylates Copolymer",
    "description": "A big molecule from repeated subunits that is used to form gel-like textures and create a film on the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyethylene",
    "description": "Polyethylene is the most common plastic in the world. It is a super versatile polymer (molecule from repeated subunits) and when it comes to cosmetics, it is often referred to as microbeads. Well, it used to be referred to as microbeads, as it was banned in 2015 in the \" Microbead-Free Waters Act \" due to the small plastic spheres accumulating in the waters and looking like food to fish. Well done by Obama. But being versatile means that polyethylene does not only come as scrub particles but also as a white wax. In its wax-form, it is still well, alive and pretty popular . It thickens up water-free formulas, increases hardness and raises the melting point of emulsions and water-less balms. It is particularly common in cleansing balms and stick-type makeup products due to its ability to add body, hardness and slip to these formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Aluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate",
    "description": "A handy helper ingredient that comes in a white powder form and works as an anti-caking and oil-absorbing agent . It also gives products good spreadability, long lasting and velvet touch characteristics . It is popular both in skincare and makeup products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethylparaben",
    "description": "A very common type of feared-by-everyone-mostly-without-scientific-reason paraben. It's a cheap, effective and well-tolerated ingredient to make sure the cosmetic formula does not go wrong too soon. Read more about parabens here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Mica",
    "description": "A super versatile and common mineral powder that comes in different particle sizes. It is a multi-tasker used to improve skin feel, increase product slip, give the product light-reflecting properties, enhance skin adhesion or serve as an anti-caking agent . It is also the most commonly used \"base\" material for layered composite pigments such as pearl-effect pigments . In this case, mica is coated with one or more metal oxides (most commonly titanium dioxide ) to achieve pearl effect via the physical phenomenon known as interference."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Oleic Acid",
    "description": "A common fatty acid that can be found in lots of plant oils. Its name, \"oleic\", means derived from olive oil , a plant oil rich in oleic acid, but avocado , macadamia and marula oils, just to name a few, are also oleic rich. Its chemical structure is monounsaturated, meaning it has one double bond (cis-9) that makes it less kinky than polyunsaturated fatty acids with multiple double bonds. Less kinkiness means that oleic acid and OA-rich oils are a bit thicker and heavier than their LA-rich siblings . Maybe this thickness is the reason that Oleic acid is considered comedogenic , and if you have acne-prone skin avoid OA-rich plant oils , and choose linoleic acid -rich versions instead. The thickness of OA also means that OA-rich oils are considered more nourishing and moisturizing than their LA-rich counterparts, and are generally considered to be more suitable for dry, mature skin types. As for oleic acid in its free form (and by free we mean that it is not bound up in a triglyceride structure like it is in oils), it mostly serves as an emulsifier or emulsion stabilizer in small amounts in regular cosmetic products. It is also quite well researched and is used in the pharmaceutical industry as a penetration enhancer ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polysilicone-11",
    "description": "A type of silicone elastomer (rubber-like material with both viscosity and elasticity) whose major function is forming a nice film on the skin . It is also cosmetically very elegant with a non-tacky, non-oily and smooth skin feel . It also works as a stable delivery system of active materials , has sebum absorption and control properties and upon application, it transforms into a matte appearance with a powdery after feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Triolein",
    "description": "A high stability high oleic acid oil derived from microalgae in an eco-friendly process. It works as an emollient in the formula, similar to other vegetable oils."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glycine Soja Seed Extract",
    "description": "When you hear the word Soy, you probably associate it with soy sauce or tofu, not skincare. But as it turns out, the soybean has a bunch of useful active components and soybean extract is an interesting cosmetic ingredient with a wide range of possible effects. Its main active components are antioxidant phenolic acids and flavonoids as well as small and large soy proteins . The large proteins give soybean extract nice skin smoothing and softening properties , while the small proteins (soybean trypsin inhibitor (STI) and Bowman-Birk inhibitor (BBI)) are thought to inhibit skin pigmentation and delay hair regrowth . Regarding skin pigmentation, the soybean extract works by hindering melanosome transfer , meaning it blocks the melanin pigment from traveling up to the surface of the skin and becoming visible there. This is useful for most pigmentation situations but, if you have melasma, soy is not for you as melasma is estrogen-mediated and soy is a well-known phytoestrogen . The most famous and bioactive flavonoids in soybeans are the isoflavones called genistein and diadzein that have potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties . Genistein is also proven to inhibit UV induced redness in human skin. These isoflavones are also the ones that make soy a phytoestrogen , meaning they have a (weak) estrogenic effect. Topical estrogen is known to decrease skin thinning and collagen loss and soy might be able to do the same, especially during and after menopause when natural estrogen levels run low. There is also some promising, but as yet not in-vivo (done on real people), research that soybean extract can stimulate both elastin and collagen synthesis and thus lead to healthier, younger-looking skin. Overall , soybean extract is a promising and multi-functional active, a nice addition to most ingredient lists."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isoceteth-20",
    "description": "A handy helper ingredient that works as an emulsifier or solubilizer to include oil-loving ingredients (such as fragrance) into water-based products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Aminomethyl Propanol",
    "description": "An alkaline (high pH, aka basic) material that is used to set the pH of the cosmetic formula to the right value ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Argania Spinosa Kernel Oil",
    "description": "When it comes to cosmetic oils and hype, argan oil is for sure leading the way. Dubbed as the \" liquid gold of Morocco \", we have to admit we have some trouble determining why this oil enjoys such a special miracle status. Not that it's not good, it is good, even great but reading the research about argan and a bunch of other plant oils we just do not see the big, unique differentiating factor (though that might be our fault not reading enough, obvs.) So, argan oil comes from the kernel of the argan fruit that comes from the argan tree that grows only in Morocco. The tree is slow growing and getting the oil is a hard job. The traditional process is that the ripe argan fruits fall from the tree, then goats eat them up and poop out the seeds. The seeds are collected and smashed with a stone to get the kernels inside. This part is the hard one as the seeds have extremely hard shells. Once the kernels are obtained, the oil is pressed out from them (the kernels contain about 50% oil). As for skincare, argan oil is loaded with lots of skin goodies (but so are many other plant oils): it contains 80% nourishing and moisturizing unsaturated fatty acids , mainly oleic (38-50%), linoleic (28-38%) and palmitic (10-18%) . It also contains a relatively large amount of antioxidant vitamin E (600-900 mg/kg, about twice as much as olive ), small amounts of antioxidant phenols (including caffeic acid, ferulic acid, and epicatechin), as well as some rare sterols with soothing and anti-inflammatory properties. Thanks to all the above goodness in argan oil, it can greatly nourish and moisturize the skin and hair . It's also claimed to be able to neutralize collagen-damaging free radicals, help reduce scars, and revitalize and improve skin elasticity. You can even read that argan might help acne-prone skin, but being a high oleic oil, we would be careful with that . All in all, argan oil is a real goodie but we do not fully understand the special miracle status it enjoys."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Simmondsia Chinensis Seed Oil",
    "description": "Jojoba is a drought resistant evergreen shrub native to South-western North America. It's known and grown for jojoba oil, the golden yellow liquid coming from the seeds (about 50% of the weight of the seeds will be oil). At first glance, it seems like your average emollient plant oil: it looks like an oil and it's nourishing and moisturizing to the skin but if we dig a bit deeper, it turns out that jojoba oil is really special and unique : technically - or rather chemically - it's not an oil but a wax ester (and calling it an oil is kind of sloppy). So what the heck is a wax ester and why is that important anyway? Well, to understand what a wax ester is, you first have to know that oils are chemically triglycerides : one glycerin + three fatty acids attached to it. The fatty acids attached to the glycerin vary and thus we have many kinds of oils, but they are all triglycerides. Mother Nature created triglycerides to be easily hydrolyzed (be broken down to a glycerin + 3 fatty acid molecules) and oxidized (the fatty acid is broken down into small parts) - this happens basically when we eat fats or oils and our body generates energy from it . Mother Nature also created wax esters but for a totally different purpose. Chemically, a wax ester is a fatty acid + a fatty alcohol , one long molecule. Wax esters are on the outer surface of several plant leaves to give them environmental protection . 25-30% of human sebum is also wax esters to give us people environmental protection. So being a wax ester results in a couple of unique properties: First, jojoba oil is extremely stable . Like crazy stable. Even if you heat it to 370 C (698 F) for 96 hours, it does not budge. (Many plant oils tend to go off pretty quickly). If you have some pure jojoba oil at home, you should be fine using it for years. Second, jojoba oil is the most similar to human sebum (both being wax esters), and the two are completely miscible. Acne.org has this not fully proven theory that thanks to this, jojoba might be able to \"trick\" the skin into thinking it has already produced enough sebum, so it might have \"skin balancing\" properties for oily skin. Third, jojoba oil moisturizes the skin through a unique dual action: on the one hand, it mixes with sebum and forms a thin, non-greasy, semi-occlusive layer; on the other hand, it absorbs into the skin through pores and hair follicles then diffuses into the intercellular spaces of the outer layer of the skin to make it soft and supple . On balance, the point is this : in contrast to real plant oils, wax esters were designed by Mother Nature to stay on the surface and form a protective, moisturizing barrier and jojoba oil being a wax ester is uniquely excellent at doing that."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Plukenetia Volubilis Seed Oil",
    "description": "An emollient plant oil coming from the Sacha Inchi plant from the Colombian Amazon. Similar to other plant oils, it's loaded with nourishing and moisturizing fatty acids : it's especially rich in α-Linolenic acid (42-49%) and linoleic acid (32-38%) and contains less oleic acid (9-14%). It also contains a decent amount of antioxidant vitamin E (200 mg/kg)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Carthamus Tinctorius Seed Oil",
    "description": "The oil coming from the seeds of the yellow flowered safflower plant . Similar to other plant oils, it's loaded with nourishing and moisturizing fatty acids : it's a high linoleic acid oil (70%) and has only smaller amounts of oleic acid (11%) ( this might be great for acne-prone skin ). It also contains antioxidant vitamin E (44mg/100g alpha-tocopherol)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cyclomethicone",
    "description": "Cyclomethicone is not one type of silicone , but a whole mixture of them: it's a mix of specific chain length (4 to 7) cyclic structured silicone molecules. (There seems to be a confusion on the internet whether Cyclomethicone and Cyclopentasiloxane are the same. They are not the same, but Cyclopentasiloxane is part of the mixture that makes up Cyclomethicone). All the silicones in the Cyclomethicone mixture are volatile , meaning they evaporate from the skin or hair rather than stay on it. This means that Cyclomethicone has a light skin feel with none-to-minimal after-feel .  It also makes the formulas easy to spread and has nice emollient properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Menthol",
    "description": "Menthol needs no introduction: it's the thing that causes the cooling sensation so well-known both from cosmetic products as well as a bunch of other things like chocolate, chewing gum, toothpaste or cigarette. It's a natural compound that comes from the essential oil of Mentha species (peppermint oil contains 40-50% menthol) and it gives them their typical minty smell and flavor. As for skincare, menthol seems to be a mixed bag . Apart from the cool cooling sensation (that might last up to 70 mins!), it also has painkilling, itch reducing, antibacterial, antifungal and even penetration enhancing properties. On the other hand, it also seems to act as a skin irritant that increases trans-epidermal water loss (the water that evaporates from the outer layer of the skin) and thus contributes to drying out the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Disteardimonium Hectorite",
    "description": "An organic derivative of hectorite clay , Disteardimonium Hectorite is used as a viscosity controller - it thickens up formulations to make them less runny. It’s most popular use in cosmetics is in sunscreens, under the trademarked name Bentone 38 from Elementis . According to the manufacturer info, it is a real multi-tasker, including the ability to prevent pigments settling during storage, stabilizing a formula for longer , creating a light and smooth skin feel and enhancing the water-resistance of sunscreen formulas ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Trisiloxane",
    "description": "A clear, colorless, very easily spreadable and very volatile (evaporates from the skin easily) silicone fluid . It leaves a non-greasy, dry-smooth feel on the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "DMDM Hydantoin",
    "description": "A controversial preservative that has formaldehyde-releasing properties . It works great against bacteria and also has mild fungicide abilities. Cosmetic chemist, Colin wrote a great article about formaldehyde and DMDM Hydantoin .  He writes that formaldehyde is the perfect example of \" the dose makes the poison \" principle. It's a natural stuff that can also be found in fresh fruits and vegetables, and eating it in tiny amounts is totally ok. However, in larger amounts ( according to Wikipedia 30 mL of a solution containing 37% formaldehyde) it's deadly. The amount of formaldehyde used in cosmetics either neat or through formaldehyde-releasing preservatives is tiny. Probably that is why the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Broad concluded both in 1988 and in 2008 that DMDM Hydantoin is \" safe as used in cosmetics \". However, Colins argues that in the case of formaldehyde-releasing preservatives, formaldehyde is released slowly and the skin has probably not evolved to deal with that. The lingering formaldehyde might be toxic to the Langerhans Cells that are important for the skin's defense system. Another potential issue is that formaldehyde-releasers might also release other things while reacting with amino acids in the skin that is probably the explanation why some people are not allergic to formaldehyde but are allergic to formaldehyde-releasing preservatives. These are all theories, far from proven facts, but we feel that there are some justified reasons why formaldehyde-releasing preservatives and Dmdm Hydantoin count as controversial. All in all, it's up to you to decide if you wanna avoid this preservative group or not. If so, there are other, less risky and more skin-friendly options out there."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Simethicone",
    "description": "A type of silicone that's used mainly to stop the product from foaming when it's not needed. It's also often used to coat the sunscreen agent titanium dioxide for better spreading and easier formulation."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ammonium Xylenesulfonate",
    "description": "There is not much information out there about Ammonium Xylenesulfonate other than it being a cleansing agent . It's also a so-called hydrotrope, an ingredient that enhances the solubility of things which are only slightly soluble in water. On Ulprospector we could find the ingredient as part of a shampoo surfactant blend."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Borate",
    "description": "A very alkaline colorless, crystalline powder used in tiny amounts to set the pH of cosmetics products to be just right. In larger amounts, it can be a skin irritant (the Cosmetic Ingredient Review panel concluded that sodium borate up to 5% is safe as a cosmetic ingredient, though a 5% solution should not be used on infant or injured skin)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ammonium Lauryl Sulfate",
    "description": "A pretty common cleansing agent that can be derived from coconut or palm kernel oil. It's liked for its great foaming abilities and can help to create a creamy and luxurious lather in bath products. It is chemically closely related to known-for-its -harshness SLS , but the Ammonium part makes it milder."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Carthamus Tinctorius Oleosomes",
    "description": "In general, oleosomes   are tiny-winy (micron sized) spheres that store emollient plant oils (+ some other things). In particular, Safflower Oleosomes are created from safflower seeds and carry safflower seed oil and vitamin E. According to the manufacturer , oleosomes work both as natural emulsifiers as well as time-released delivery systems . Oleosomes on the skin do not collapse at once, but slowly and they deliver the stored emollient plant oil and vitamin E over an extended period of time giving the skin long-lasting moisture ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Leuconostoc Ferment Filtrate",
    "description": "An alternative, natural preservative coming from the Leuconostoc bacteria. Koreans have used this preservation method for ages to preserve one of their traditional foods, kimchi (a type of fermented cabbage). Leuconostoc Ferment Filtrate contains non-viable microorganisms that show antimicrobial properties against a bunch of other microorganisms. The recommended use level is 2-4%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Borago Officinalis Leaf Extract",
    "description": "When it comes to borage and skincare, the seed oil is the one that's usually mentioned thanks to its uniquely high gamma-linolenic acid content. But the leaves are not useless either: they contain great antioxidant compounds , like polyphenols and flavonoids and show significant free-radical scavenging activity (though much less than vitamin C and similar to the synthetic antioxidant, BHT )."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lactobacillus/​Arundinaria Gigantea Ferment Filtrate",
    "description": "The fancy name for fermented bamboo that's obtained by macerating bamboo stalks and leaves and then fermenting them with Lactobacillus lactis. According to the manufacturer , the end result contains silica ( silicones also come from silica) and powerful antioxidants called isoflavones. Thanks to its silica content, bamboo ferment is not only an antioxidant but can be used as a natural silicone replacement giving slip to the cosmetic products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tridecyl Stearate",
    "description": "A clear, colorless oily liquid that works as a medium feel emollient . It absorbs very quickly into the skin, leaves no shine and gives a nice, velvety after-feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the juice containing leaves of the Aloe vera plant . It's usually a hydroglycolic extract (though oil extract for the lipid parts also exists) that has similar moisturizing, emollient and anti-inflammatory properties as the juice itself. We have written some more about aloe here ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Boswellia Serrata Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the Indian Frankincense, a medium-sized tree native to India. Mostly the gum-resin is used that is obtained from an incision made on the trunk of the tree.  It contains about 30-60% resin , 5-10% fragrant essential oil ,  and the rest is made up of polysaccharides (mostly arabinose, galactose, xylose). The biologically most active components of the resin are boswellic acids that have anti-inflammatory properties . According to manufacturer info , the boswellic acids rich resin extract is also a potent inhibitor of elastase (an enzyme that breaks down proteins, including collagen) and has antiGAGase activity (protecting the important natural moisturizing factors, glycosaminoglycans in the skin) meaning that it can help the skin to stay firm for a longer time. The reason why we did not award Boswellia Serrata Extract a goodie status is that this INCI name is not clear enough on the type of the extract. It might be a boswellic acids rich, anti-inflammatory extract (that is a goodie) or it might be a fragrant essential oil rich extract used in perfumery or aromatherapy that can be a problem for sensitive skin types."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sorbitan Palmitate",
    "description": "A creamy solid that helps water and oil to mix, aka emulsifier . Its solid, wax-like nature is useful for oil-based formulas where some rigidity is needed."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tetrapeptide-14",
    "description": "A peptide designed by a small company (Helix Biomedix) specializing in developing small proteins aka bioactive-peptides. Tetrapeptide-14 is claimed to be a soothing, redness reducing peptide that works by down-regulating a pro-inflammatory signal molecule (called interleukon-6) to prevent inflammation. The peptide is combined with plant extracts (green tea, boswellia) and honey and is sold under the trade name Granactive AR-1423. According to the manufacturer of the complex , 5% of the active reduced rosacea associated redness by 50% over a 4 weeks study."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Neopentyl Glycol Dicaprylate/​Dicaprate",
    "description": "An emollient ester (basically an oil like liquid) with a light, elegant and silky feel. It gives a matte finish to the products. It often comes together with two other esters (called Tridecyl Stearate and Tridecyl Trimellitate ) as the three of them can be blended so that they mimic very closely the aesthetic and textural properties of controversial, but nice feeling mineral oil ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tridecyl Trimellitate",
    "description": "A viscous, thick liquid emollient that gives lubricity and cushion at low use levels. It's great for night creams, eye area products, and skin treatment products due to the substantive film forming ability."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-3 Diisostearate",
    "description": "A natural emulsifier that brings a soft and powdery feel to the formula. It's also very gentl e and is recommended for sensitive or baby skin products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-3 Polyricinoleate",
    "description": "A plant based ingredient that helps water to mix with oil (aka W/O emulsifier).  It's especially good for soft to low-viscosity water-in-oil emulsions with non-greasy, pleasant skin feel like lip balms or thick body butters."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Honey Extract",
    "description": "Usually, a glycerin or glycol based extract of honey that has similar properties to pure honey , i.e. moisturizing, soothing and antibacterial magic properties. If you wanna know more about honey in cosmetics, we have a shiny explanation here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tretinoin",
    "description": "If you wanna get the best possible anti-aging (and a bunch of other) effects from your skincare products, tretinoin (or one of the other form of retinoids) has to be in your skincare routine. Tretinoin works! It's proven and it's the gold standard in anti-aging technology . It's the real deal. Before we dive deep into this topic, let's just clear up some vocab : the word \" retinoids \" refers to a group of compounds that are all derived from vitamin A. Retinoids include beta-carotene (the thing in orange vegetables, like carrot or  sweet potato), retinol (pure vitamin A itself), and tretinoin. There are a few other forms, but let's not get caught up in the details too much. Retinoic acid is a kind of synonym for tretinoin, or to be exact all-trans-retinoic-acids are exactly the same as tretinoin. FYI, tretinoin is a naturally occurring thing and can be found in good quality rosehip oil . A little history Retinoids are not something new and the intense research into them started quite a while ago. In 1937 Paul Karrer won the Nobel prize for figuring out the structure of vitamin A. Twelve years later, retinol was successfully synthesized and since then, vitamin A derivatives started to pop up. Tretinoin itself was developed in the late 1960s by two guys named James Fulton and Albert Kligman. It was originally intended to treat acne but acne patients in the clinical trials started to report smoother and less wrinkled skin so the research into its anti-aging benefits soon began. It went so well, that the data was submitted to the FDA (the authority that approves drugs in the US) and it approved tretinoin for \"use against photo damage\" . Even today, tretinoin is the only thing approved by the FDA in the topical anti-aging field, so it's a really big deal. All-around magic for skin health Dr. Leslie Baumann writes in her great Cosmetic Dermatology book that \"there are more than 125 distinct dermatologic disorders for which there is credible evidence of retinoid efficacy \". Don't worry, we will not list out all of them, but if you have one (or more) of the common skin problems (like wrinkles, loss of firmness, dull skin, acne or hyperpigmentation), retinoids will improve this. The reason why retinoids, especially tretinoin, are such an all-around skin problem solver is that they work on the skin at a cellular level and they make your skin cells behave in a healthy and normal way . Our skin cells contain retinoic acid receptors and tretinoin binds directly to these receptors and changes basic cell behaviour, like gene expression . Anti-aging effects in more details When it comes to skin aging, collagen plays a big role. It acts like tent poles that make sure the tent fabric is nice and firm. Adding collagen to the skin from your serums/moisturizers does not work, though. It's like throwing poles at a ramshackle tent on the ground and hoping that the poles will magically fall into the right place and erect the tent, it simply does not work that way. You can do two other things: one is to preserve the existing collagen in your skin as much as possible and the other is to convince the skin to create some more. The former will prevent wrinkles and loss of firmness, the latter has a chance to repair some of the existing damage. Tretinoin is great because it works in both ways. It inhibits collagen-destroying  enzymes called matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs, that are increased by UVB) and it's also proven to boost the skins own collagen synthesis . If that wasn't enough, tretinoin also helps aging skin in a bunch of other ways: it stimulates not only collagen (type I and III), but other important skin elements as well, e.g. natural moisturizing factor glycosaminoglycans (GAGs), or the skin protein, filaggrin. It also makes the epidermis thicker and compacts the outermost layer of the skin, the stratum corneum . The net result of all the things tretinoin does is less wrinkled, firmer, smoother and tighter skin. Simply put, pretty much everything you could want from an anti-aging ingredient. Other things tretinoin can help with We have already written that tretinoin was originally developed to treat acne, and it does. It normalizes keratinization meaning that it prevents dead skin cells from sticking together and clogging the pores. Not only that, but it also makes your pores produce less sebum that helps the pores to stay nice and clean and not get clogged up by an excess sebum and dead skin cells. Another notable benefit of tretinoin is skin lightening . It works by both preventing clumping of melanin in basal cells (skin cells at the bottom of the epidermis) and by accelerating epidermal turnover and so the loss of melanin. However, the skin lightening effect is not as strong as the gold-standard hydroquinone . In Tri-Luma cream , a prescription treatment for melasma, tretinoin, hydroquinone and a mild steroid are all combined to achieve clinical results. What's the catch (aka side effects) We often wonder why medicines, just like life, work in such a tricky way that the bigger positive effects almost always come with bigger negative side effects. This is definitely true for tretinoin and younger looking skin does not come without side effects. The most common ones are irritation, skin flaking and redness . As tretinoin (and retinoids in general) boosts the proliferation of skin cells, the \"excess\" stars to visibly flake. This usually happens about 2-4 days after starting a tret treatment and it's kind of normal. If you want fewer side effects it's good to know that more is not always better with tretinoin. A study in 1995 compared 0.1% and 0.025% tretinoin creams and found that the improvement of photoaging was similar but the irritation was much bigger with the 0.1% version. Another common side effect is dry (or drier) skin . It seems that tretinoin increases the amount of water that evaporates from the upper layer of the skin (this is called Trans Epidermal Water Loss) and might also decrease ceramide synthesis at least in the short term. Using a good moisturizer next to a tret treatment is a wise move. You also have to know that you should not use tretinoin (and retinoids in general) when you are pregnant . If you are taking Accutane (or the EU version Roaccutane) make 100% sure not to get pregnant whilst on these treatments. If you do not take it in the form of medicine but just slather it on your face, the teratogenic effect is less established. What's more, there is a study from 1993 concluding that \"topical tretinoin is not associated with an increased risk for major congenital disorders\". But when it comes to pregnancy, we say it’s best to be overcautious and do not use any retinoids in any shape or form. How to use If you are still with us (thank you! :)) and the possible side effects have not scared you off, here are a couple of tips about starting a tretinoin treatment so that you can minimize the side effects and maximize your (skins) happiness: Always use retinoid products in the evening (Not because they are photosensitizing but because retinoids tend to have poor stability when exposed to UV light.) Do not use too much, a pea size amount of product is more than enough. In the beginning, you can dilute it with an equal amount of moisturizer. If your skin is on the sensitive side, wait 15 mins after washing your face or after putting anything else on the skin so that your skin is totally dry which also helps to reduce irritation. Introduce tretinoin treatment in your life gradually, start every third night for the first 2 weeks. If everything is good (we mean no visible irritation) increase to every other night for another 2 weeks. If everything is still good, you can try every night. Be extra gentle with your skin in every other way : be careful with acids (wait 30 minutes between treatments, or use in the morning or on separate nights), do not use harsh scrubs or microdermabrasion (we think it's a wise move anyway), and do not wax your face. Bottom line : If your main skin concern is anti-aging and you like to use the tried and true solution , your best bet is a tretinoin (or another retinoid) treatment. Be careful with it though, watch for side effects, find the right strength for your skin's level of tolerance and your skin will thank you."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Astaxanthin",
    "description": "An oil-loving, red-orange colored pigment that is becoming more and more well-known as a potent antioxidant . If being an orange-colored pigment reminds you of beta-carotene from carrots, that is no coincidence: astaxanthin also belongs to the chemical group called carotenoids known for giving yellow, orange, or red color to plants. Our guy comes mostly from microalgae , a well-known and often used source is Haematococcus Pluvialis . So Astaxanthin's main thing is being an antioxidant . You can take it as a supplement or slather it on your skin, it works both ways. A mouse skin study from 2012 found that a liposomal Astaxanthin formula prevented UV‐induced skin damage in multiple ways: UV-induced skin thickening, collagen reduction, and melanin formation were all hindered or prevented when the skin was pretreated with the Astaxanthin formula. Another study from 2012 examined the cosmetic benefits of Astaxanthin and found that combining oral supplementation (6mg/day) and topical application for 8 weeks in 30 volunteers showed improvements in skin wrinkle (crow’s feet), age spot size (cheek), elasticity (crow’s feet), skin texture (cheek) and moisture content of the skin (cheek).  If that would not be enough, a 2017 mouse study found our carotenoid molecule to be effective in speeding up wound healing. Overall, Astaxanthin is an up and coming antioxidant nice to spot on any ingredient list."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cycloastragenol",
    "description": "A molecule obtained from the astragalus membranaceous root that is claimed to have telomerase activation activity . Telomerase is an enzyme that helps to elongate telomeres, the protective caps at the end of the chromosomes that get shorter and shorter with chromosome replication. The aging process associated with telomere shortening seems to be an up-and-coming aging theory and there are a couple of promising (but not yet proven) actives to hinder telomere shortening and expand cell lifespan. Cycloastragenol is one of these actives with an in-vitro study showing it can \"moderately increase telomerase activity\".  Another study claimed that cycloastragenol is a \"potent telomerase activator in neuronal cells\" and \"may have a novel therapeutic role in depression\".  We could not find in-vivo topical studies to confirm what cycloastragenol may or may not do when we slather it on our face."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Kappaphycus Alvarezii Extract",
    "description": "An extract coming from red algae that's rich in milk sugar polysaccharide called galactan. According to the manufacturer , it can stimulate the telosomic protein expression thus limiting the shortening of telomeres . Telomeres are like the plastic tips at the end of shoelaces: they give a protective ending to the DNA strands. The problem is that they get shorter and shorter with chromosome replication and after a while, they cannot protect the DNA strands anymore so DNA gets damaged and our cells cannot do their job.  Based on this theory, it's believed that limiting the shortening of telomeres can maintain skin cell longevity and delay the skin aging process . The in-vitro (in the lab) tests by the manufacturer showed that 0.5% Telesomyl on pre-senescence human fibroblasts reduced stress-induced telomeres shortening by 65%. The in-vivo (on people) tests showed that after 42 days, Telesomyl improved the appearance of the dermal matrix by 30.2%,  smoothed the skin’s surface around the crow’s feet area, and improved the perceived age of the panellists by 3 years."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "SH-Polypeptide-11",
    "description": "Sh-Polypeptide-11 is a medium sized cell signaling molecule also called Acidic Fibroblast Growth Factor. It belongs to the same group of ingredients ( Growth Factors ) as its better-known sister, Epidermal Growth Factor or Sh-Oligopeptide-1 . As its name suggests, FGF can stimulate the growth and proliferation of fibroblast cells (VIP cells that produce among other things collagen). According to manufacturer info , it also stimulates skin regeneration, wound healing and collagen and elastin synthesis. As for research, we could find an in-vitro study that proved that \"Recombinant FGF-1 strongly stimulated fibroblast and keratinocyte proliferation . However, the transition of this protein through the SC required an appropriate carrier system - lipid spheres.\" It's also good to know that slathering mitogenic (= stimulates cell proliferation) ingredients on yourself is somewhat controversial . If you are new to the \"Growth Factors and skincare\" topic, we have a more detailed explanation of Epidermal Growth Factor, so click here and read all about it ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acetyl Tetrapeptide-5",
    "description": "A four amino acid peptide that is claimed to improve puffy eye bags via its anti-oedema and anti-glycation effects. To back this claim up, the manufacturer created an in-vivo study with 20 volunteers using 10% of EYESERYL (that comes down to 0.01% (!) of the pure peptide) and found that by day 15, 70% of the volunteers improved, while 95% of the volunteers improved by the end of the study (60 days). About third of them improved only slightly, third of them showed an ok improvement and third showed a good improvement. They also have pretty convincing before and after photos, so we can tell you that for the lucky ones, the improvement can be real and visible. But, the thing is that puffiness around the eyes can have multiple reasons and one of the major ones is fat accumulation that might happen as we age. No miracle cream or ingredient can do much about that, however, another common reason is water accumulation . If the reason behind your eye bags is this latter one, trying an eye cream with Acetyl Tetrapeptide-5 can be a good idea and might bring nice improvements."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cocos Nucifera Fruit Juice",
    "description": "The freeze-dried, powder form of coconut water (also called the liquid coconut endosperm) that's claimed to be loaded with all kinds of skin-nourishing things : proteins, amino acids, sugars, vitamins, minerals and growth hormones (kinetin) that support healthy cell growth and skin hydration . According to the manufacturer's double blind placebo controlled clinical study , 8 weeks of using a 1% Cococin cream increased skin elasticity by 31.1%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetyl Ethylhexanoate",
    "description": "An odorless and colorless emollient ester (cetyl alcohol + ethylhexanoic acid) that gives a velvety and silky feel to the skin. It has great spreadability and a non-oily feel. It's a popular ingredient in makeup removers."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isostearic Acid",
    "description": "A liquid fatty acid created from oleic acid. It's claimed to have great odour, thermal and oxidation stability and is great for  the stabilization of pigments and mineral particles in oils and solvents. It's quite popular in foundations."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5",
    "description": "A tripeptide (three amino acids attached to each other: Lys-Val-Lys) that's claimed to protect and boost collagen and improve skin texture . The manufacturer did an in-vivo (made on real people) study with 45 volunteers and found that used twice daily for 84 days 1% and 2.5% Syn-Coll reduces the appearance of wrinkles by 7 and 12% respectively. In another study (also by the manufacturer) with 33 female Chinese volunteers, 77% of the participants felt that Syn-Coll visibly improved the firmness and elasticity of the skin after 4 weeks. What's more, 60% of the participants also noticed a reduction in the look of the pore size also after 4 weeks of treatment."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-14",
    "description": "A peptide that's claimed to do three important things: stimulate collagen production, stimulate the proliferation of fibroblast cells (important, collagen making skin cells) and inhibit collagen-eating, skin damaging MMPs (matrix metalloproteinases - a group of enzymes that do bad things in the skin). The net effect of all this is reduced appearance of lines and wrinkles and more hydrated, youthful looking skin . The manufacturer even claims that in a twelve-week in-vivo study Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-14 was compared to FDA-approved anti-aging treatment Renova (0.05% tretinoin ) and the two are equivalent in reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles and Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-14 does so without irritation. That's a very promising result indeed though unfortunately, we could not find the details about the study (like how long, how many people etc.) and one study is never enough anyways, so we will just say that Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-14 is a promising anti-aging peptide (while tretinoin is a proven ani-aging superstar)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-4 Laurate/​Succinate",
    "description": "A naturally derived, Ecocert approved material that can help oils to mix into waters, aka oil-in-water emulsifier ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cellulose Gum",
    "description": "A cellulose (the big molecule found in the cell wall of green plants) derivative that is used as an emulsion stabilizer and thickener ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sorbitan Sesquiisostearate",
    "description": "A light yellow liquid with vegetable origin that helps water and oil to mix togeather . It's most commonly used in foundation formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Globularia Cordifolia Callus Culture Extract",
    "description": "Plant extract coming from the stem cell culture of heart-leaved globe daisy . It runs by the trade name Resistem and the manufacturer claims that it helps to reduce the level of pro-ageing agents and local micro-inflammation in the skin. Tested on real people (in-vivo) Globularia Cordifolia Callus Culture Extract decreases skin redness (by 13.4% compared to placebo) and enhances natural skin glow (+ 9.2% compared to placebo)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Rosa Canina Fruit Oil",
    "description": "Though it says fruit oil in its name, the rosehip fruit contains the seeds that contain the oil. So this one is the same as Rosa Canina Seed Oil ,  or Rosehip Oil, known for its high omega fatty acid content (linoleic acid - 51%, linolenic acid - 19% and oleic acid - 20%) and skin-regenerative properties . There is a common misconception that rosehip oil contains vitamin C as the fruit itself does, but vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin hence it is not contained in the oil. The antioxidant and regenerative properties of the oil probably come from the oil-soluble tocopherol s (vitamin E) and carotenoids (pro-vitamin A). Read more here ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyhydroxystearic Acid",
    "description": "A so-called dispersant or dispersing agent that's used in inorganic ( titanium dioxide / zinc oxide based) sunscreens or in make-up products to help to distribute the pigments nicely and evenly on the skin. It's also claimed to increase the UV absorption of the sunscreen formula as well as to reduce the annoying white cast left behind by inorganic sunscreens."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Iron Oxides",
    "description": "A bit of a sloppy ingredient name as it covers not one but three pigments: red , yellow and black iron oxide. The trio is invaluable for \"skin-colored\" makeup products  (think your foundation and pressed powder) as blending these three shades carefully can produce almost any shade of natural-looking flesh tones."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Salicornia Herbacea Extract",
    "description": "A plant extract coming from glasswort, a type of succulent that grows in the salt marshes along the coastline of South Korea. According to its Korean manufacturer , it contains good-for-the-skin things like betaine , amino acids and minerals and the extract can strengthen the skin barrier , increase skin recovery and provide deep moisturization effect . There is also an in-vitro (not done on real people but in the lab) study from 2009 that shows promising antioxidant and skin whiting properties about the Salicornia Herbacea Extract and concludes that \"it would be a good candidate for skin rejuvenating agent\"."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Astragalus Membranaceus Root Extract",
    "description": "Astragalus Membranaceus, or Huangqi as the Chinese call it, is one of their most important medicinal herb s that is traditionally used to strengthen \"qi\", the body’s life force. It has a bunch of magic abilities including tonic , liver-protecting, immunomodulating, antihyperglycemic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antiviral properties . Modern research does prove that Huangqi is a valuable medicinal herb and contains plenty of bioactive compounds such as saponins, flavonoids, and polysaccharides . As for skincare and Huangqi, it is well known and used for its general tonic and skin reinforcing properties, as well as for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant action. On top of that, we also found a manufacturer claiming that Astragalus Membranaceus Root Extract combines anti-aging and anti-blemish properties so it is especially useful for aging, acne-prone skin. In their in-vivo (made on real people) studies, 2% of liposomal Huangqi increased skin hydration, firmness, and smoothness by 20% after 14 days and decreased \"blemish-prone skin signs\" by 10-15% after 42 days."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Jojoba Esters",
    "description": "Jojoba-derived emollient wax esters (fatty acid + fatty alcohol) that make your skin feel nice and smooth. Chemically speaking, pure jojoba oil is also a wax ester (read our shiny explanation here) , however, the ingredients called jojoba esters on the ingredient lists are made from jojoba oil and/or hydrogenated jojoba oil via interesterification. They have multiple versions with variable fatty acid chain length and the ingredient can have a liquid, a creamy, a soft or firm paste, or even a hard wax consistency. The common thing between all versions is, that unlike most normal triglyceride oils, jojoba esters have superior stability, provide non-greasy emolliency and are readily absorbed into the skin ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isododecane",
    "description": "A  clear, colorless and odorless, highly volatile (meaning it does not absorb into the skin but evaporates from it) liquid that's used as an emollient. It gives a nice non-oily light skin feel and it can improve the slip of the formula without leaving a tacky residue behind. It's also popular in make-up products as its volatility makes mascaras and foundations last longer. If that would not be enough, it's also an excellent solvent, and it's a regular not only on the ingredients lists of make-ups but also on makeup removers."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Paraffinum Liquidum",
    "description": "The famous or maybe rather infamous mineral oil. The clear oily liquid that is the \"cheap by-product\" of refining crude oil and the one that gets a lot of heat for its poor provenance. It is a very controversial ingredient with pros and cons and plenty of myths around it. So let us see them: The pros of mineral oil Trust us, if something is used for more than 100 years in cosmetic products, it has advantages. Chemically speaking, cosmetic grade mineral oil is a complex mixture of highly refined saturated hydrocarbons with C15-50 chain length. It is not merely a \"by-product\" but rather a specifically isolated part of petroleum that is very pure and inert . It is a great emollient and moisturizer working mainly by occlusivity. Occlusivity is one of the basic mechanisms of how moisturizers work and it means that mineral oil sits on top of the skin and hinders so-called trans-epidermal water loss, i.e water evaporating out of your skin. When compared to heavy-duty plant oil, extra virgin coconut oil, the two of them were equally efficient and safe as moisturizers in treating xerosis, a skin condition connected to very dry skin. The other thing that mineral oil is really good at is being non-irritating to the skin . The chemical composition of plant oils is more complex with many more possible allergens or irritating components, while mineral oil is simple, pure and sensitivity to it is extremely rare. If you check out the classic French pharmacy brands and their moisturizers for the most sensitive, allergy prone skin, they usually contain mineral oil. This is no coincidence. The cons of mineral oil The pros of mineral oil can be interpreted as cons if we look at them from another perspective. Not penetrating the skin but mostly just sitting on top of it and not containing biologically active components, like nice fatty acids and vitamins mean that mineral oil does not \"nourish\" the skin in the way plant oils do . Mineral oil does not give the skin any extra goodness, it is simply a non-irritating moisturizer working mainly by occlusivity. The myths around mineral oil Badmouthing mineral oil is a favorite sport of many, it is a cheap material and being connected to petrolatum makes it fairly easy to demonize. While it is true that industrial grade mineral oil contains carcinogenic components (so-called polycyclic compounds), these are completely removed from cosmetic and food grade mineral oil and there is no scientific data showing that the pure, cosmetic grade version is carcinogenic. What is more, in terms of the general health effects of mineral oils used in cosmetics, a 2017 study reviewed the data on their skin penetration and concluded that \" the cosmetic use of mineral oils and waxes does not present a risk to consumers due to a lack of systemic exposure .\" Another super common myth surrounding mineral oil is that it is comedogenic. A 2005 study titled \"Is mineral oil comedogenic?\" examined this very question and guess what happened? The study concluded that  \" based on the animal and human data reported, along with the AAD recommendation, it would appear reasonable to conclude that mineral oil is noncomedogenic in humans. \" Overall , we feel that the scaremongering around mineral oil is not justified. For dry and super-sensitive skin types it is a great option. However, if you do not like its origin or its heavy feeling or anything else about it, avoiding it has never been easier. Mineral oil has such a bad reputation nowadays that cosmetic companies hardly dare to use it anymore."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tropolone",
    "description": "A pale yellow solid material that helps cosmetic products not to go wrong too soon aka preservative . It has antioxidant and antibacterial activity and can be used synergistically with IT-preservative phenoxyethanol or 1,2-Hexanediol and Caprylyl Glycol to form a broad spectrum preservative system for cosmetic formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Titanium Dioxide",
    "description": "Titanium Dioxide is one of the two members of the elite sunscreen group called physical sunscreens (or inorganic sunscreens if you’re a science geek and want to be precise ). Traditionally, UV-filters are categorized as either chemical or physical. The big difference is supposed to be that chemical agents absorb UV-light while physical agents reflect it like a bunch of mini umbrellas on top of the skin. While this categorization is easy and logical it turns out it's not true. A recent, 2016 study shows that inorganic sunscreens work mostly by absorption, just like chemical filters, and only a little bit by reflection (they do reflect the light in the visible spectrum, but mostly absorb in the UV spectrum). Anyway, it doesn't matter if it reflects or absorbs, Titanium Dioxide is a pretty awesome sunscreen agent for two main reasons: it gives a nice broad spectrum coverage and it's highly stable . Its protection is very good between 290 - 350 nm (UVB and UVA II range), and less good at 350-400 nm (UVA I) range. Regular sized Titanium Dioxide also has a great safety profile , it's non-irritating and is pretty much free from any health concerns (like estrogenic effect worries with some chemical filters ). The disadvantage of Titanium Dioxide is that it's not cosmetically elegant , meaning it's a white, \"unspreadable\" mess. Sunscreens containing Titanium Dioxide are often hard to spread on the skin and they leave a disturbing whitish tint . The cosmetic industry is, of course, really trying to solve this problem and the best solution so far is using nanoparticles . The itsy-bitsy Nano-sized particles improve both spreadability and reduce the whitish tint a lot, but unfortunately, it also introduces new health concerns. The main concern with nanoparticles is that they are so tiny that they are absorbed into the skin more than we want them (ideally sunscreen should remain on the surface of the skin). Once absorbed they might form unwanted complexes with proteins and they might promote the formation of evil free radicals. But do not panic, these are concerns under investigation. A 2009 review article about the safety of nanoparticles summarizes this, \"to date, in-vivo and in-vitro studies have not demonstrated percutaneous penetration of nanosized particles in titanium dioxide and zinc oxide sunscreens\". The English translation is, so far it looks like sunscreens with nanoparticles do stay on the surface of the skin where they should be . All in all , Titanium Dioxide is a famous sunscreen agent and for good reason, it gives broad spectrum UV protection (best at UVB and UVA II), it's highly stable, and it has a good safety profile. It's definitely one of the best UV-filter agents we have today , especially in the US where new-generation Tinosorb filters are not (yet) approved."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-6 Caprylic/​Capric Glycerides",
    "description": "A water-loving liquid that's clearly soluble in aqueous surfactant solutions , can solubilize oils and oil-soluble ingredients and has a nice skin feel. It's a popular ingredient in micellar cleansing waters."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Microcrystalline Cellulose",
    "description": "Cellulose is an important component of the cell walls of green plants and it's the most abundant natural polymer (big molecule from repeated subunits) on Earth. If the polymer structure is not too big (less than 200 repeated units), cellulose becomes microcrystalline cellulose. In skin care, it comes as a fine or less fine white powder. The less fine (bigger particle size) version is used as a gentle scrubbing agent (a nice natural, biodegradable alternative to now banned plastic polyethylene) and the ultra fine version is used as a helper ingredient that gives a super-silky, soft touch , reduces tackiness or greasiness and can also be used as a mattifying agent . Combined with Cellulose Gum , it also works as a nice gelling agent ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pullulan",
    "description": "If you ever wondered what those little Listerine breath strips were made of, you found your answer! Pullulan is a polysaccharide polymer , which basically means that it’s a big molecule made up of smaller sugar molecule units. It dissolves in water and can make a thin, elastic, and moisture-absorbing film when spread on the skin that can cause an instant tightening effect . It can also be used as a thickener to get a silicone-like feel and can be used in peel-off masks. Btw, it's made from fungus via fermentation."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Teprenone",
    "description": "An anti-aging active ingredient that's claimed by its manufacturer to fight \"all signs of aging\" from dehydration, damaged skin barrier, and redness to age spots, wrinkles, and even pore s. It works by telomere (the protecting end part of the chromosomes that get shorter during chromosome replication) stabilization and DNA maintenance and is claimed to be able to expand cell lifespan by a third . It might also improve the tissue quality by optimizing cell communication and cell metabolism. The manufacturer did a simple blind study of 24 participants to back up these rather extraordinary claims. They found that 3% Renovage cream used for 6 months increased skin moisturization by 30-58% for all panelists, improved barrier integrity by 19-46% for 75% of panelists and fade UVsunspotss by 42 to 56% for all panelists. They also found that after 1 month 75% of the panelists showed an improvement in skin firmness (by 12-35%), elasticity (by 11-31%) and tone (by 19-45%). Renovage also helped skin surface smoothness (roughness on neckline improved by 36%), dilated pores (-17% after 1 month, -26% after 6 months) and skin redness (-30.5%). Phew, that was a long list! The point is that Teprenone seems to be a promising fix-it-all kind of anti-aging ingredient though all this info comes from one small test made by the manufacturer, so at this point, it's more of a promise than a proven reality ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Erythrulose",
    "description": "A fermentation derived, natural (Ecocert approved) keto-sugar that works as a self-tanning active . It's claimed to lead to a deep, even and long-lasting tan without streaks and without causing skin dryness. Compared to the other self-tanning active, DHA, Erythrulose works slower (takes a few days to develop the color, while with DHA it's only a couple of hours) but it also lasts longer. The two self-tanning actives are usually combined to give you  fast but long lasting tans."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lactobacillus/​Kelp Ferment Filtrate",
    "description": "A viscous yellow to amber colored liquid that's coming from the fermentation of Sea Kelp using lactobacillus. The idea behind the fermentation is that it breaks down the cell walls of the kelp so that the useful stuff inside the cells become bio-available for the skin. Sea Kelp Ferment is claimed to be an excellent oil-free moisturizer, emollient , and film former . Might also have some skin soothing properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acetyl Hexapeptide-1",
    "description": "Acetyl Hexapeptide-1 is a bit of a special snowflake among peptides as it's not a wrinkle-smoothing, anti-aging active like most of the other ones but it can stimulate pigmentation and melanin production (by interacting with a skin cell receptor called MC1R ). As melanin not only gives the skin its nice tanned color but also works as a natural protection factor, Acetyl Hexapeptide-1, aka Melitane does the same.  It not only boosts a natural or an artificial tan but gives extra protection against UV-induced DNA and free radical damage and protects the skin against UV-caused redness."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "4-T-Butylcyclohexanol",
    "description": "A soothing molecule whose special feature is to instantly decrease stinging and burning sensations. According to the manufacturer's impressive numbers , it can reduce stinging up to 78% and burning sensation by up to 80% after just 3 minutes. It is so effective because it works at a cellular level via intercepting the signals caused by the irritation before they can reach the neuro-receptor. This means that we feel stinging and burning sensations much less and the skin's tolerance threshold is increased . The effectiveness of SymSitive was also backed up by a comparative study. It found that both 4‐t‐Butylcyclohexanol and fellow cell-communicating, soothing molecule acetyl dipeptide‐1 cetyl ester works, but 4‐t‐Butylcyclohexanol works better."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetraria Islandica Thallus Extract",
    "description": "Though it's commonly called Iceland Moss, this one is actually a lichen . Not one but two things ( a fungus + an algae ) living in symbiosis under extreme environments (like alpine and arctic regions). It's an edible folk medicine that's used traditionally in the arctic regions to cure cold, cough, and sore throat. It's a so-called demulcent, an agent that forms a soothing and moisturizing film over the mucous membranes and relieves dryness and irritation causing the cough. When you slather Cetraria Islandica all over your face, the same moisturizing and film forming effect happens. It's due to the polysaccharides (big sugar molecules) called lichenan and isolichenan that are abundant in Iceland Moss."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polypodium Vulgare Rhizome Extract",
    "description": "A plant extract coming from the rhizomes of a small, wintergreen fern living across Europe. The main actives in the rhizome are called polypodine A and B that are claimed to have adaptogenic (increasing the resistance to stress and aging) and anabolic (enhance protein synthesis and enhance physical performance) effects. According to the manufacturer , Polypodine A helps skin repair after superficial wounds, stimulates keratinocyte (a type of skin cell) differentiation and can delay oxidative stress and enzyme related skin damage . Polypody also works synergistically with Iceland moss to support its film forming and moisturizing activity due to its saponin content."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tin Oxide",
    "description": "Far from the tin cans you find in the supermarket, Tin Oxide is mostly used when dealing with so-called effect pigments , tricky composite pigments that can do color travel (change color depending on the viewing angle) or give multiple color effect. It's often found alongside Mica (as a base material) and Titanium Dioxide (as a coating) to give a glossy, pearlescent effect . Together, they make up a trademarked technology called RonaFlair Blanace from the German manufacturer Merck. According to their info, this combination can balance out undesirable tones in the skin , making it a popular choice for brightening products and highlighters. Other than that, CosIng (the official EU INCI database) lists its uses as being a bulking agent (to increase the volume of products), as well as a physical exfoliant or an opacifying agent, but being part of composite effect pigments is a much more common use case."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Camelina Sativa Seed Oil",
    "description": "The oil coming from the seeds of a flowering plant called Camelina or Gold of pleasure . Similar to lots of other plant oils it's loaded with nourishing and moisturizing fatty acids . Where it's not so similar to other oils, is that it's a very rich source (30-40%) of fairly rare Alpha-linolenic acid (aka omega-3) and contains only less of the more common linoleic (15-24%) and oleic acids (10-16%).  Alpha-linolenic acid is a very important one with anti-inflammatory properties and the lack of it can cause continuously dry skin. Other than fatty acids, Camelina oil also contains antioxidant vitamin E (54-78mp/100g) as well as more than usual amounts of moisturizing cholesterol and a phytosterol called brassicasterol . All in all, a goodie plant oil that's especially recommended for dry and sensitive skin types ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Prunus Domestica Seed Extract",
    "description": "A straw-yellow to orange-yellow oil coming from the kernels of a native French plum called Ente Plum. According to the manufacturer , the oil is a high-oleic one (about 70% oleic acid and 20% linoleic acid ), that makes the oil highly nourishing and moisturizing . It also contains relatively high amounts of antioxidant vitamin E , about 700 ppm that's three times more than in olive oil . Plum oil also gives the skin an exceptionally silky and nice feeling, penetrates quickly and has a unique natural fragrance. The “top note” is similar to bitter almond, that evolves later to a more complex fruity fragrance."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Persea Gratissima Oil Unsaponifiables",
    "description": "In general, the unsaponifiable part of an oil is always the one that resists soap making . If you want to know more about this, we have written a short explanation about what can and cannot be saponified in an oil at sunflower oil unsaponifiables (2nd paragraph) . Avocado oil contains much more (about 5-12%) unsaponifiables than most other oils, which is only 1-2% of oils usually. The major components in the unsaponifiable part are skin nourishing and soothing sterols (β-Sitosterol mainly and some campesterol) and the most potent antioxidant type of vitamin E , α-Tocopherol."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pelargonium Graveolens Oil",
    "description": "The fragrant essential oil coming from the whole plant of Rose Geranium . It has a lovely scent with a mix of rose and citrus. Like most essential oils, it contains antioxidant and antimicrobial components , but the main ones are fragrant constituents (like geraniol and citronellol ). Be careful with it, if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrogenated Polyisobutene",
    "description": "A synthetic liquid oil that can replace mineral oil or silicone oils in the cosmetic formulas. There are different grades depending on the molecular weight ranging from very light, volatile, non-residue leaving ones to more substantial, slight residue leaving ones. Apart from leaving the skin soft and smooth (emollient), it's also used as a waterproofing agent in sunscreens or makeup products and as a shine enhancer in lip gloss formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Padina Pavonica Thallus Extract",
    "description": "A natural extract coming from a brown alga living in the Mediterranean. It's claimed to be an anti-pollution active ingredient that acts as a protective screen against environmental pollution. It's also claimed to improve skin resistance due to stronger cell cohesion and by stimulating the synthesis of calcium-dependent cellular structures such as desmosomes and keratins."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil Unsaponifiables",
    "description": "The unsaponifiable part of sunflower oil . It's the small part of the oil that resists saponification, the chemical reaction that happens during soap making. If you want to understand saponification more, here is a short explanation (if not, we understand, just skip this paragraph): Oils are mostly made up of triglyceride molecules (a glycerin + three fatty acids attached to it) and during the soap making process a strong base splits the triglyceride molecule up to become a separate glycerin and three soap molecules (sodium salts of fatty acids). The fantastic Labmuffin blog has a handy explanation with great drawings about the soap-making reaction. So, the triglyceride molecules are the saponifiable part of the oil, and the rest is the unsaponifiable part. In the case of sunflower oil, it's about 1.5-2% of the oil and consists of skin nourishing molecules like free fatty acids (fatty acids not bound up in a triglyceride molecule, it contains mainly (48-74% according to its spec) barrier building linoleic acid ), tocopherol (vitamin E) and sterols. According to manufacturer's info , it's an oily ingredient that not only simply moisturizes the skin but also has great lipid-replenishing and soothing properties . The clinical study done by the manufacturer (on 20 people) found that a cream with 2% active increases skin moisturization by 48.6% after 1 hour, and 34.2% after 24 hours. Applied twice daily for 4 weeks, the study participants had a major improvement in skin dryness, roughness, and desquamation (skin peeling) parameters."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-10 Dimethicone",
    "description": "A silicone emulsifier that helps water and silicone oils to mix nicely together. It can also be used together with plant oil + silicone oil mixtures."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lauryl PEG-9 Polydimethylsiloxyethyl Dimethicone",
    "description": "The snappily named Lauryl Peg-9 Polydimethylsiloxyethyl Dimethicone is a silicone emulsifier fluid whose main thing is being a good dispersant for powders such as mineral UV filters or color pigments. According to the manufacturer Kobo , this partly water- and partly oily soluble form of dimethicone helps filters like Titanium Dioxide and Zinc Oxide disperse more evenly and thus provide better UV protection while also minimizing any white-cast that often comes hand-in-hand with mineral filters. This is why it can also be found in makeup products like eyeshadows and concealers, as it helps disperse color pigments in the same way."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dimethicone/​PEG-10/​15 Crosspolymer",
    "description": "A PEG-modified self-emulsifying crosslinked silicone elastomer surfactant that helps water to mix nicely with silicone oils , aka a water in silicone emulsifier. It creates highly stable micelle structures that break upon application of the product so it is ideal for  “water drop” like cream formulations ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Polyacrylate",
    "description": "A superabsorbent polymer (big molecule from repeated subunits) that has crazy water binding abilities. Sometimes its referred to as \"waterlock\" and can absorb 100 to 1000 times its mass in water. As for its use in cosmetic products, it is a handy multi-tasker that thickens up water-based formulas and also has some emulsifying and emulsion stabilizing properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acrylonitrile/​Methyl Methacrylate/​Vinylidene Chloride Copolymer",
    "description": "Thermoplastic (a type of plastic that becomes moldable at higher temperatures and solidifies upon cooling) microspheres (tiny balls) that are generally used as lightweight fillers . As for cosmetics, we have found a patent from Living Proof that claimes a hair spray composition with our microsphere to \"surprisingly increase the volume of hair \". Other than that, the L'Oreal group seems to like and use Acrylonitrile/Methyl Methacrylate/Vinylidene Chloride Copolymer as a hollow, gas-filled (probably filled with isobutane) microsphere as it improves the skin feel of aqueous gel formulas and makes them very comfortable and smooth."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG/​PPG-18/​18 Dimethicone",
    "description": "A silicone emulsifier that helps to create water in silicone emulsions."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dipropylene Glycol",
    "description": "A clear, colorless liquid that works as a solvent and viscosity decreasing ingredient. It also has great skin-moisturizing abilities."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isobutane",
    "description": "A colorless gas used as a propellant in cosmetic products that come in a spray form. Chemically, it is an isomer of butane (same number of C and H atoms), but while butane has a straight chain structure, isobutane is branched."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "T-Butyl Alcohol",
    "description": "A clear liquid with a camphor-like odor that is used as a solvent ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cholesteryl Oleyl Carbonate",
    "description": "A cholesterol based ester molecule ( cholesterol + oleyl alcohol with carbonic acid) whose unique thing is that it's neither solid nor liquid but something in between called liquid crystals . Multiple cholesteric esters are often mixed togeather to form a \" cholesteric liquid crystal \" structure that can reflect visible light to produce beautiful iridescent colors ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cholesteryl Stearate",
    "description": "A cholesterol ester ( cholesterol + stearic acid) that has a unique liquid crystal structure (in between solid and liquid state). Mixed with other cholesteric esters, it can produce beautiful iridescent colors ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ceramide NG",
    "description": "One of the 9 types of ceramides that can be found naturally in the upper layer of the skin. Ceramides make up a big part (about 50%) of the goopy stuff that's between our skin cells (called extracellular matrix) and play a super important role in having a healthy skin barrier and keeping the skin hydrated . We wrote way more about ceramides at ceramide 1, so click here to know more."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cholesteryl Nonanoate",
    "description": "A cholesteric ester ( cholesterol + nonanoic acid) that has a unique liquid crystal structure (in between solid and liquid state). Mixed with other cholesteric esters, it can produce beautiful iridescent colors ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Vaccinium Macrocarpon Seed Oil",
    "description": "A yellow-greenish oil coming from the seeds of Cranberry. Similar to other emollient plant oils, it is loaded with nice fatty acids . It contains a very balanced 1:1 ratio of anti-inflammatory omega-3 (aka linolenic acid ) and barrier repairing omega-6 (aka linoleic acid ) (30-38%), and also a decent amount of skin-nourishing omega-9 , aka oleic acid . It also has high vitamin E content and significant antioxidant properties. Other than being a nice emollient plant oil, we also found a research showing that cranberry oil has wound-healing potential ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Crambe Abyssinica Seed Oil",
    "description": "The emollient plant oil coming from the seeds of Crambe Abyssinica , a not very well-known plant native to the Ethiopian Highlands. It has a unique fatty acid profile and contains high amounts of erucic acid (50-65%), a 22 carbon long unsaturated fatty acid. The oil is described as having an elegant, silky and cushioning skin feel, kind of silicone-like . Also ideal for hair-care as it gives slip, softness, and shine to the hair."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tribehenin",
    "description": "It's the triglyceride of behenic acid that works as a thickening or gelling agent , as a compacting agent for pressed powders, and improves heat stability of emulsions."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Passiflora Edulis Seed Oil",
    "description": "The emollient plant oil coming from the passion fruit . It is a high- linoleic acid oil (about 70% LA and 15% oleic acid ), that makes your skin feel nice and smooth and supports a healthy skin barrier. As a high-LA oil, it is suitable for all skin types including acne-prone."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Calophyllum Inophyllum Seed Oil",
    "description": "A green-yellowish oil coming from cool places like Tahiti, Bora Bora, and the island of Polynesia. Similar to other more common plant oils, it's loaded with nourishing and moisturizing fatty acids ( oleic acid : 30-55%, linoleic acid : 15-45%, palmitic acid : 5-20% and stearic acid : 5-25%). The special thing about Tamanu oil, though, is that it contains the totally unique fatty acid called calophyllic acid that is suspected to give the oil its amazing healing and regenerative properties . The traditional uses of Tamanu oil range from using it for all kinds of rheumatism (inflammation in joints) to burns, wounds, skin rashes, and chapped lips and modern studies do confirm the wisdom of the old Polynesians. In fact, the wound healing properties of Tamanu oil is so strong that it produces visible improvements even for old (older than 1 year) scars during a 6-9 week period. Other than that, according to manufacturer info , Calophyllum Inophyllum Oil also has significant SPF boosting and antioxidant properties. This latter one is probably due to its significant vitamin E content with delta-tocotrienol (236mg/kg) being the main form in the oil. Overall, Tamanu seems to be an amazing oil for skin that is in need of some regeneration and protection."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sorbitan Sesquioleate",
    "description": "A mainly oil loving molecule that helps water and oil to mix nicely, aka emulsifier . In itself, it can create water-in-oil emulsions (when water droplets are dispersed in oil), but it is used mostly next to water-loving emulsifiers to create nice and smooth oil-in-water creams.  It can also function as a wetting and dispersing agent helping insoluble particles such as color pigments or inorganic sunscreens (zinc/titanium dioxide) to disperse nice and even in liquids. Chemically speaking, this molecule is \"halfway\" between Sorbitan Oleate and Sorbitan Trioleate , meaning that it is also an attachment of sorbitan (a dehydrated sorbitol (sugar) molecule) with the unsaturated fatty acid Oleic Acid , but in a ratio of 2:3 hence the \"Sesqui\" part in the molecule's name."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Punica Granatum Seed Oil",
    "description": "The emollient plant oil coming from the seeds of Pomegranate. The red fruit has lots of seeds (100-200 per fruit), but 7 kg of them are needed for 1 kg of oil. Among the many similar plant oils, Pomegranate oil is a really unique one , as its main fatty acid (60%) is a rare one called punic acid , a so-called conjugated fatty acid with three double bonds. It also contains the common linoleic (2-10%) and oleic acids (3-12%), but only in small amounts. Punic acid is thought to be a biologically active compound, a powerful anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant agent. The oil itself is also claimed to have strong antioxidant properties as well as having excellent nourishing and moisturizing abilities. On top of that, we also found a research that examined Pomegranate as a cosmeceutical source and it concluded that the seed oil can nicely promote the regeneration of the epidermis (the top layer of the skin)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-12 Dimethicone/​PPG-20 Crosspolymer",
    "description": "A high-molecular weight silicone elastomer gel (a rubber-like elastic material) that is usually combined with a silicone carrier fluid like Caprylyl Methicone . The blend has a viscous gel texture, gives smooth, powdery, nongreasy skin feel , and great spreadability. It's also more compatible with natural vegetable oils than other silicone elastomer gels and works as a delivery aid both for oil-loving (e.g. sunscreens) and water-loving (vitamin C, Aloe Vera, Caffeine) materials."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Caprylyl Methicone",
    "description": "A clear, colorless, low viscosity, volatile (does not absorb into the skin but rather evaporates from it) silicone fluid that has excellent spreadability and leaves a light, silky and smooth feel on the skin. According to manufacturer info , its big advantage is that it's compatible both with other silicones and with natural plant oils, so it's a great ingredient to formulate products with good-sounding, consumer-pleasing vegetable oils but still maintain a cosmetically elegant, non-greasy and non-tacky feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sapindus Mukorossi Fruit Extract",
    "description": "Sapindus Mukorossi is a nice, big tree living in tropical and sub-tropical regions of Asia. Its fruit is commonly called soapberry or washnut - telltale names for its traditional use as a cleansing agent . It contains natural surfactants called saponins (10-11.5%) and forms a nice rich lather. It's great at cleansing the skin of oily secretion as well as washing the hair. Apart from being a cleansing agent, Sapindus Mukorossi also has a bunch of other pharmacological effects : It's well-known for its insecticidal properties and is traditionally used for removing lice from the scalp. As for other skin-care relevant things, it has promising tyrosinase inhibition, free radical scavenging (antioxidant), antimicrobial and anticancer activity."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Leontopodium Alpinum Callus Culture Extract",
    "description": "A plant stem cell extract derived from the famous mountain flower, Edelweiss. It goes by the trade name Majestem and the manufacturer claims that it has a visible lifting action on the neck and face . In their in-vivo (made on real people) tests, the sagging skin on the neck was tightened by -10.6% up to -56% in three weeks. After six weeks, the cheeks were also lifted and the crow’s feet wrinkles were smoothed out (surface -11% up to -75%). Apart from manufacturer claims, edelweiss is traditionally known for and used for its soothing properties. We found a 2012 study confirming that edelweiss cell culture extract contains the active called leontopodic acid that seems to be responsible for the plant's anti-inflammatory properties ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethyl Ascorbic Acid",
    "description": "A very stable and promising form of the skincare superstar, Vitamin C . If you do not know why Vitamin C is such a big deal in skin care, you can catch up here . In short, Vitamin C has three proven magic abilities: antioxidant, collagen booster, and skin brightener. The problem, though, is that it's very unstable, turns brown and becomes ineffective in no time (after a few month) and the cosmetics industry is trying to come up with smart derivatives that are stable and have the magic properties of pure Vitamin C. Ethyl Ascorbic Acid or EAC for short is an \"etherified derivative of ascorbic acid\" that consists of vitamin C and an ethyl group bound to the third carbon position. This makes Vitamin C very stable and soluble in both water and oil . However, for a Vitamin C derivative to work it's not enough just to be stable, they also have to be absorbed into the skin and be converted there to pure Vitamin C. We have good news regarding the absorption: on top of manufacturer claims, there is some data (animal study) demonstrating in can get into the skin , and it seems to be better at it than Ascorbyl Glucoside , another vitamin C derivative. Regarding conversion, we can cite only a manufacturers claim saying that EAC is metabolized in the skin into pure ascorbic acid (and the ascorbic acid content of EAC is very high - 86,4% - compared to the usual 50-60% Vitamin C content of other derivatives). As for the three magic abilities of Vitamin C, we again mostly have only the manufacturer's claims , but at least those are very promising. EAC seems to have both an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effect , and it's claimed to be able to boost the skin's collagen production . The strong point of EAC though is skin brightening . On top of manufacturer claims, there is also clinical in-vivo (tested on real people) data showing that 2% EAC can improve skin tone and whiten the skin. Overall , Ethyl Ascorbic Acid is a very promising but not a fully proven Vitamin C derivative. It's worth a try, especially if you are after Vitamin C's skin-brightening effects."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pentaerythrityl Tetraisostearate",
    "description": "A liquid emollient derived from isostearic acid that gives a rich, cushiony skin-feel and unusually high levels of gloss. It also has film-forming abilities but without leaving a sticky residue and it aids long-lasting and water-resistant properties. All this makes Pentaerythrityl Tetraisostearate an ideal emollient for long-lasting protective emulsions, like lip balms ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Trimethylsiloxysilicate",
    "description": "A solid silicone resin that creates a permeable film over the skin. It makes makeup formulas more long-lasting and can enhance the water resistance of sunscreens. It leaves a non-tacky film when dried."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydroxymethoxyphenyl Propylmethylmethoxybenzofuran",
    "description": "This terribly long named thing goes by the short trade name of Sym3D where 3D is supposed to mean that it can bring volume to the lips. The manufacturer claims that it's a long lasting lip-plumping ingredient with visible results in 4 weeks. It might be able to plump up the lips and minimize lines and wrinkles on and around the lip area. It's also claimed to have potent anti-oxidative capacity."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetearyl Ethylhexanoate",
    "description": "A synthetic emollient oil that leaves a soft non-greasy, non-sticky feel on the skin, absorbs fast and can be emulsified (mixed with water) very easily."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-52",
    "description": "Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-52 is a peptide molecule that belongs to the \"Botox-in-a-jar\" type of topical muscle relaxers (if you are new to these types of molecules, we wrote more about it at the category-creating Argireline ). Combined with Palmitoyl Heptapeptide-18 , the duo is claimed to be able to reduce expression lines by 20% on average in 28 days based on a panel test of 30 volunteers."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Palmitoyl Heptapeptide-18",
    "description": "The buddy of Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-52 in the topical muscle relaxer peptide duo trade named X50 MYOCEPT.  BTW, the duo works at the extremely low recommended concentration of only 0.001%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Heptapeptide-15 Palmitate",
    "description": "Heptapeptide-15 Palmitate is the targeting peptide (a short chain of amino acids) that is part of the encapsulated copper peptide technology trade named X50 Antiaging. This smart guy sits at the outer part of the encapsulation shell and seeks out the all-important collagen-producing cells in the middle layer of the skin called fibroblasts. Once Heptapeptide-15 Palmitate binds to the receptors of the fibroblast, the cell internalizes the capsule, and the payload (in this case Copper Palmitoyl Heptapeptide-14) is released. Continue here to read what the payload peptide is doing once it arrives at its target, the fibroblast cell."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PPG-3 Isostearyl Methyl Ether",
    "description": "A super light emollient fluid that has excellent skin spreading properties and an exceptionally light skin feel. It also has extreme pH tolerance and can reduce product tackiness."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydroxyphenoxy Propionic Acid",
    "description": "A skin-brightening, spot fading active ingredient that goes by the trade name Radianskin. The in-vitro (made in the lab) test results of the manufacturer show that it can prevent melanin formation more effectively than other well-known skin-lightening agents, like ascorbyl glucoside , kojic acid, or arbutin and it has equivalent efficacy to skin-lightening gold-standard ingredient hydroquinone but without cytotoxicity. There is also a L'Oreal sponsored research showing that the combination of hydroxyphenoxy propionic acid, ellagic acid, yeast extract, and salicylic acid produced comparable skin-lightening results as the standard prescription combination of 4% hydroquinone cream and 0.025% tretinoin cream after 12 weeks."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Phenylethyl Resorcinol",
    "description": "A skin-lightening and antioxidant active ingredient derived from a molecule that exists naturally in Pine tree. According to the clinical results of the manufacturer , 0.5% of phenylethyl resorcinol is more effective than 1% of well-known skin-lightener kojic acid. Though the results from the manufacturer sound quite promising, a skin-lightening study from 2013 involving phenylethyl resorcinol shows quite moderate results . In the 80 participants, 12-week study, phenylethyl resorcinol was combined with three other actives (disodium glycerophosphate, L-leucine, and undecylenoyl phenylalanine) and only 57% of the participants showed at least a moderate response and 17% did not improve at all."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ruscus Aculeatus Root Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from Butcher’s Broom, a common evergreen shrub in the Mediterranean countries. It is known as a potent venous vasoconstrictor , meaning that it helps the narrowing of the blood vessels and increases the microcirculation. In cosmetic products, this mainly translates to being a good astringent, refreshing and toning ingredient, as well as being an anti-redness, soothing and anti-cellulate agent."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pistacia Lentiscus Gum",
    "description": "Mustic gum is an aromatic resin coming from the bark of a tree that grows on the Greek island of Chios. It was traditionally used as a chewing gum to clean the teeth and freshen the breath thanks to its anti-microbial properties . As for modern skincare, it is the active ingredient in a skin care complex trade named PoreAway, that is claimed to tighten dilated pores and reduce shine . It works by blocking 5α reductase type I, an enzyme that has an important role in the sebum-producing process (by converting testosterone to dihydrotestosterone, aka DHT, that is the main sebum producing hormone in the skin). Do not expect miracles though: according to the in-vivo test conducted by the manufacturer, 2% PoreAway refined pores only by 8% after 14 days and 15% after 28 days. We are not sure if this is a change that you can really feel and see on your skin, or if it's just a \"statistically significant change\" that can be measured in the lab."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methyl Methacrylate/​PEG/​PPG-4/​3 Methacrylate Crosspolymer",
    "description": "Little spherical shaped particles that are modified to become water-loving so that they can be easily used in water-based formulas. They enhance the product texture and have light-diffusion, aka soft-focus effect properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isoamyl Laurate",
    "description": "A naturally derived (Ecocert approved) colorless to yellowish oily liquid that's touted as a natural silicone alternative . It's claimed to have great sensorial properties: light but caring, velvety, silky and non-sticky . It's also great at dissolving UV-filters in sunscreens or dispersing pigments in makeup products. You can also bump into Isoamyl Laurate in hair care products as a hair conditioner that makes combing easier without build up."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "C12-14 Pareth-12",
    "description": "An emulsifier (helps oily and watery things to mix) that usually comes to the formula as the buddy of the oil-dispersible silicone powder Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer .  The two together create a pre-emulsified, water-loving version of the elastomeric silicone powder which gives products a nice silky feel and has sebum absorption capabilities."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Perfluoroperhydrophenanthrene",
    "description": "A fluorocarbon that contains only fluorine and carbon. It's usually mixed with other fluorocarbons and goes by the trade name Fiflow. You can read more about what it might do on the skin at its fluorocarbon buddy, Perfluorodecalin ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Perfluorohexane",
    "description": "A fluorocarbon that's like a hydrocarbon but instead of hydrogen and carbon, it only contains fluorine and carbon. It's usually mixed with other fluorocarbons and goes by the trade name Fiflow. You can read more about what it might do on the skin at its fluorocarbon buddy, Perfluorodecalin ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Perfluorodecalin",
    "description": "Perfluorodecalin is a fluorocarbon , a molecule that contains nothing else but carbon and fluorine. It's usually mixed with other fluorocarbons and goes by the trade name Fiflow. Fiflows are interesting materials: they are very stable (inert), heavy liquids that are neither water nor oil soluble but they create a third phase in emulsions. They can carry gasses , notably Oxygen, Nitrogen and Carbon Dioxide into the formula. The manufacturer claims that Fiflow blends can have all kinds of good effects on the skin: they can have wound healing, muscle relaxation, and dermal filling effect and they might also improve skin renewal and skin elasticity."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-20 Glyceryl Triisostearate",
    "description": "A clear pale yellow liquid that works as a highly effective but mild surfactant . According to the manufacturer ,  Peg-20 Glyceryl Triisostearate can create microemulsion facial cleansers (microemulsions are a mixture of water, oil, and surfactants) that are crystal clear, gentle to the skin and can easily be rinsed off leaving no oily residue . If you like oil cleansers but do not like to remove them with a washcloth, look out for this ingredient to find the perfect emulsifiable, water-rinsable oil cleanser."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pongamia Glabra Seed Oil",
    "description": "Karanja Oil comes from a medium-sized, evergreen tree called Pongamia Pinnata that is found throughout Southeast Asia. All parts of the tree have several traditional medicinal uses and the oil specifically has insecticidal and antiseptic properties. It's traditionally used to treat skin infections such as eczema or psoriasis. According to the manufacturer's information , used at a 3-5% concentration, Karanja Oil can serve as a natural preservative in cosmetic products. It has excellent bacterial and fungal control and can even add additional antioxidant benefits to the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethylhexyl Stearate",
    "description": "A clear, almost colorless (or slightly yellowish) oily liquid (an ester to be precise) that's used as a medium spreading emollient . It gives skin a nice and smooth after-feel and it's very good at reducing oiliness or greasiness coming from other heavier oils in the formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Kaolin",
    "description": "Kaolin is a type of clay or to be precise, a naturally occurring hydrous aluminum silicate. When you hear clay, you probably think of a muddy greenish-black mess, but that one is bentonite , and this one is a fine, white powder. It is so white that it's also often used, in small amounts, as a helper ingredient to give opacity and whiteness to the cosmetic formulas. As a clay, it's absorbent and can suck up excess sebum and gunk from your skin, but less so than the more aggressive bentonite . As it's less absorbent, it's also less drying and gentler on the skin, so it's ideal for dry and sensitive skin types."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sorbitan Trioleate",
    "description": "A very oil-loving emulsifier that can help oil and water to mix, especially if it is mixed with a water-loving emulsifier. Chemically speaking, it is related to Sorbitan Oleate , but instead of attaching one Oleic Acid to the sorbitan molecule, three Oleic Acids are attached making the whole molecule even more oil-loving (oleic part) and less water-loving (sorbitan part)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate",
    "description": "A cleansing agen t that's claimed to be so gentle on the skin that it hardly impacts the skin barrier. It also gives a rich, creamy foam, it's based on vegetable fatty acids and is readily biodegradable. It's an especially important and popular ingredient in \"syndet bars\" (or soapless soaps). Dr. Leslie Baumann says in her great Cosmetic Dermatology book that thanks to the unique molecular characteristic of Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, it \"has defined a new dimension in the mildness of cleansing bars \"."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Disodium Cocoamphodipropionate",
    "description": "A mild cleansing agent with amphoteric structure meaning that its head contains both a positively and a negatively charged part (surfactants are most commonly anionic meaning their head has a negative charge).  It is chemically very similar to more commonly used Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate , though it is not quite as mild as that one. Paired with an anionic surfactant, it still helps to reduce irritation potential and improve foaming ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Nobilis Peel Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from the peel of the mandarin orange or tangor. In general, the main component of citrus peel oils is limonene (77-86% for mandarin peel), a super common fragrant ingredient that makes everything smell nice (but counts as a frequent skin sensitizer).  Apart from smelling nice (and thus being a popular natural fragrance alternative), Mandarin Orange Oil also has significant antioxidant properties that's comparable to synthetic antioxidant BHT or oil-soluble antioxidant big shot vitamin E . On the con side, the fragrant components of citrus peels might irritate sensitive skin and citrus peels also contain the problematic compound called furanocoumarin that makes them (mildly) phototoxic . Orange mandarin peel contains less from it than some other citruses (like bergamot or lime), but still, be careful with it especially if it's in a product for daytime use."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate",
    "description": "A mild amino acid based surfactant with great foaming properties. Can be used also for sensitive or baby skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isoamyl Cocoate",
    "description": "A natural emollient ester derived from sugar beets and coconut oil. It's a very light liquid that absorbs quickly into the skin and has a non-oily skin feel . The manufacturer says it's produced in an innovative, eco-friendly way that saves about 60% on energy consumption and CO2 emission compared to traditional manufacturing methods."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Disodium Lauryl Sulfosuccinate",
    "description": "A cleansing agent that's popular in \"syndet bars\" (soapless soaps) for its good foaming properties . It can also improve the mildness of famously aggressive, irritating surfactant, sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Colloidal Oatmeal",
    "description": "The finely ground version of whole oat kernels that has well-established skin soothing, skin-protecting and antioxidant abilities. We have a shiny description of oat extract in skincare here .  It is a real goodie ingredient for dry, irritated, inflamed or eczema-prone skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "C20-40 Pareth-10",
    "description": "A petrochemical derived ingredient that works as an emulsifier for heavy or difficult to disperse ingredients like waxes, pigments, and silicones. It also makes hydroalcoholic formulas thicker and more moisturizing."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Olive Oil PEG-7 Esters",
    "description": "An olive oil-derived, water-soluble, but \"oily\" liquid that works both as an emollient (makes skin nice and smooth) and as a co-emulsifier . It's claimed to offer a distinctive skin smoothness and long-term moisturizing effects while also being great at solubilizing fragrances into water-based products or being a co-emulsifier in oil-in-water emulsions."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polymethylsilsesquioxane",
    "description": "A spherical texturizing powder that's used as a texture enhancer and soft focus agent . It's claimed to give silicone type softness to the formula and also works as a (temporary) wrinkle filler."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-6",
    "description": "A  clear viscous polymer (a molecule from repeated subunits) liquid that works as a solvent and humectant . According to manufacturer info , it's recommended for all kinds of washing products (like hand dishwashing detergents or fine-fabric washing powders) and is ideal as a viscosity regulator, detergent booster, and solubilizer."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "C14-22 Alcohols",
    "description": "A 100% vegetable origin emulsifier that usually comes to the formula with its buddy called C12-20 Alkyl Glucoside . The duo is trade-named Montanov L and works as an effective oil in water emulsifier. It creates ultra-soft, light texture , has excellent dermo-compatibility and is readily biodegradable. Chemically speaking, it is a mixture of fatty alcohols with 14 to 22 carbon atoms in their fatty chains."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetyl Dimethicone",
    "description": "A helpful emollient ingredient that gives products a light, smooth-skin feeling . You’ll find it mostly in products containing SPF, as, according to several manufacturers , it can increase the water resistance and spreadability of UV filters. With better spreadability, less filters are needed to provide the same SPF, making the formula lighter and nicer to use and with improved water resistance, your protection will last that bit longer in the pool."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Potassium Cetyl Phosphate",
    "description": "A white to beige powder that is described as the golden standard emulsifier for emulsions (oil+water mixtures) that are difficult to stabilize. It is especially popular in sunscreens as it can boost SPF protection and increase the water-resistance of the formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Petrolatum",
    "description": "The famous Vaseline or Petroleum Jelly. Just like mineral oil , it is also a by-product of refining crude oil, aka petroleum, and it is also a mixture of hydrocarbons but with bigger (C18-90+) carbon chain length. The unique thing about petrolatum is that it is the most effective occlusive agent known today . While the occlusivity of mineral oil is in the same league as the occlusivity of plant oils, petrolatum is in a league of its own. It sits on top of the skin and hinders so-called transepidermal water loss (TEWL) like nothing else . This comes in handy healing cracked lips or severely dry skin patches, though overdoing it (i.e. reducing TEWL by more than 40%) is not good as it can create a nice moist place for fungi and bacteria to grow. As for petrolatum and safety, we can write here pretty much the exact same thing as we have written at mineral oil . There is no evidence whatsoever that cosmetic, USP grade petrolatum is carcinogenic. It also does not absorb into the skin but sits on top of it and that in itself greatly minimises health risks. It also has a long history of safe use, as it was first used as a skincare product more than 100 years ago, in 1872 to be precise. It is also non-comedogenic , though its pure form is very heavy and greasy so combination and oily skin types might want to avoid it anyway. Overall , it is the gold-standard occlusive agent known today and a tub of Vaseline comes in handy in any household to heal cracked lips or other severely dry skin patches."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate",
    "description": "A cleansing agent that's described by multiple manufacturers as a very mild, non-irritating surfactant but with great foam properties . It's recommended for gentle cleansers suitable for sensitive or baby skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sucrose Palmitate",
    "description": "A sugar ester (sucrose + palmitic acid) that works as a natural emulsifier (helps oil and water to mix). According to the manufacturer , it has a great skin-feel, improves smoothness, emolliency and even hydrates the skin. Combined with another sugar ester, sucrose stearate , it can improve high temperature stability of Sucragel based oily gel cleansers."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sucrose Stearate",
    "description": "A sugar ester (sucrose + stearic acid) that works as a natural emulsifier (helps water and oil to mix). It's popular in oily gel cleansers as it improves the high-temperature stability of the formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethylhexyl Hydroxystearate",
    "description": "A heavy-duty emollient ester that comes in the form of a pale yellow semi-solid paste. It mainly stays on the surface of the skin and gives skin protection and occlusivity ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "C12-20 Alkyl Glucoside",
    "description": "A 100% vegetable origin emulsifier that usually comes to the formula with its buddy called C14-22 Alcohols . The duo is called Montanov L and two together help to create ultra-soft light formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate",
    "description": "The sodium salt form of skincare superstar, vitamin C . If you do not know what the big fuss about vitamin C is, you are missing out and you have to click here and read all the geeky details about it. Pure vitamin C (aka ascorbic acid, AA) is great and all, but its lack of stability is a big challenge for the cosmetics industry. One solution is to create stable derivatives that can be absorbed into the skin, convert there to AA and do all the magic AA is proven to do (which is being an antioxidant, a collagen booster, and a skin brightener). SAP (the vit C derivative, not the enterprise software, obvs) is a promising derivative that has great stability up to pH 7. The challenge with it though is skin penetration . Unfortunately, it seems to be limited , or to quote a great article from the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology \"topically applied ascorbyl phosphate salts are, at very best, poorly absorbed in comparison with AA\". Regarding conversion to AA, there seems to be no data about it, so we can neither deny nor confirm it. We have better news regarding the three magic abilities of vitamin C: there is in-vivo (tested on real people) data showing that SAP does have photo-protective (aka antioxidant) properties , though less than pure AA. SAP might also aid collagen boosting; in-vitro (made in the lab) data shows that it works, but is less effective than another vitamin C derivative, called MAP (that seems to be as effective as pure AA). As for skin-brightening, there is a trade publication with in-vivo data showing that SAP can fade brown spots . Another thing SAP might be able to do is to help with acne. A 2005 study showed in vitro (in test tubes) that 1% SAP has a strong antimicrobial activity on evil acne causing P. acnes and it also showed in vivo (on real people) that 5% SAP can strongly improve the inflammatory and non-inflammatory lesions of acne vulgaris. In fact, the results were comparable or even slightly better than with 5% benzoyl peroxide. And there is even more regarding SAP and acne. A nice double-blind study from 2009 showed that  5% SAP reduced the inflammatory lesions by 20.14% and 48.82% within 4 and 8 weeks respectively and when combined with 0.2% retinol the results were even better. With this combination treatment, the improvement was 29.28% after 4 weeks and 63.10% after 8 weeks of application. Aside from research studies, anecdotal evidence also supports SAP being a promising vitamin C derivative. One of the best-selling (vitamin C) serums in Sephora is the Ole Henriksen Truth Serum, while on Amazon it's the OzNaturals Vitamin C 20 Serum. Another popular choice is the Mad Hippie Vitamin C serum, and all of these contain vitamin C in the form of SAP. Overall, we think SAP is a goody! In terms of anti-aging, it's probably not as effective as pure Ascorbic Acid , but it's totally worth a try. However, if your skin is acne-prone, SAP is your form of Vitamin C and it's a must-try."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Montmorillonite",
    "description": "A type of clay that was originally found next to the French village, Montmorillon. Nowadays, Montmorillonite is used almost like a synonym for the most common type of clay, bentonite . Technically bentonite is montmorillonite and additional crystalline structures, or to put it another way, montmorillonite is 100% clean bentonite. As for montmorillonite in skincare products, it's used for its magic absorbent properties . It's excellent at instantly sucking up sebum and gunk from the skin and it might even be helpful in treating some rashes or skin irritations (contact dermatitis). But be careful, it can also be drying ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Potassium Azeloyl Diglycinate",
    "description": "A derivative of clinically proven, superstar ingredient Azelaic Acid and hydrating amino acid Glycine . Azelaic acid is an awesome ingredient with anti-inflammatory, skin lightening and anti-acne effects, but its insolubility (it's soluble neither in water nor in oil) makes it difficult to use it in a cosmetically elegant and versatile way. The solution is supposed to be Potassium Azeloyl Diglycinate, at least according to the manufacturer . The derivative is very water soluble, easy to use in nice formulas and inherits all the lovely properties of Azelaic acid. It acts as a skin brightening agent via Tyrosinase (a famous enzyme needed to make melanin) inhibition and also has significant sebum normalizing activity. Regarding research, we could find two studies where Potassium Azeloyl Diglycinate's name popped up. One study examined the management of rosacea and the other one researched the treatment of melasma . Both were successful (we mean people showed improvement :)) but our Azelaic acid derivative was combined with other actives so it's hard to know what to attribute to this guy only. Overall , a promising multi-function active that's worth checking out if you have pigmentation-prone, acne-prone or rosacea-prone skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Resveratrol",
    "description": "If you are looking for a reason why red wine is good for you, good news, you have found it! Resveratrol, aka the \" red grape antioxidant \" is the thing that's suspected to keep the French from coronary heart disease despite their not so healthy eating habits (such as high saturated fat intake). So resveratrol, found in the seed and skin of the red grape (and berries), is a pretty well-known and well-studied molecule that has potent antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticarcinogenic abilities . Most of the studies were done examining resveratrol's promising anti-cancer properties, but as for skin care, it shows a potent protective effect against UV-caused oxidative stress as well as promising effects against multiple types of skin cancer including the most severe one, melanoma (as an adjuvant therapy). When it comes to skincare and antioxidants, \"the more the merrier\", so resveratrol is definitely a nice addition to any skincare routine."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Bentonite",
    "description": "When it comes to oil-absorbing clay masks, bentonite will probably be one of the first ingredients on the INCI list. Technically bentonite clay is mostly montmorillonite + something else, and thanks to the something else bit, bentonite comes in different types and colors . The color depends on the mineral content of the clay : white bentonite is rich in boron and fluoride, yellow is rich in manganese and zinc, green is rich in copper, zinc, and manganese and the pink clay is rich in boron. No matter the color, bentonite is excellent at absorbing things : it can suck up the sebum and gunk from the skin and make it instantly smooth and matte. Not only that, but bentonite has a negative ionic charge and thus can attract things with a positive charge. Things with a positive charge include bad bacteria and toxins and bentonite clay masks can help to clear those out of the skin and pores (btw, bentonite is edible and has the same detoxifying effect internally). Thanks to bentonite's effect against bad bacteria and pathogens, there is also some research showing that bentonite can help to calm skin infections , soothe skin allergies and might work for skin conditions like psoriasis and eczema . On the other hand, the downside of bentonite being such a good absorbent is that it can suck up more than the excess sebum and used too often, it can easily dry out the skin . So use it for good measure, and never forget to moisturize afterwards."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sarcodon Aspratus Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from a nice mushroom with a  large, brownish cap with large brown scales. It contains a bunch of potentially useful stuff: fatty acids, polysaccharides, sterols and antioxidant polyphenols (gallic acid). In skin care products, its most well-established job is being an antioxidant agent ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tuber Melanosporum Extract",
    "description": "If you are into fine dining, I am sure you have seen black truffle being grated by the waiter on top of your food in a Micheline star restaurant. It's one of the most expensive edible mushrooms in the world. As for what it's doing in a cosmetic product, it's a great question and we cannot say that there are tons of great research papers out there giving a reliable answer. What we could find is a patent application claiming that a cosmetic product with black truffle extract can fight reactive oxygen species (aka antioxidant ), it can improve blood flow by expanding the capillary blood vessels and it can inhibit skin irritation . Other tiny bits of infos we could piece togeather say that Tuber Melanosporum Extract works as a humectant (water-binding) moisturizer or that it's good (but not very good) as an antioxidant, anti-aging and anti-inflammatory agent."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Zanthoxylum Piperitum Fruit Extract",
    "description": "If you are into Japanese cuisine, you might know this guy as Japanese pepper or Sanshō pepper that is known for its unique fresh aroma and appetite increasing spicy sensation. As for the skin benefits of Zanthoxylum Piperitum, it might have antioxidant effects (with active components called hyperoside and quercitrin ), but more importantly, it is an antibacterial and natural preservative agent. It is pretty common in K-Beauty products, as it's one of the three natural extracts that make up the popular Korean preservative called EURO-NApre. Combined with Usnea Barbata and Pulsatilla Koreana , these three extracts are claimed to form a natural preservative system that also has anti-inflammatory effects and might help with skin conditions such as blemishes, atopic dermatitis, and dandruff. On the flip side, Zanthoxylum Piperitum contains fragrant components (Limonene and Citrone), that might irritate sensitive skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Arachidyl Glucoside",
    "description": "An ingredient that is created from the attachment of the water-loving sugar molecule, glucose , and an oil-loving 20 carbon long fatty chain. This makes it a partly water- and partly oil-soluble material, meaning it functions as an emulsifier helping oil and water to mix . Most often, it comes to the formula coupled with two fatty alcohol friends, Arachidyl and Behenyl alcohol, to make up an emulsifier trio trade named Montanov 202. As described by its manufacturer , the main thing of Montanonv 202 is that it gives creams a unique evanescent and light feel with a matt finish . It also leaves the skin soft, but not oily, is hypoallergenic and non-comedogenic making it perfect for both oily and sensitive skin formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Arachidyl Alcohol",
    "description": "A fatty alcohol (the non-drying type with a long oil loving chain of 20 carbon atoms) that is used to increase the viscosity of the formula and it also helps the oily and the watery parts to stay nicely mixed together (called emulsion stabilizing )."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Usnea Barbata Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the alpine lichen, Usnea Barbata. It is known for its excellent efficacy against gram-positive bacteria, meaning that it can serve as a natural preservative and deodorant agent . Its main biologically active component is usnic acid (a molecule produced only by lichens) that's not only an antibacterial agent, but also has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and wound-healing promoting effects. According to manufacturer info ,  the antibacterial activity of Usnea Barbata makes the ingredient helpful against body odor, blemished skin, and dandruff. It is also very common in K-Beauty products, as it is part of a popular Korean natural preservative system trade named EURO-Napre (combined with Zanthoxylum Piperitum and Pulsatilla Koreana )."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pulsatilla Koreana Extract",
    "description": "The extract of Korean Pasque Flower that is mostly used for its antimicrobial and natural preservative activities. It usually comes to the formula combined with Zanthoxylum Piperitum and Usnea Barbata , as the three extracts make up a popular Korean natural preservative system trade named EURO-NApre. The plant extract is also a traditional oriental herbal medicine that is known for its analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and astringent effects."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Linum Usitatissimum Seed Oil",
    "description": "The oil coming from the plant Linum Usitatissimum or commonly called Flax . If you are into healthy eating, you probably know flaxseeds as a rich source of hard-to-eat-enough omega-3 fatty acids , or if you are into fashion, you probably have some light summer cloth made from linen . As for skincare, flaxseed oil is one of the few natural plant oils that is a rich source (35-65%) of moisturizing and probably anti-inflammatory ω-3 fatty acid , aka linolenic acid . It also contains skin-nourishing oleic acid (11-35%) and barrier repairing linoleic acid (11-24%). According to manufacturer claims , it is used as an emollient, anti-inflammatory and healing agent and it is well-known to create smooth and soft skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Fruit Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from the fruit (probably the rind) of the bergamot orange .  It's a common top note in perfumes and contains (among others) fragrant compounds limonene (37%), linalyl acetate (30%) and linalool (8.8%). A well-known issue with bergamot oil (apart from the fragrance allergens) is that it contains phototoxic compounds called furanocoumarins, but more and more commonly furanocoumarin-free versions are used in cosmetic products. Still, if you have sensitive skin and prefer fragrance-free products, bergamot oil is not for you."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Linolenic Acid",
    "description": "The famous omega-3 fatty acid , the mother of all ω-3 fatty acids in our body. Next to linoleic acid , it is the other essential fatty acid that our body cannot synthesize and we have to ingest it from our food. It is also a PUFA, aka polyunsaturated fatty acid with three double bonds, a kinky chemical structure and thus a liquid consistency. While linoleic acid is abundant in the skin, this is not the case with alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). It is not entirely clear if it is meant to be like that or if this is a consequence of not eating enough Omega-3 with the typical Western diet . Leafy green vegetables, walnuts, flax seeds and fish oils are rich sources of ALA and if you are not eating a lot from these, supplementing with fish oil is a pretty good idea backed by research. It is a good idea both in terms of general health benefits as well as potentially improving inflammation-related skin issues such as atopic dermatitis or acne. As for using ALA topically, we have to say that its role and effects seem to be less direct than with LA . ALA's main role in the skin appears to be modulating the immune response of the epidermis. This is probably helpful for inflammatory skin diseases but most studies examine ALA as an oral supplement and not when applied topically. One exception, we could find, is a study that found that topically applied ALA has nice spot-fading abilities. To be honest, it seems to us that oral supplementation of ALA is more important than smearing it all over your face. However, that is not to say that topical ALA is a bad thing, it is a good thing. It is a skin-identical ingredient, it is probably moisturizing and anti-inflammatory but its topical effects are less established than that of fellow omega fatty acid, linoleic acid ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Zinc Oxide",
    "description": "When it comes to sunscreen agents, Zinc Oxide is pretty much in a league of its own . It's a physical (or inorganic) sunscreen that has a lot in common with fellow inorganic sunscreen Titanium Dioxide (TiO2) but a couple of things make it superior even to TiO2. If physical sunscreens don't tell you anything, go ahead and read about the basics here . Most of what we wrote about Titanium Dioxide is also true for Zinc Oxide so we will focus here on the differences. The first main difference is that while TiO2 gives a nice broad spectrum protection, Zinc Oxide has an even nicer and even broader spectrum protection. It protects against UVB, UVA II, and UVA I almost uniformly, and is considered to be the broadest range sunscreen available today . It's also highly stable and non-irritating . So much so that Zinc Oxide also counts as a skin protectant and anti-irritant . It's also often used to treat skin irritations such as diaper rash. As for the disadvantages, Zinc Oxide is also not cosmetically elegant. It leaves a disturbing whitish tint on the skin , although , according to a 2000 research paper by Dr. Pinnell, it's slightly less white than TiO2. Still, it's white and disturbing enough to use Zinc Oxide nanoparticles more and more often. We wrote more about nanoparticles and the concerns around them here , but the gist is that if nanoparticles were absorbed into the skin that would be a reason for legitimate health concerns. But luckily, so far research shows that sunscreen nanoparticles are not absorbed but remain on the surface of the skin or in the uppermost (dead) layer of the skin. This seems to be true even if the skin is damaged, for example, sunburnt. All in al l, if you've found a Zinc Oxide sunscreen that you are happy to use every single day, that's fantastic and we suggest you stick with it. It's definitely one of the best, or probably even the best option out there for sun protection available worldwide."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Reticulata Peel Oil",
    "description": "The essential oi l coming from the rind of the mandarin orange also called tangerine. In general, the main component of citrus peel oils is limonene (80-97%), a super common fragrant ingredient that makes everything smell nice (but counts as a frequent skin sensitizer). Other than that, citrus peel also contains the problematic compound called furanocoumarin that makes them mildly phototoxic. In general, the sweeter the citrus, the less it contains, so tangerine peel contains less of it than some other citruses (like bergamot or lime), but still, be careful with it especially if it is in a product for daytime use."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Bis Stearyl Ethylenediamine/​Neopentyl Glycol/​Stearyl Hydrogenated Dimer Dilinoleate Copolymer",
    "description": "This terribly long named thing is a vegetable derived (yes, we are surprised too) polymer (big molecule from repeated subunits) that's used to form stable, nice-feeling water-in-gelled oil or silicone-in-gelled oil emulsions . It's also claimed to be an excellent water and sweat repellent agent for sunscreens, lotions, and balms."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract",
    "description": "We have to start by writing that there are about 900 citrus species in the world, and plenty of them are used to make different kinds of extracts used in cosmetics. This particular one, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract is a very common ingredient, however, the species \"Citrus Aurantium Dulcis\" seem to exist only on ingredient lists and the real world calls this guy Citrus Sinensis or, you know, orange. To complicate matters further, there are lots of varieties and lots of extraction methods, so it is a bit hard to know what you are getting with this one, but we will try our best to summarize the possibilities. A very common scenario is that  Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract is on the ingredient list for its mild, natural exfoliant properties. It contains mainly citric acid and some malic acid , AHA exfoliants known for their skin renewing properties. If that's the case, it is usually combined with other AHA containing fruits such as bilberry , sugar cane , lemon , and sugar maple in a super popular ingredient mix trade named ACB Fruit Mix . But orange fruit is loaded with lots of other active compounds with a wide variety of possible effects. A well-known one is the antioxidant vitamin C, aka ascorbic acid , but the dosage will vary based on the extraction method, and it’s possible that some of the ascorbic acid content will degrade before extraction process even takes place. If you want vitamin C in your skincare, that is smart, but do not rely on orange fruit extract for it. Flavonoids ( hesperidin, naringin, luteolin, and ferulic acid ) are also nice active compounds with possible antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and vasoprotective effects . Some of them (namely hesperidin and luteolin ) might even have skin brightening activity by inhibiting tyrosinase, the famous enzyme needed for melanin production. The orange extract also contains carbohydrates, aka sugars (mostly glucose, fructose, and sucrose, but also some bigger polysaccharides such as pectin) giving the ingredient some moisturizing properties. Some essential oil content is usually also present in citrus fruit extracts, which means a nice scent and antibacterial properties, but also some questionable compounds such as fragrance allergen limonene or phototoxic compound bergaptene. If the amount is big enough to worry about is questionable, probably not, however, the same question applies to all the nice beneficial compounds. Overall, we think that the orange fruit extract is a very complex ingredient with lots of potentially good things in it, but we could not find proper in-vivo (made on real people) studies made with standardized extracts to validate what it really does or does not under real-world use cases."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Coco-Caprylate",
    "description": "A clear, colorless to slightly yellowish oil that makes the skin nice and smooth (emollient), spreads easily on the skin and is marketed as a good alternative to volatile (does not absorb into the skin but rather evaporates from it) silicones like Cyclomethicone ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Coco-Glucoside",
    "description": "A vegetable origin (coconut/palm kernel oil, glucose) cleansing agent that gives moderate to high stable foam. It's also biodegradable and mild to the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Limon Peel Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from the rind of the lemon that we make (or should make) lemonade from. In general, there are two problems with citrus peel oils: first, they are essentially the fragrant component , limonene in disguise (they are about 85-98% limonene). Second, they contain the problematic compounds called furanocoumarins that make them mildly phototoxic . Lemon peel contains a medium amount of them, more than sweet orange but less than bergamot . Be careful with it especially if it is in a product for daytime use."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Decyl Glucoside",
    "description": "A vegetable origin (coconut or palm kernel oil and glucose) cleansing agent with great foaming abilities. It's also mild to the skin and readily biodegradable."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Magnesium Aluminum Silicate",
    "description": "A type of clay mineral that works as a nice helper ingredient to thicken and stabilize formulas . As a clay, it consists of platelets that have a negative charge on the surface (face) and a positive on the edge. So the face of one platelet attracts the edge of the other and this builds a so-called \"house of card\" structure meaning that Magnesium Aluminum Silicate (MAS) thickens up products and helps to suspend non-soluble particles such as color pigments or inorganic sunscreens ( zinc oxide and titanium dioxide ). As the \"house of card\" structure takes some time to form but collapses quickly if the formula is stirred, products thickened with MAS can be thick in the jar but become easily spreadable upon application (called thixotropy). MAS also gives nice sensory properties, it is not tacky or sticky and gives a rich, creamy skin feel. Also a good team player and works in synergy with other thickeners such as Cellulose Gum or Xanthan Gum ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "SH-Oligopeptide-1",
    "description": "Sh-Oligopeptide-1 is the famous molecule, which is also called Epidermal Growth Factor or EGF. Chemically speaking, Growth Factors are largish peptides or smallish proteins , or to put it in another way, medium-length amino acid sequences (EGF consists of 53 amino acids).  Biologically speaking, Growth Factors are cellular signal molecules that can stimulate cell growth, proliferation, healing and/or differentiation. There are lots of Growth Factors and EGF is just one of them. The topic of \"Growth Factors and skincare\" is a big, confusing and controversial one and we will try our best to summarize the story for you, including the pros and the cons. EGF is a special snowflake when it comes to skincare as it was the first Growth Factor that made its way into cosmetic products and it is also the most common one. The American biochemist, Stanley Cohen discovered EGF and was awarded a Noble prize in 1986 for it. As the Noble prize may signify, the molecule is significant and powerful and directly stimulates the proliferation of epidermal cells. When it comes to Sh-Oligopeptide-1 in a cosmetic product, it has pretty well-established wound healing and skin renewal properties . It might even do more than that. According to a 2012 study on a serum containing barley bioengineered epidermal growth factor , \"clinical evaluations showed statistically significant improvement in the appearance of fine lines and rhytids, skin texture, pore size , and various dyschromatic conditions apparent within the first month of use, and continuing improvement trends for the duration of the study\" (which was 3 months). This all sounds amazing, \"give me some EGF Serum\", we can hear you say! But as we wrote in the intro, the topic is complex and controversial so here are some of the questions that keep coming up around slathering EGF all over our face. The first and biggest concern is that if EGF is so good at stimulating cell proliferation, how does it relate to cancer? Is the definition of cancer not \"cells proliferating out of control\"?  Most experts agree on this answer: EGF is mitogenic (= stimulates cell proliferation) but not mutagenic (= does not alter the cell to make it cancerous) . If you do not have cancer, you will not get cancer from EGF. However, if you have cancerous cells, EGF will help them to spread, just like it helps healthy cells. So if you have a lot of moles, excessive UV exposure in the past, or if you have any of the skin cancer risk factors , we suggest you should think twice about using EGF products. The same is true if you have psoriasis, a skin disease related to the abnormal growth of epidermal skin cells. You do not want to add fuel to the fire with EGF. Other (less serious) concerns are if EGF can properly penetrate the skin (as it is a medium-sized, polar molecule, so a special delivery system is probably needed), if it can affect collagen synthesis (or just works on the surface plumping up only the upmost layers of the skin) and if it has beneficial effects at all when used in isolation versus when used in a \"conditioned media\" that contains lots of growth factors resembling the synergistic balance found in the skin. Overall , our impression is that EGF is definitely a potent molecule. Some EGF products have a cult-like following adding anecdotal evidence to the clinical studies showing EGF has a beneficial effect on the skin. If you like experimenting, by all means, go ahead (unless you have psoriasis or high skin cancer risk factors), but if you are a better safe than sorry type, stick to daily SPF + a good retinoid product . This duo is still the golden standard of anti-aging. Are you interested in Growth Factors and skincare? We have some more here: Human Fibroblast Conditioned Media - a growth factor cocktail used in some cosmetic products Insulin-like growth factor 1, aka sh-Oligopeptide -2 - a pal of EGF composed of 70 amino acids Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor, aka Sh-Polypeptide-9 - part of a GF cocktail trade named BIO-Placenta"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cocos Nucifera Oil",
    "description": "There is definitely some craze going on for coconut oil both in the healthy eating space (often claimed to be the healthiest oil to cook with but this is a topic for another site) and in the skin and hair care space. We will talk here about the latter two and see why we might want to smear it all over ourselves. Chemically speaking, coconut oil has a unique fatty acid profile. Unlike many plant oils that mostly contain unsaturated fatty acids (fatty acids with double bonds and kinky structure such as linoleic or oleic ), coconut oil is mostly saturated (fatty acids with single bonds only) and its most important fatty acid is Lauric Acid (about 50%).  Saturated fatty acids have a linear structure that can stack nice and tight and hence they are normally solid at room temperature. Coconut oil melts around 25 °C so it is solid in the tub but melts on contact with the skin. The saturated nature of coconut oil also means that it is a heavy-duty-oil ideal for dry skin types . A double-blind research confirmed that extra virgin coconut oil is as effective in treating xerosis (aka very dry skin) as mineral oil . Another study found that coconut oil is more effective than mineral oil in treating mild to moderate atopic dermatitis (aka eczema) in children. So when it comes to dry skin, coconut oil is a goodie, no question there. The question is if it is good or bad for acne-prone skin . Its main fatty acid, Lauric Acid has some research showing that it is a promising ingredient against evil acne-causing bacteria, P. acnes but at the same time, both Lauric Acid and coconut oil have a very high comedogenic rating (4 out of 5). Though comedogenic ratings are not very reliable, anecdotal evidence (i.e. people commenting in forums) shows that people have mixed experiences. While some claim that it worked wonders on their acne others say that it gave them serious blackheads and zits. Try it at your own risk. As for hair care, coconut oil has pretty solid research showing that it can penetrate into the hair very well (better than mineral oil and sunflower oil ) and it can prevent hair protein loss as well as combing damage .  If you have problems with damaged hair, split ends, coconut oil is worth trying as a pre- or/and post-wash treatment. Labmuffin has an awesome blogpost explaining in more detail why coconut oil is good for your hair. A couple of other things worth mentioning: coconut oil might help with wound healing (promising animal study), it has some antifungal activity (against dermatophytes that cause the thing known as ringworm) and it also works as an insect repellent against black flies. Overall , coconut oil is definitely a goodie for the hair and dry skin . If that warrants for the magic oil status it enjoys, we don't know."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Saccharum Officinarum Extract",
    "description": "Also known as Sugarcane, Saccharum Officinarum is a handy moisturizing ingredient mostly used as a humectant. This means that it can help the skin to attract water and then to hold onto it. It bears a close relationship to AHA superstar, Glycolic Acid that can be derived from it, so it's often claimed that Sugarcane Extract itself also exfoliates and brightens the skin. We could not find any research studies to back this up, but Saccharum Officinarum very often comes to the formula combined with other acid containing plant extracts trade named ACB Fruit Mix . According to manufacturer data, 5% of the fruit mix increases cellular renewal by 24%, while 4% pure Glycolic did the same by 33%. So maybe, a tiny bit of exfoliation, but if you want proven efficacy, stick to pure acids."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Macadamia Ternifolia Seed Oil",
    "description": "The golden yellow oil coming from the Macadamia nut, a native Australian nut. Similar to other plant oils, it's loaded with emollient and nourishing fatty acids . It's a high oleic acid oil ( 50-67% oleic acid and only 0-5% linoleic acid ) that makes it very emollient and ideal for dry skin types (and less ideal for acne-prone skin). Its unique property is that it contains high amounts of a rare fatty acid called palmitoleic acid (12-25%) that give Macadamia oil a \"cushiony\" feel. It's also easily absorbed and makes the skin soft and supple."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "No Title",
    "description": "Though Algae Extract is an official INCI name, Laminaria Algae Extract is not. Laminaria refers to a group of brown algae commonly called as kelp , but there are 31 species of them, several of wich is used in skin care. In general, Laminaria extracts serve as moisturizing agents with some added benefits (as they contain good for the skin things like mineral salts, trace elements, and vitamins)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate",
    "description": "It's one of those things that help your cosmetics not to go wrong too soon, aka a preservative . Its strong point is being effective against yeasts and molds , and as a nice bonus seems to be non-comedogenic as well. It is safe in concentrations of less than 0.1% but is acutely toxic when inhaled, so it's not the proper preservative choice for aerosol formulas like hairsprays. Used at 0.1%, Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate has an extremely low rate of skin-irritation when applied directly for 24 hours (around 0.1% of 4,883 participants) and after 48 hours that figure was 0.5%, so it counts as mild and safe unless your skin is super-duper sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate",
    "description": "A vegetable-based emulsifier that helps the oily and watery parts of the formula to mix nicely together. It is compatible with a bunch of cosmetic oils as well as active ingredients and its specialty is creating emulsions with super high heat and freeze stability (from -25 °C and +50 °C)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Imperata Cylindrica Root Extract",
    "description": "A subtropical plant that thrives in flooded environments and is claimed to give excellent long-term moisturizing effects . Its hydrating ability is due to the chemical composition of the rhizomes that contain natural osmoprotective compounds such as 3-dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP), potassium, starches, and sugars. Osmoprotective compounds are interesting, skincare-wise, as they are thought to be able to increase intracellular osmosis, meaning water is drawn into the skin cells . According to the efficacy data from the manufacturer, 2% of ABS Imperata Cylindrica Extract (the trade name of the diluted version of the root extract) is able to increase the level of skin moisturization by almost 45%, which is 88% more effective than the untreated control. This all sounds great, however, in terms of comparative effectiveness, Imperata Cylindrica came up somewhat short in the study published in the Journal of cosmetic dermatology. They compared four hydrogels with different moisturizer actives and although all the formulas did hydrate the skin, the one with Imperata Cylindrica extract performed less well than the same formula with urea or sugar-based hydrating trio, called Aquaxyl . Still, it is a skin goodie with nice moisturizing properties, so if you are after skin hydration, it is a good one to spot on the INCI list."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Macrocystis Pyrifera",
    "description": "The extract coming from the giant blown kelp . It contains alginates that give Macrocystis Pyrifera viscosity controlling and thickening properties . Other than that, there is also a manufacturer claim saying that Macrocystis Pyrifera \"increases the vitality of epidermal growth, improves collagen synthesis, and maintains skin elasticity \". We wrote some more about algae extract in general here ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "No Title",
    "description": "It's not a standard INCI name, but rather a sloppy one. Several kinds of grape extracts are used in cosmetic products, the most well-known is the seed extract , but fruit extract or juice extract also exists."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glycine Soja Oil",
    "description": "The emollient plant oil coming from the soybean . It is considered to be a nice, cost-effective base oil with moisturizing properties. As for its fatty acid profile, it contains 48-59% barrier-repairing linoleic acid , 17-30% nourishing oleic acid and also some (4.5-11%) potentially anti-inflammatory linolenic acid ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Madecassic Acid",
    "description": "One of the biologically active components of Gotu Kola that is thought to contribute to the plant extract's well-documented skin regenerating, wound healing, and moisturizing properties . If you are into Gotu Kola we have some more info at Centella Asiatica Extract and its other biologically active components Madecassoside , Asiaticoside and Asiatic Acid ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sesamum Indicum Seed Oil",
    "description": "A goldish to dark yellow emollient plant oil coming from Sesame seeds. Similar to many other plant oils, it contains high amounts of nourishing and moisturizing fatty acids (about 38% of oleic and 48% of linoleic acid ) and is a nice oil to repair and regenerate dry skin. It is rapidly absorbed and gives the skin a soft and gentle feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dipeptide-2",
    "description": "A tiny peptide with only two amino acids (amino acids are the building block of proteins, and peptides are a few amino acids attached together), Valine and Tryptophan. It's part of a 3 actives complex called Eyeliss (with HMC and Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 ) that's supposed to fight under-eye bags . The manufacturer claims that this dipeptide in Eyeliss can increase lymphatic circulation and the three actives together represent a \"global approach to treating puffy eyes\". The clinical study of the manufacturer with 20 people and 3% Eyeliss showed improvement after 56 days for 70% of the participants."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Neopentyl Glycol Diheptanoate",
    "description": "A clear, odorless, very light emollient ester that helps to achieve light textures. It has great spreadability, a good slip, and a silky skin feel .  It's ideal to solubilize sunscreen agents and fragrances. It's also touted as a volatile (evaporates from the skin rather than absorbs into it) silicone alternative , especially to replace Cyclomethicone mixes ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hesperidin Methyl Chalcone",
    "description": "This guy - let's just call it simply HMC - is a so-called flavonoid (flavonoids are natural things found it lots of fruits and vegetables). Hesperidin , in particular, is a flavonone and is found in citrus fruits. The methylation of hesperidin gives HMC, that has well-established blood vessel protecting properties and can be found in drugs that treat problems related to blood vessels. As for skincare, there is a mouse study showing HMC has very promising abilities in the \"treatment of UVB irradiation-induced skin inflammation and oxidative stress\", or English translation = it's an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory . HMC is also part of a 3 active ingredient complex called Eyeliss (with Dipeptide-2 and Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 ), that's supposed to fight under-eye bags . The manufacturer claims that in their ex-vivo test HMC decreased capillary permeability by 25%. All in all, HMC definitely deserves a goodie status, at least as an antioxidant but it might even do something with under-eye bags."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Acrylate/​Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer",
    "description": "A copolymer is a big molecule that consists not of one but of two repeating subunits. This particular copolymer is a handy helper ingredient to form nice gel textures . It usually comes to the formula combined with emollients (such as  C13-14 Isoparaffin, Isohexadecane, Isononyl Isononanoate or Squalane) and can be used as an emulsifier and/or thickener to produce milky gel emulsions with a soft and non-tacky skin feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lactobacillus/​Nereocystis Luetkeana Ferment Filtrate",
    "description": "A thickish, light tan colored gel that's coming from the fermentation of Bull Kelp (a big brown algae) using lactobacillus. The idea behind the fermentation is that it breaks down the cell walls of the kelp so that the useful stuff inside the cells become bio-available for the skin. Similar to Lactobacillus/Kelp Ferment Filtrate (that is a very-very similar ingredient to this one, but the \"base kelp\" is a different type), this guy is also a natural film-former and moisturizer . Might also deliver some vitamins and minerals to the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Nigella Sativa Seed Oil",
    "description": "The (fixed or non-volatile) oil coming from the black seeds of Nigella Sativa , a smallish (20-30 cm) flowering plant native to Southwest Asia. The seed has a very complex chemical composition (it contains both fixed and volatile oil) and is used traditionally for a bunch of \"anti-something\" abilities including antitumor, antidiabetic, antihistaminic, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial properties . In Islam, black cumin seed was considered \"a healing seed for all diseases except death”. As for modern research and chemical composition, the fixed oil from the seeds is rich in skin-nourishing unsaturated fatty acids ( mainly linoleic acid at 50 – 60% and oleic acid at 20%, but also contains some rare ones like C20:2 arachidic and eicosadienoic acids ), amino acids , vitamins, and minerals. A component called thymoquinone (it's the main component of the volatile oil part, but the fixed oil also contains some) is considered to give the seed its main therapeutic properties including strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory abilities . As for black seed oil and cosmetics, the oil is great to nourish and moisturize the skin and is highly recommended to treat inflammatory skin diseases like psoriasis and eczema ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cocos Nucifera Fruit Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the coconut fruit. It is a similar thing to coconut water and fruit juice and is loaded with sugars, minerals, amino acids. It is also claimed to have vitalizing and energizing effects, and some smoothing, emollient and hydrating props. If you are into coconut, we have more details at coconut water and coconut oil ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Disodium Coco-Glucoside Citrate",
    "description": "A cleansing agent that's a combination of citric acid and coco-glucoside. It's almost natural (\"nearly natural substance\" according to Ecocert standards), readily biodegradable, and very mild and non-irritating to the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isopropyl Palmitate",
    "description": "A clear, colorless emollient ester (oily liquid from isopropyl alcohol + palmitic acid) that makes the skin nice and smooth. It has very good spreading properties and gives a silky touch to the products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Limnanthes Alba Seed Oil",
    "description": "The emollient plant oil coming from the seeds of the white flowering plant called meadowfoam .  Meadowfoam Oil has a unique fatty acid composition with 95% of it being long chain fatty acids ( eicosenoic acid C20:1 - 61%, docosenoic acid C22:1 - 16% and docosadienoic acid C22:2 - 18%) that make the oil extraordinarily stable . It also contains antioxidant components such as vitamin E as well as phytosterols . Apart from Meadowfoam Oil's crazy stability, the oil is described as non-greasy, rapidly absorbed and having a similar skin feel to more often used jojoba oil . The oil is ideal for products where a soft, smooth, silky feel is required whether it be on skin or hair."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Oleyl Erucate",
    "description": "A vegetable-based emollient ester (oleyl alcohol + erucic acid) that makes your skin feel nice and smooth. It has a rich and caring skin feel, very similar to jojoba oil ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-6 Stearate",
    "description": "A glycerin and stearic acid based ingredient that helps oil and water to mix nicely together, aka emulsifier .  It is PEG-free and based on renewable raw materials. It usually comes to the formula with its emulsifier buddy, Polyglyceryl-6 Behenate , and the duo is especially recommended for formulating low-viscous serums, lotions, and sprays.  As an added bonus, the duo is also described as providing \"outstanding moisturization properties \"."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydroxyacetophenone",
    "description": "A handy multifunctional ingredient that works as a preservative booster , as well as an antioxidant and soothing agent ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tris-Biphenyl Triazine",
    "description": "The newest addition to the Tinosorb sunscreen family , a new generation of sunscreen filters that are not available in the US, only in other parts of the world. This one is so new, that it's EU only at the moment (as of 2016). The unique property of Tris-Biphenyl Triazine is that it's the most efficient UVB and UVA2 filter known today . UVA2 (320-340 nm) is a spot that most filters miss, so this guy can help to bridge this common gap and make sunscreen formulas really cover the whole UV spectrum. It's also highly photostable and has high SPF performance at low concentrations. Though it does not provide protection in the UVA1 (340-400 nm) range, it does have a boosting effect there. Similar to Trinosorb M , it is a hybrid agent (between chemical and physical sunscreens) and comes in the form of organic micro fine particles."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dicaprylyl Ether",
    "description": "A clear, colorless and odorless oily liquid that works as a fast-spreading emollient with a dry skin feel ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-6 Behenate",
    "description": "A glycerin and behenic acid based ingredient that stabilizes oil-water mixes , aka emulsions. It usually comes to the formula with Polyglyceryl-6 Stearate , and the duo is helpful for making light serums and lotions. As an added bonus, they also work as a nice emollient and moisturizer ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrogenated Polydecene",
    "description": "A hydrocarbon-based emollient that can come in different viscosities from silky-light through satiny-smooth to luxurious, rich . It forms a non-occlusive film on the surface of the skin and brings gloss without greasiness to the formula. It's a very pure and hypoallergenic emollient that's also ideal for baby care products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrogenated Castor Oil",
    "description": "A chemically modified version of castor oil that results in a solid, waxy material that serves as an emollient and consistency building material. It also has some unique moisturizing properties as it is both occlusive and humectant .  The former one is common for oils and waxes and it means that it sits on top of the skin hindering water to evaporate out of the top layers. The latter one, the humectant property, is surprising and comes from the unique property of ricinoleic acid (the dominant fatty acid in castor oil)  having an extra water-loving -OH group on its otherwise oil-loving fatty chain. We have some more info about this at castor oil, so if you are interested, read on here ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Steareth-20",
    "description": "A waxy solid material that helps oil and water to mix together, aka emulsifier . It is derived from the fatty alcohol called stearyl alcohol by ethoxylating it and thus making the molecule more water-soluble. The end result is a mostly water-loving emulsifier, also called solubilizer that can help to dissolve small amounts of oil-loving ingredients into water-based products. Or it can be combined with more oil-loving emulsifiers (such as its sister, Steareth-2 ) to create stable emulsions."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methylene Bis-Benzotriazolyl Tetramethylbutylphenol",
    "description": "The long name covers a nice sunscreen agent and quite a special one at that: It's a \" hybrid \" sunscreen meaning it's half-way between physical (the ones that, at least partly, reflect the sun ) and chemical agents (that absorb the rays, which most sunscreens do).  It is a new generation UV filter and, just like its sister, Trinosorb S , it is not available in the US. It gives nice broad-spectrum coverage (280-400 nm, meaning UVB as well as UVA protecion) with peak protection at 305 nm and 360 nm and it is highly photostable . It can also help to stabilize other less stable sunscreens, like Octinoxate and is generally happy to work together with other UV-filters. Its hybrid nature means that it is organic like the chemical agents, but it is neither water nor oil soluble and works as a suspension of micro fine particles . If the small particles scare you, we have good news: the safety profile of Tinosorb M is great. It is not absorbed into the skin and unlike some other chemical sunscreens, it does not show estrogenic activity. The downside of its hybrid nature is that - similar to the inorganic sunscreens zinc and titanium dioxide - Tinosorb M also leaves a white cast on the skin that can be bothersome on darker skin tones."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine",
    "description": "Its INCI name is a bit of a mouthful , but Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine is worth recognizing it as it is one of the best sunscreen agents known today . Unfortunately, it's not FDA-approved so you will not find it in sunscreens coming from the US (not because it's not good, but because US regulations make it impossible for newer sunscreen agents to get approved), but it is widely available in other parts of the world like Europe, Australia or Asia. It is a broad-spectrum (covers the whole UVB and UVA range, 280-400 nm) chemical sunscreen agent with peak protections at about 310 and 345 nm and unlike older UV filters, it's very photostable. It hardly deteriorates in the presence of UV light and it's also useful in stabilizing other less stable sunscreen agents, like the famous UVA protector, avobenzone . It's a new generation sunscreen agent that was specifically designed for high SPF and good UVA protection and based on a 2007 study that compared 18 sunscreen agents available in the EU it really had the best SPF protection (they used the highest concentration allowed by EU regulations from each 18 sunscreens and Trinosorb S gave an SPF 20 all by itself). It is an oil-soluble, slightly yellowish powder that is not absorbed into the skin too much. This is good news for a sunscreen agent as it needs to be on the surface of the skin to do its job properly. Regarding Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine side effects, we have good news here as well: it has a great safety profile and unlike a couple of other chemical sunscreens, Trinosorb S (and M) does not show estrogenic activity. Overall, we think Trinosorb S is one of the best sunscreen options available today. Are you into sunscreen agents? We have shiny explanations (along with product lists) about others as well: Methylene Bis-Benzotriazolyl Tetramethylbutylphenol , aka Tinosorb M, the good buddy of our current molecule Tinosorb S Tris-Biphenyl Triazine , aka Tinosorb A2B, the newest addition to the Tinosorb family that protects strongly in an in-between wavelength that most other filters miss Ethylhexyl Triazone , aka Uvinul T 150, another new generation sunscreen agent with super-high UVB protection Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate , aka Uvinul A Plus, a new generation sunscreen for UVA protection"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Copernicia Cerifera Wax",
    "description": "A vegetable wax coming from the leaves of the Brazilian tropical palm tree, Copernicia cerifera. Similar to other waxes, it is used to stabilize and give body to products , or to keep stick type formulas solid. It is the hardest natural wax with a high melting point (around 85C) and high gloss making it a great wax choice for lip products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hdi/​Trimethylol Hexyllactone Crosspolymer",
    "description": "A handy spherical powder that's often combined with fellow spherical powder, Polymethylsilsesquioxane to form a high-performing texturizing duo. The duo is claimed to provide excellent slip, fluidity and overall skin feel and gives soft focus and wrinkle correction to the formula. It also has strong de-tackifying and anti-caking properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Mannitol",
    "description": "A type of sugar molecule , that has water-binding properties and helps to keep your skin hydrated ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glyceryl Behenate",
    "description": "The combination of glycerin + behenic acid that comes either in a fine powder or waxy solid form. Together with the di- and triglyceride of behenic acid , the trio has remarkable gelling properties helping cosmetic chemists to create ultra-soft and non-tacky waterfree gels. They also have great emulsion stabilizing properties, and work as high-performance compacting agents for makeup products that come in the form of pressed powders. It's also vegetable origin, and Ecocert certified."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glyceryl Dibehenate",
    "description": "The combination of glycerin + two behenic acid molecules that works as an oil-gelling agent, emulsion stabilizer , and high-performance compacting agent in pressed powders. We wrote a bit more at its little sis, glyceryl behenate ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sorbitan Stearate",
    "description": "A popular, vegetable-derived oil-loving emulsifier that helps water to mix with oil. In itself, it is suitable for water-in-oil emulsions (where water droplets are dispersed in oil), but it is more often used as a co-emulsifier next to other, water-loving emulsifiers. Chemically speaking, it comes from the attachment of sorbitan (a dehydrated sorbitol (sugar) molecule) with the fatty acid Stearic Acid , that creates a partly water (the sorbitan part) and partly oil soluble (stearic part) molecule."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Zinc Stearate",
    "description": "Zinc Stearate is probably the most commonly used binding agent in powder makeup products such as face powders or eyeshadows. It gives very good adherence qualities meaning it helps powders to stick together in the pan and to stick to the skin on application. It is typically used at 3-10%, too much of it though can cause lumpiness or greasiness on the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Solum Fullonum",
    "description": "Fuller's Earth describes types of clay that have absorbing and bleaching properties . The name comes from traditional textile workers cleaning or \"fulling\" wool with this clay. It consists mainly of the clay mineral called palygorskite (that's different both from kaolin or bentonite ) or some type of bentonite (mainly calcium montmorillonite). In cosmetic products, Fuller's Earth is used as an absorbent that can suck up excess oil from the skin . It's excellent absorbent properties also mean that too much of it can dry out the skin, so just like with bentonite , use it for good measure and moisturize after it."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Peat",
    "description": "A black, soil-like, nutrient-rich thing that has a complex composition with a bunch of potential therapeutic effects. It has long been used in physiotherapy, rheumatology and sports medicine. As for skincare, peat has promising antimicrobial activity (thanks to its main components humic and fulvic acid ), it's also a mild astringent, anti-inflammatory and even shows some UVB-protective effects. Thanks to these properties, peat has some promise as an adjacent treatment in inflammatory-related skin diseases like atopic dermatitis, psoriasis or rosacea."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hexyldecanol",
    "description": "A yellowish oily liquid that works as a medium spreading emollient and is suitable for a wide pH range."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glyceryl Oleate",
    "description": "The attachment of glycerin and oleic acid that works mainly as a co-emulsifier and stabilizer to create stable water-oil mixes, aka emulsions. It is also popular in cleansing products as it helps to thicken them up and has some refatting and skin-smoothing effect."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Centaurea Cyanus Flower Water",
    "description": "Flower distillate coming from the beautiful blue flowers, commonly known as cornflower .  The flowers are traditionally used in European phytotherapy to treat smaller eye inflammations and contain polysaccharides (mainly galacturonic acid, arabinose, glucose, rhamnose, and galactose) with anti-inflammatory and soothing properties ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Plantago Lanceolata Leaf Extract",
    "description": "The plant extract coming from the leaves of English plantain or narrowleaf plantain that's native to Europe and Asia. The plant has plenty of traditional medicinal uses. Regarding the leaf and the skin, it's used to promote maturation of abscess and to speed up the recovery of incisions, pimples or wounds. Modern studies do confirm that the plant, and specifically the leaves are loaded with active compounds that give the extract anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and antioxidant magic properties . An in-vitro (made on chicken membrane, not on real people) study in Phytotherapy Research found that Plantain Leaf Extract in large concentrations has a comparable soothing effect to anti-inflammatory big shot, hydrocortisone . Another study in the Journal of Herbal Medicine examined the antioxidant properties of the plant and found that the leaf extract has potent antioxidant activity (thanks to its flavonoids and hydroxycinnamic acids content) that's comparable or superior to multiple herbs and Chinese medicinal plants. All in all, definitely a goodie plant extract that's good to spot on the ingredient list."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Benzophenone-4",
    "description": "A water-soluble, chemical sunscreen agent that is a secondary UVB absorber with some activity in the short UVA range as well. Being a secondary UV absorber means that its protection is weak and it has to be combined with other sunscreen filters for proper sun protection. More often than not, Benzophenone-4 is not used as a sunscreen agent but as a photoprotectant to extend product shelf life, or as a color-protectant for products in clear packages. A Contact Dermatitis article from 2007 names BP-4 as an emerging allergen, as it was the most frequently positive chemical UV filter and third most frequently positive ingredient overall among the 35 substances patch tested in the study (13 positives of 1693 people tested)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dipropylene Glycol Dibenzoate",
    "description": "An oily liquid that makes your skin nice and smooth (aka emollient ). It is also claimed to have some humectant and moisturizing properties without a greasy after-feel. But its real superpower is being an outstanding solvent for hard to solubilize sunscreen agents (that is most of the chemical sunscreen filters) making it an excellent emollient choice in high SPF products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polymethyl Methacrylate",
    "description": "A so-called polymer microsphere , i.e. little spherical shaped particles from repeated subunits. Similar to other microsphere powders, it can scatter the light to give products a soft focus or blurring effect. It also works as a texture enhancer giving formulas an exceptional smoothness and a velvet touch."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PPG-15 Stearyl Ether Benzoate",
    "description": "An emollient liquid that usually comes to the formula combined with C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate and Dipropylene Glycol Dibenzoate as the trio works in synergy to solubilize hard to dissolve sunscreen agents while providing a nice, non-greasy skin feel ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dibutyl Adipate",
    "description": "A clear, colorless, odorless oily liquid that makes the formula easily spreadable and also makes the skin nice and smooth (emollient). It's especially helpful in sunscreens as it can help to solubilize UV filters ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Diisopropyl Sebacate",
    "description": "A clear, colorless, practically odorless, light liquid that works as a handy helper ingredient in sunscreen formulas . It helps to create high-SPF formulas with reduced concentrations of UV-filter s and it also helps to create cosmetically elegant formulas (and that's no easy feat when it comes to sunscreens). It absorbs rapidly, makes the product easily spreadable and reduces greasiness coming from the oil-soluble sunscreen agents."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Phenylbenzimidazole Sulfonic Acid",
    "description": "A chemical sunscreen agent that gives strong protection in the UVB (280-320nm) range with its peak protection at 306 nm. Its special property is that unlike most sunscreen agents, it is not oil but water soluble, so it is ideal to create light , oily skin compatible formulas .  It is also fairly photostable and can be used to protect other less stable UV filters (like famous UVA blocker, avobenzone ) in the formula. It is approved worldwide and can be used up to 4% in the US and up to 8% in the EU."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethylhexyl Triazone",
    "description": "Ethylhexyl Triazone is a new generation, chemical sunscreen (not available in the US due to impossible FDA regulations) that gives the highest photo-stable absorption of all available UVB filters today. It protects in the UVB range (280-320nm) with a peak protection of 314nm. It is an oil soluble, odorless, colorless powder that works well in fragrance-free formulas. It can be used up to 5% worldwide except for the US and Canada."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate",
    "description": "Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate is a new generation, chemical sunscreen agent (not available in the US due to impossible FDA regulations) that's designed for high UVA protection and high photostability . It gives sun protection in the whole UVA range (320-400 nm) with peak protection at 354nm. It can be used up to 10% worldwide except for the US and Canada."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lauryl Glucoside",
    "description": "A 100% vegetable origin, biodegradable, mild cleansing agent that gives moderate to high amount of foam. It's happy to work together with other surfactants (in general, that helps to create milder formulas)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrogenated Coco-Glycerides",
    "description": "A white, solid, vegetable-derived fat (meaning it has the same triglyceride structure as oils but is solid at room temperature) that contains coconut-derived, C12-C18 chain length, saturated (no double bonds) fatty acids. It is odorless, has a neutral taste and it is pretty hard at room temperature. It is used as a consistency regulator both for creams and makeup products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetyl PEG/​PPG-10/​1 Dimethicone",
    "description": "A silicone emulsifier that helps water and silicone oils to mix nicely together."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methyl Methacrylate Crosspolymer",
    "description": "Porous spherical microbeads (tiny little balls) that can give an elegant silky texture to the products. They are also used to scatter light to reduce the look of fine lines on the skin, as well as to absorb excess oil and give a matt finish."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethylhexyl Salicylate",
    "description": "A colorless to light yellowish oily liquid that works as a UVB (280-320nm) sunscreen filter with a peak absorbance at 306 nm. It's not a strong filter in itself, it's always used in combination with other sunscreen agents to further enhance the SPF and to solubilize other solid UV filters . It has a good safety profile and is allowed to be used at a max concentration of 5% both in the US and in Europe (10% is allowed in Japan)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Trisodium EDTA",
    "description": "A common helper ingredient that works as a so-called chelating agent.  It helps products to remain nice and stable for a longer time by neutralizing the metal ions in the formula (that usually get into there from water) that would otherwise cause some not so nice changes."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cyamopsis Tetragonoloba Gum",
    "description": "A plant-derived (coming from the seeds of Cyamopsis Tetragonoloba, aka Guar) big, branched sugar molecule that is used as a gelling agent ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane",
    "description": "The famous Avobenzone. It is a special snowflake as it is the only globally available chemical sunscreen agent that provides proper UVA protection (in the US, new generation sunscreen agents are not approved because of impossible FDA regulations). It is the global gold standard of UVA protection and is the most used UVA sunscreen in the world. It gives very good protection across the whole UVA range (310-400 nm that is both UVA1 and UVA2) with a peak protection at 360 nm. The problem with it, though, is that it is not photostable and degrades in the sunlight. Wikipedia says that avobenzone loses 36% of its UV-absorption capacity after just one hour of sunlight (yep, this is one of the reasons why sunscreens have to be reapplied after a few hours). The cosmetic's industry is trying to solve the problem by combining avobenzone with other UV filters that enhance its stability (like octocrylene, Tinosorb S or Ensulizole ) or by encapsulating it and while both solutions help, neither is perfect. Interestingly, the combination of avobenzone with mineral sunscreens (that is titanium dioxide and zinc oxide ) is not a good idea . In the US, it is flat out prohibited as avobenzone becomes unstable when combined with mineral sunscreens. As for safety, avobenzone has a pretty good safety profile. It counts as non-irritating, and unlike some other chemical sunscreens, it shows no estrogenic effect. The maximum concentration of avobenzone permitted is 5% in the EU and 3% in the US."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-2 Sesquicaprylate",
    "description": "A clear pale yellow viscous liquid that can help to mix oil and water together . It's recommended for oil-based facial cleansers that are also effective under wet conditions."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isostearyl Neopentanoate",
    "description": "A mild, emollient liquid that can improve product spreadability and gives a silky and non-oily feel to the cosmetic products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Alpha-Glucan Oligosaccharide",
    "description": "A skin protecting ingredient obtained by enzymatic synthesis from natural sugars (sucrose and maltose). It's claimed to be a bio-selective substrate that protects and stimulates the beneficial microbial skin flora without doing the same with pathogens and undesirable flora. It also stimulates the antimicrobial peptide release by keratinocytes (skin cells)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-10 Dioleate",
    "description": "A pale yellow to pale brown paste that can help to mix oil and water together . Combined with fellow emulsifier called polyglyceryl-2 sesquicaprylate , the two together are specifically recommended for oil-based facial cleansers that can be used also with wet hands on wet face (unlike most makeup remover oils that have to be used with dry hands on dry face)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate",
    "description": "An amino acid-based emulsifier that helps water and oil to mix and stay that way. It is considered as natural, environmentally friendly, and hypoallergenic."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Inulin",
    "description": "A naturally occurring fructose polysaccharide found in the roots and rhizomes of several plants, for example, chicory. It is used in skincare for its prebiotic activity , meaning that it reduces the growth of bad bacteria in favor of friendly microorganisms naturally present on the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cucumis Sativus Seed Oil",
    "description": "When it comes to cucumber and skin care, cucumber fruit extract is the one that steals the show for its soothing and moisturizing properties. But cucumber also has seeds and these seeds contain oil that has nice fatty acids and emollient properties, similar to many other plant oils. Cucumber oil is a high linoleic acid (60-69%) oil that also has a fair amount of oleic acid (9-20%). It also contains antioxidant vitamin E, phytosterols and some trace minerals such as potassium . It is a very light oil that is absorbed easily into the skin. It is described as an excellent oil for moisturization formulations ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Benzophenone-3",
    "description": "A chemical sunscreen agent that absorbs UVB and short UVA rays (280-350nm) with its peak protection at 288 nm. Unlike many other chemical sunscreens, it is highly stable but its UV absorbing abilities are weak so it always has to be combined with other sunscreen agents for proper protection. More often than not, it's used as a photostabilizer rather than a proper sunscreen agent as it can protect formulas nicely from UV damage. Regarding safety, BP-3 is somewhat controversial . First, its molecules are small (228 Da) and very lipophilic (oil loving) and these properties result in very good absorption . The problem is that you want sunscreens on the top of your skin and not in your bloodstream, so for BP-3 this is a problem. In fact, it absorbs so well that 4 hours after application of a sunscreen product with BP-3, it can be detected in urine . Another concern of BP-3 is that it shows some estrogenic activity , though it's probably not relevant when applied topically to the skin. Estrogenic activity was confirmed only in-vitro (in test tubes) and when taken orally by lab animals, and not when used topically as you would normally. In fact, a 2004 follow-up study to examine the estrogenic effect of sunscreens when used topically on the whole body found that \"the endogenous levels of reproductive hormones were unaffected\" (even though BP-3 could be detected both in plasma and urine, so its absorption is no doubt too good). If that was not enough, Wikipedia claims that BP-3 is nowadays the most common allergen found in sunscreens, and the always-trustworthy smartskincare writes that \"[benzophenones] have been shown in some studies to promote the generation of potentially harmful free radicals\". On the up side , sunscreens are pretty well regulated in several parts of the world, and BP-3 is considered \" safe as used \" and is an allowed sunscreen agent everywhere. It can be used in concentrations of up to 10% in the EU and up to 6% in the US. Overall , BP-3 is probably our least favorite sunscreen agent and we prefer sunscreens without it. However, if you find a formula that you love and contains BP-3, we do not think that you should throw it away. A sunscreen with BP-3 is definitely better than no sunscreen."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Chondrus Crispus",
    "description": "It is a type of algae extract coming from the algae commonly called Irish moss or red seaweed. It is rich in carrageenan , a natural polymer (big molecules from repeated subunits) that acts as a gelling, thickening and stabilizing agent ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethyl Hexanediol",
    "description": "A colorless, slightly viscous liquid that, similar to other glycols, is used as a solvent in cosmetic products. Its recommended concentration is less than 5%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Lauroyl Methyl Isethionate",
    "description": "A very mild cleansing agent with a dense and luxurious foam and an elegant after feel. It also has excellent water solubility and thus good rinsability."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Peel Oil",
    "description": "The essential oi l coming from the rind of the orange (the sweet one). In general, the main component of citrus peel oils is limonene (83-97% for sweet orange peel), a super common fragrant ingredient that makes everything smell nice (but counts as a frequent skin sensitizer). Other than that, citrus peel also contains the problematic compound called furanocoumarin that makes them mildly phototoxic . Orange peel contains less of it than some other citruses (like bergamot or lime), but still, be careful with it especially if it is in a product for daytime use."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Snail Secretion Filtrate",
    "description": "If you are into the K-Beauty trend, you must have bumped into snail slime like a thousand times. Korean brands love the ingredient and tout it for its miraculous repair and hydration properties . It's claimed to be able to repair everything from dry patches, acne breakouts to signs of aging and we are happy to say that it might be just true. So snail slime is the yucky stuff that snails (in cosmetics the secretion of Cornu Aspersum , the garden snail is used) produce when they are in stress (it's not the same as the one they secret to be able to move nicely and smoothly). As the cosmetic chemists at the Beauty Brains blog write , \"chemically speaking, snail slime is a complex mixture of proteoglycans, glycosaminoglycans, glycoprotein enzymes, hyaluronic acid, copper peptides, antimicrobial peptides and trace elements including copper, zinc, and iron.\"   English translation equals it's loaded with a bunch of good-for-the-skin stuff. As for scientific proof that snail slime does something for the skin, we did find a couple of studies to go by. A Spanish radiation oncologist, Rafael Abad Iglesias MD discovered for the first time that snail mucin can be used to treat radiation dermatitis (skin irritation caused by radiotherapy, a form of cancer treatment). He did a clinical study with 100 patients and reported a \"statistically significant clinical improvement in erythema, itching and burning pain\" in the group treated with snail slime. A 2007 study examined the molecular basis for the great regeneration properties of the ingredient. It found that snail slime (SS) indeed does a bunch of positive things that could be the reason for its great repair abilities. First, it has serious antioxidant properties thanks to two great antioxidant enzymes, superoxide dismutase and glutathione s-transferase . Second, SS induces fibroblast proliferation , that's particularly important during wound healing. Third SS was also found to downregulate MMP , an evil enzyme that's out there to destroy skin-firming collagen. These properties add up to give SS not only wound healing and regenerative properties but also serious anti-aging potential. Regarding anti-aging, a 2013 study in the Journal of Drugs in Dermatology examined the effect of SS on photoaged skin. The 14-week, double-blind, 25 participant study found that \"there was a significant degree of improvement in fines lines \", though the participants did not report a significant difference in the quality of their skin. All in all , we think that snail slime definitely deserves the skin goodie status it already enjoys in the K-beauty space. If you have no problem with somewhat strange, yucky things or animal derived ingredients in your products, it's worth a try."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Betaine Salicylate",
    "description": "The combination of famous exfoliant, salicylic acid and gentle moisturizer, betaine . It counts as a mild exfoliant and natural moisturizer, skin smoothing agent. You usually find this guy in K-Beauty products, as due to regulations, pure salicylic acid can be used only in tiny amounts in South-Korean formulations. A generally accepted ballpark number is that betaine salicylate is twice as gentle as salicylic acid, i.e. a 4% betaine salicylate product is similar to a 2% salicylic acid one."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Talc",
    "description": "Talc is the major component of most powder makeup products (think face powder, eyeshadows, and blushers) that usually contain it up to 70%. Its two winning properties that make it very suitable for this role is its outstanding spreadability for a smooth application and its low covering power, aka translucency to avoid clown-like effects. Chemically speaking, it is a clay mineral (hydrated magnesium silicate) that is mined in several countries. The drawback of mined minerals is potential impurities and the version used in cosmetics has to be white (not gray like cheaper grades), free from asbestos, sterilized and have thin plates for a maximum slip."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Cocoamphoacetate",
    "description": "A clear,  yellowish liquid that works as a cleansing agent . It has so-called amphoteric structure meaning that its head contains both a positively and a negatively charged part (surfactants are most commonly anionic meaning their head has a negative charge). Its structure makes Sodium Cocoamphoacetate very mild with great foaming properties . It's popular in baby products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-6 Polyricinoleate",
    "description": "A vegetable-derived liquid that's described as \"very substantive to skin\" by the manufacturer . It gives cushion and spreadability to the formulas and functions as a pigment dispersing agent . It's great to be used in lipsticks or to create inorganic sunscreen (aka titanium dioxide / zinc oxide ) dispersions."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Triethylhexanoin",
    "description": "Triethylhexanoin is a colorless to pale yellow liquid ester that makes the skin nice and smooth, aka emollient . It has a pleasant non-sticky, non-greasy feel to it, gives formulas smooth application properties and also helps moisture retention."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Butyloctyl Salicylate",
    "description": "A nice, multi-functional helper ingredient that's especially useful in sunscreens . It can solubilize some commonly used UV-filters like Oxybenzone or Avobenzone and it can also help to increase the SPF rating of sunscreens . It's also cosmetically elegant , has excellent spreadability and a pleasant, moisturizing skin feel. Oh, and according to Wikipedia , it even helps to stabilize famously unstable UVA-filter, Avobenzone ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Styrene/​Acrylates Copolymer",
    "description": "A film-forming polymer (big molecule from repeated subunits) to create water-resistant sunscreen formulas. It also improves the SPF value of sunscreen formulas (approx. 11-18% boost in SPF per 1% Styrene/Acrylates Copolymer)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Alumina",
    "description": "A multi-functional helper ingredient that's used mainly as a pigment carrier .  The pigment can be an inorganic sunscreen (such as titanium dioxide ) or a colorant that is blended with alumina platelets and then often coated with some kind of silicone (such as triethoxycaprylylsilane ). This special treatment enables pigments to be evenly dispersed in the formula and to be spread out easily and evenly upon application. It is super useful both for mineral sunscreens as well as for makeup products. Other than that, alumina can also be used as an absorbent (sometimes combined with the mattifying powder called polymethylsilsesquioxane ), a viscosity controlling or an opacifying (reduces the transparency of the formula) agent."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-9 Polydimethylsiloxyethyl Dimethicone",
    "description": "A silicone emulsifier that helps water to mix nicely with silicone oils (aka water-in-silicone emulsifier)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hamamelis Virginiana Water",
    "description": "The distillate created from different parts of the hazelnut-bush-like magic tree, commonly called Witch Hazel . Hamamelis Virginiana Water is a bit of a sloppy ingredient name as the leaves, the twigs and the bark can be used to create extracts or distillates and the different parts contain different amounts of biologically active components. But what you are getting is probably a nice water with astringent, soothing, antioxidant and antibacterial magic properties. We went into great detail about Witch Hazel in cosmetics here , detailing the main biologically active components and how they are different in different parts of the plant. Click here and read more >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Menthyl Lactate",
    "description": "A menthol-derived cooling agent that is claimed to give a long-lasting cooling effect (similar to menthol itself) while also being moisturizing and less irritating than menthol thanks to the lactic acid part. It's recommended to be used at 0.5-1%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Triethoxycaprylylsilane",
    "description": "A clear, light yellow liquid that is used to coat pigments (such as inorganic sunscreen agents or colorants) in cosmetic products.  The coating helps to stabilize pigments in the formulas and also helps them to spread easily and evenly on the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Aminopropyl Ascorbyl Phosphate",
    "description": "A vitamin C derivative that's created by combining ascorbic acid (pure vitamin C) with a molecule called 3-APPA (it stands for 3-aminoproply dehydrogen phosphate). If you do not know what the big deal about vitamin C is, you are missing out, and you have to click here and read all the geeky details about it. So now, you know that vitamin C is awesome. It's proven to have antioxidant, collagen-boosting and skin-brightening magic abilities, but the problem is that it's really really unstable. To solve the stability issue, the cosmetic industry is coming up with derivatives and Aminopropyl Ascorbyl Phosphate (AAP) is a newish version created by a Korean company. According to the manufacturer , AAP is a water soluble, stable derivative that has both anti-wrinkle and whitening effects . They conducted an in-vivo (made on real people) study with 33 participants and found that the test formula, with just 0.5% AAP, \"significantly\" reduced hyperpigmentation (age spots) after 8 weeks (by 29-33%).  They also measured a \"dramatic\" decrease in the total number of wrinkles, about 23% after 8 weeks. (If that's dramatic, we are not sure. Also, be patient because after 4 weeks, the wrinkle reduction was only a couple of percent.) As for published studies on AAP, we found hardly anything. We found one done by Estee Lauder that briefly mentions AAP as an antioxidant that adds additional UV protection to sunscreen formulas. Another one done by Oriflame reviewed skin-whitening ingredients and also briefly mentioned AAP as a skin-lightening active . Overall, there is not much data on Aminopropyl Ascorbyl Phosphate, but it does seem like a promising derivative with antioxidant, anti-wrinkle and skin-brightening properties. If you are into vitamin C derivatives and are happy to experiment, it's worth a go."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Human Fibroblast Conditioned Media",
    "description": "Human Fibroblast Conditioned Media (HFCM) essentially means a \" Growth Factor Cocktail \" for your skin. We have written more about the most common GF used in skincare, the Epidermal Growth Factor here, so if you are new to the topic head over there to catch up. The TL;DR version is that a Growth Factor is a medium long amino acid sequence (= small protein = big peptide) that works as a cell signaling molecule to stimulate cell growth, proliferation, healing and/or differentiation . Ingredients called \"Conditioned Media\" cover not one but a mix of Growth Factors derived from some cells grown in a lab. In the EU, human cell-derived ingredients are illegal, so GF products available in the EU usually use a plant source (e.g. barley). In the US, human-derived GFs are all OK, and Human Fibroblast Conditioned Media is derived, as its name suggests, from human fibroblast cells (VIP skin cells for collagen production). The company Skinmedica was a pioneer in using GFs in cosmeceutical skincare, and their version of HFCM contains a \"proprietary mixture of growth factors, cytokines, and soluble matrix proteins secreted by cultured neonatal human dermal fibroblasts during the production of extracellular matrix (ECM)\". It is claimed to be a physiologically balanced mix of GFs that are ideal for skin cells to regenerate themselves . More specifically, it contains growth factors that can promote angiogenesis ( VEGF and hepatocyte growth factor), modulate inflammation (IL-6 and IL-8), and enhance ECM deposition (TGF-β1 and platelet-derived growth factor-A). Skinmedica has pretty convincing research showing that their products containing GFs (TNS line) work and have great anti-aging benefits. Multiple clinical studies show that the TNS Recovery Complex improves the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, skin tone and texture . The benefits are even greater when GFs are combined with tried and true anti-aging actives such as antioxidants and retinol . This all sounds really good, however, GFs in skincare are somewhat controversial . As potent mitogenic (= stimulates cell proliferation) molecules, you should not use them if you have any of the skin cancer risk factors high or if you have psoriasis . We have written more about the concerns at EGF . Overall , Growth Factors have increasing evidence (both proper clinical studies as well as some GF products with a cult following) showing that they have great anti-aging benefits. Whether you are comfortable with using human-derived ingredients or if you feel the cons outweigh the pros, is up to you. If you are a better safe than sorry type, daily SPF + retinol is still the golden standard of anti-aging."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Chlorophyll",
    "description": "A natural, oil-soluble colorant that gives olive-green shades . It can be found in all plants that photosynthesize but is commercially produced mainly from grass, alfalfa, and nettles."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Caprylic/​Capric/​Myristic/​Stearic Triglyceride",
    "description": "A vegetable origin emollient that has a similar consistency to lard (solid at room temperature) but melts rapidly up on contact with the skin .  It's claimed to have great skin compatibility, penetrates easily, does not feel tacky or heavy on the skin and does not leave a greasy shine."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Soy Isoflavones",
    "description": "The biologically active, phytoestrogenic parts of the soybean . The most well-known one is genistein , a potent antioxidant that is proven to inhibit UV-induced redness in human skin. Soy isoflavones are also thought to be useful for situations when natural estrogen levels are low, such as during and after menopause . Low estrogen levels can cause skin thinning and collagen loss and soy isoflavones might be able to help with that."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tetrapeptide-21",
    "description": "A four amino acid (Glycine – Glutamic acid – Lysine – Glycine) peptide that belongs to the group of signal peptides that mimic skin-protein breakdown products to trick the skin into creating some nice new skin proteins, such as collagen (if this sentence is not clear, here is a bit longer and nicer explanation ). According to its manufacturer , Tetrapeptide-21 shows superior collagen, hyaluronic acid and fibronectin (all nice and important skin elements) boosting activity , and can smooth and minimize all kinds of wrinkles. The in-vitro data (made on human dermal fibroblast culture) showed that compared to Matrixyl (the first-generation Matrixyl peptide called Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4 ), the collagen production in the presence of Tetrapeptide-21 was almost 2-fold higher (and about 2.5-fold vs the control ). This data was confirmed by an in-vivo study that compared on 60 volunteers 0.5% Tego Pep 4-17 (10ppm of Tetrapeptide-21 ), 5% Tego Pep 4-17 (100ppm of Tetrapeptide-21 ) and 10% Matrixyl (10ppm of Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4 ) and found that Tetrapeptide-21 performed better after 8 weeks for skin volume, roughness and elasticity . The manufacturer also did another 60 people anti-wrinkle study with 4% Tego Pep 4-17 (compared to vehicle) where they have some nice before and after pictures showing visible-to-the-naked-eye wrinkle reduction around the eye area ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sorbeth-30 Tetraoleate",
    "description": "A light yellow, water loving liquid that works as a self-emulsifying surfactant . It's popular in oil cleansers as it allows the oils to interact with water for easy rinsability."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "SH-Decapeptide-7",
    "description": "A high-tech, South-Korean peptide that's made synthetically to be identical to the protein called Met-Enkephalin . It's a 10 amino acid neuropeptide that helps the body to regulate how it responds to harmful things (like heat, cold, cutting or irritation). In general, neuropeptides are believed to be important in wound-healing and the manufacturer claims that Sh-Decapeptide-7 is effective for anti-aging and would-healing skincare."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Magnesium Sulfate",
    "description": "A helper ingredient that is used as a bulking and viscosity controlling agent. It is also an emulsion stabilizer in water-in-oil emulsions , where water droplets are dispersed in the continuous oil phase and not the other way round. It can also be used as a heat generating agent in water-less formulas as it has an instant heat-generating chemical reaction with water."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "SH-Octapeptide-4",
    "description": "A high-tech, South-Korean peptide that's made synthetically to be identical to the protein called Leu-Enkephalin . It's an 8 amino acid neuropeptide that helps the body to regulate how it responds to harmful things (like heat, cold, cutting or irritation). In general, neuropeptides are believed to be important in wound-healing and the manufacturer claims that Sh-Octapeptide-4 has strong anti-aging and anti-wrinkle effect as well as rejuvenating effect on aged hair tissue and follicles."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hamamelis Virginiana Leaf Water",
    "description": "The distillate created from the leaves of the hazelnut-bush-like-magic-tree commonly called Witch Hazel. The distillate from the leaves is probably the gentlest, most diluted version of any kind of With Hazel ingredient . The leaves contain much, much less active components than the bark (4.77% vs 0.04% tannins) and distillates are more diluted than extracts. So this one is probably just a \"fancy-water\" that resembles the properties of Witch Hazel Extract (astringent, soothing, antioxidant, antibacterial ) in a very mild and gentle way. We have gone into much more details about Witch Hazel here ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Portulaca Oleracea Extract",
    "description": "Portulaca Oleracea is a nice succulent with bright yellow flowers and edible nutritious vegetables. It's a famous plant in Korean traditional medicine to treat infection and irritated skin . Modern research confirms that it's loaded with skin-goodies : it's the richest green plant source of omega-3 fatty acids (α-linolenic acid), contains NMFs (polysaccharides and amino acids), vitamins (β-carotene), minerals , and antioxidants (yellow betaxanthins and reddish betacyanins). Thanks to all its beneficial components, Purslane Extract has several magic properties: it's a great anti-inflammatory and antioxidant agent and also has wound healing abilities ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Vinyl Dimethicone/​Methicone Silsesquioxane Crosspolymer",
    "description": "This bamboozling INCI name is given to a spherical silicone powder that has an elastic silicone rubber inner part and a harder silicone resin outer part. It gives formulas a uniquely soft, silky feeling, and has a mattifying and soft focus effect . It is available in different particle sizes and the larger the particle the more line/pore filling effect the powder has."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hamamelis Virginiana Extract",
    "description": "Witch hazel is a smallish tree (up to 5m) that's native to North-America, has nice yellow flowers and is similar to the hazelnut bush (hence the name). As for skincare, it's loaded with active components that have a bunch of magic properties, like astringent, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and anti-bacterial . It's also a well-known vasoconstrictor (it makes the blood vessels narrower) and promotes the healing of broken skin by tightening up the skin proteins and thus creating a protective covering. The complication, however, is that different extracts and distillates can be made from different parts of the plant (bark, twigs, and leaves are typically used) and different extraction methods from different parts produce different results . So if you see only Witch Hazel Extract or Witch Hazel Water on the ingredient list, it's a bit hard to know what you're actually getting but we will try to summarize the possibilities to give an idea. The main biologically active components in Witch Hazel are hamamelitannin (a potent astringent and antioxidant), catechins (anti-inflammatory and antioxidant) and gallic acid (antibacterial). The bark extract contains by far the most hamamelitannin and it has the most gallic acid and catechins. The twigs contain fewer catechins, less gallic acid, and much less hamamelitannin (4.77% vs 0.18%). The leaves contain hardly any tannins (0.04%) or catechins and contain a medium amount of gallic acid (compared to the bark and twigs). Witch Hazel also contains tiny amounts of the essential oil and fragrance component eugenol , but the amount is so small that it's probably not significant for the skin. Apart from the differences in active components in different parts of the Witch Hazel bush, the extraction methods also vary. Witch Hazel Distillate contains 14% added alcohol according to the USP specifications and alcohol is, at best drying, and at worst skin-damaging . Luckily, there are also alcohol-free distillates , so if you prefer no alcohol check the ingredient list carefully. Witch Hazel Extracts can also be made in different ways: browsing Ulprospector , we could find hydroglycolic, hydroalcoholic and glicerine/water based extracts. Well-known skin care expert, Paula Begoun rates witch hazel as poor and says,  \"depending on the form of witch hazel, you’re exposing your skin either to a sensitizing amount of alcohol or to tannins, or both.\" This might be the case if you are dealing with an alcoholic witch hazel bark water or extract, but looking at CosIng (the official INCI name listing of the EU), witch hazel bark water or witch hazel bark extract are not listed ingredients. Bark and leaf or bark and twig or all three are used together to create extracts, so the chance that there is too much hamamelitannin in the final cosmetic ingredient seems small. Also alcohol-free extracts and distillates exist; actually, the majority seem to be alcohol-free nowadays. So all in all, we think \"Hamamelis Virginiana Extract\" on the ingredient list is nothing to worry about. We even found a German study that compared the efficacy of Hamamelis ointment to panthenol ointment for soothing the skin in children (from 27 days to 11 years old). They observed 309 children and concluded that both ointments were similarly effective but the one with Hamamelis was even better tolerated (98.2% vs. 92.3% tolerated well the ointments in the two groups). All in all , Witch Hazel Extract is a sloppy INCI name (btw, not in the CosIng listing), and you do not really know what you're getting. Most probably though, you are getting a goody with nice astringent, soothing, antibacterial, and even antioxidant properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cocamidopropyl Dimethylamine",
    "description": "A surfactant with a positively charged head that has good foaming properties and can be used in cleansing products both for the skin and the hair. If you see this guy in a non-cleansing product then it's probably combined with salicylic acid . The two together go by the trade name Curcylic 40 , and cocamidopropyl dimethylamine works there to make salicylic acid water soluble and stable."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG/​PPG/​Polybutylene Glycol-8/​5/​3 Glycerin",
    "description": "A glycerin derived, synthetic oily liquid that is also water soluble and works as a great skin moisturizer . Its moisturizing ability is comparable to glycerin itself and the two together work in synergy to give skin superb hydration. It is also \"cosmetically elegant\", i.e. non-sticky and non-greasy. It can also work as a co-surfactant helping to dissolve small amounts of oily things (think essential oils or vitamin E) into water-based formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "VP/​VA Copolymer",
    "description": "A big polymer (created from repeating subunits) molecule that works as a film former and hair fixative agent . It is a modified version of the first and classic hair fixative, PVP that alternates the water-loving VP (Vinyl Pyrrolidone) units with water-hating VA (Vinyl Acetate) units to create a film that is less brittle and less sensitive to air humidity."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Amodimethicone",
    "description": "A modified dimethicone -type silicone molecule that also contains amino-groups . Having amino-groups means that Amodimethicone also has Nitrogen in its molecule that likes to have a positive charge. Positively charged (or quaternised) molecules are substantive to skin and hair as those are negatively charged surfaces and are excellent film formers . Amodiemthcone is no exception and it is especially recommended for hair-care products for its long-lasting hair conditioning benefits."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose",
    "description": "A handy helper ingredient (a polymer, i.e. big molecule from repeated subunits) that is used to stabilize emulsions as well as to thicken up products . It can also stabilize foam in cleansing products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Haematococcus Pluvialis Extract",
    "description": "Haematococcus Pluvialis is a microalgae known for being a rich source of powerful, up-and-coming antioxidant, Astaxanthin . The extract comes as a red-colored oily liquid prepared from the resting and astaxanthin accumulating cells of the otherwise green algae. As an antioxidant, it promises to protect against photodamage and thus help to delay skin photoaging. We have written more about Astaxanthin and its benefits here>>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Honey",
    "description": "We all know honey as the sweet, gooey stuff that is lovely to sweeten a good cup of tea and we have good news about putting honey all over our skin. It is just as lovely on the skin as it is in the tea. The great review article about honey in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology writes that it is arguably the oldest skincare ingredient and evidence from around 4500 BC mentions honey in some eye cream recipes. Chemically speaking, it is a bee-derived, supersaturated sugar solution. About 95% of honey dry weight is sugar and the other 5% consists of a great number of other minor components including proteins, amino acids, vitamins, enzymes, and minerals . This unique and complex chemical composition gives honey a bunch of nice skin care properties: it is very moisturizing , has soothing and antioxidant abilities as well as significant antibacterial and antifungal magic powers . There is also a lot of empirical evidence with emerging scientific backup that honey dressing promotes the healing of wounds and burns . One tricky thing about honey though, is that it can have lots of different floral sources and different types of honey have a somewhat different composition and thus somewhat different properties. For example, the darker the honey the richer it is in antioxidant phenolic compounds.  Two special types of honey are acacia and manuka . The former is unique and popular because of its higher than usual fructose content that makes it more water-soluble and easier to stabilize in cosmetic formulas. The latter comes from the Leptospermum Scoparium tree native to New Zeland and its special thing is its extra strong antibacterial power due to a unique component called methylglyoxal . Overall, honey is a real skin-goodie in pretty much every shape and form, and it is a nice one to spot on the ingredient list."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Candelilla Cera",
    "description": "A vegetable wax coming from the leaves of the North Mexican candelilla shrubs (Euphorbia cerifera and Euphorbia antisyphilitica).  Similar to other waxes, it is used to stabilize products and give body to them , or to keep stick type formulas solid. It has a melting point around 70C and has high gloss making it a good choice for lip products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ozokerite",
    "description": "A hydrocarbon wax consisting mainly of saturated straight chain hydrocarbons with C18-90+ carbon chain length. It has a high melting point (58-100 C) and it is used mainly in stick type products, such as lip balms to keep the product nice and solid."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Adipic Acid/​Neopentyl Glycol Crosspolymer",
    "description": "Little, porous spheres that have magic blurring powers, meaning they can optically blur fine lines, wrinkles, and pores. Penstia Powder also improves product texture as the little particles roll on the skin rather than \"drag\", so the ingredient gives a nice slip and thus silky, creamy texture to the formulas. It can also reduce tackiness and has some oil/sebum absorption capacity."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sd Alcohol 40-B",
    "description": "SD-Alcohol and some numer+letter refers to alcohol (or ethanol) being denaturated with different kind of additives. These additives make sure that the alcohol is poisonous and bad tasting so that nobody drinks their alcohol-loaded toner. 40-B specifically means the additives are denatonium benzoate and t-butyl alcohol. As for Alcohol Denat in skincare, it's a controversial ingredient. It's a great solvent and makes cosmetically elegant , light formulas but at best it's skin-drying , at worst it's skin-barrier damaging. We have written about alcohol way more here ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tripeptide-1",
    "description": "A small, three amino acid (glycine-histidine-lysine or GHK) peptide that is famous for being a type I collagen fragment . The theory behind collagen-fragment peptides is that when collagen naturally breaks down in the skin, the resulting peptide fragments signal to the skin that it should get to work and create some nice, new collagen. Adding in collagen fragment peptides, like GHK, might trick the skin into thinking that collagen has broken down and it's time to create some more. So Tripeptide-1 is believed to be able to stimulate collagen production in the skin, and more collagen means fewer wrinkles and younger looking skin. FYI; Tripeptide-1 is the same peptide that can be found in the famous Matrixyl 3000 , but in Matrixyl a palmitic acid is attached to it to increase its oil solubility and thus skin penetration. Another reason why Tripeptide-1 is especially famous is that it is not only a signal peptide but also a so-called carrier peptide that helps to stabilize and deliver copper in the skin. It has a high affinity for copper ions and likes to form a complex with them called Copper-Tripeptide-1 or GHK-Cu . GHK-Cu is a famous and well-researched peptide that does a bunch of things in the skin and we have a shiny explanation about it here . As for Tripeptide-1 in and of itself, without a palmitic acid or copper attached to it, it goes by the trade name Kollaren and according to the manufacturer , it not only stimulates collagen but also other essential skin proteins such as fibronectin, elastin, and laminin. Kollaren is also claimed to be beneficial for acne-prone skin as it can boost tissue repair and thus help acne scars to heal faster."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Octocrylene",
    "description": "An oil-soluble chemical sunscreen agent that protects skin in the UVB and somewhat in the UVA II range with a peak absorption of 304 nm. Its protection is not strong enough on its own but it is quite photostable (loses 10% of SPF protection in 95 mins) and is often used to stabilize other photo-unstable UV-filters , for example, Avobenzone . It is also often used to improve the water resistance of the products. Octocrylene's safety profile is generally quite good, though a review study in Contact Dermatitis reports an \"increasing number of patients with photo contact allergy to octocrylene.\" Mainly adults with ketoprofen-sensitivity and children with sensitive skin are affected, so if you have a small kid, it is probably better to use octocrylene-free sunscreens."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Curcuma Longa Root Extract",
    "description": "Turmeric is the yellow spice you probably know from curry and Indian food. It's also a traditional herbal medicine used in Ayurveda for its bunch of anti-something magic abilities including being anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antioxidant and anticarcinogenic. As for turmeric and skincare, we have good news: studies show that the root extract and its main biologically active component, curcumin can do multiple good things for the skin. Thanks to its anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial activity, it shows some promise for acne-prone skin and a small study from 2013 showed that it might be able to regulate sebum production . It's also a potent antioxidant and skin-brightening agent so it often shows up in anti-aging and/or radiance-boosting products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Steareth-21",
    "description": "A waxy solid material that helps oil and water to mix together, aka emulsifier . It is super similar to Steareth-20 with just a little more ethoxylation and thus a little more water solubility. It works very well when combined with mostly oil-soluble emulsifiers such as Steareth-2 and the two together can form exceptionally stable emulsions."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isodecyl Salicylate",
    "description": "Isodecyl Salicylate is an emollient and plasticizer used in cosmetics. A plasticizer is a material that helps to improve the softening and deformation of the formula giving it a nicer feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Diglucosyl Gallic Acid",
    "description": "A biotechnologically created molecule that is activated by the skin's microbiome (the massive amount of microorganisms living in symbiosis with the skin) to act as a skin-brightening, anti-inflammatory, and photo protectant ingredient . Once applied on skin, THBG is partially converted by the skin microbiome into THBA (Tri Hydroxy Benzoic Acid – a natural inhibitor of the melanin-producing enzyme, tyrosinase), and the two molecule act in synergy to control the skin color . The duo are claimed to work on 7 (!) levels, from acting as antioxidants (inhibit ROS production and preventing UV induced DNA damage), through to being anti-inflammatory (decrease vasodilation and redness, reduce inflammation), to blocking the melanin creating process in multiple ways (control MITF gene, hinder melanin transfer to top skin layers, and block melanin synthesis even under UV conditions). As for proof, the manufacturer published a pretty well-designed, double-blind, 12-week long study using 2% Brightenyl on 20 Korean women. They concluded that \"THBG controls skin tone via the inhibition of melanin synthesis as well as the modulation of skin brightness, yellowness, and redness.\" They also included nice before and after photos which show visible skin tone improvement and spot fading (but do not expect magic, pigmentation did not disappear, only faded somewhat)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pentaerythrityl Tetraethylhexanoate",
    "description": "A high-molecular-weight emollient ester that makes your skin nice and smooth. It leaves a non-oily, light, \"wet\" feel on the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethylbisiminomethylguaiacol Manganese Chloride",
    "description": "An interesting synthetic molecule that mimics two antioxidant skin enzymes superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase . If you are wondering what the heck SOD and catalase are, here is a little background: they are two smart enzymes found in our bodies that speed up the conversion of the evil, cell damaging free radicals (such as superoxide radicals) into friendly and harmless things such as water and oxygen. We wrote some more about SOD here . So this unpronounceable guy is actually a nice molecule that mimics the behavior of the natural enzymes in our skin. Estee Lauder likes this ingredient, uses it and has done some studies to prove that Ethylbisiminomethylguaiacol Manganese Chloride, aka EUK-134, can nicely protect the cells from UVB damage . They hypothesize that \"EUK-134, via direct protection of the membrane from UVB-induced oxidative damage, reduces oxidative stress induced MAPK signaling and consequently lowers the level of p53 induction. The protection conferred by EUK-134 results in a significant increase in cell survival following UVB irradiation.\" Another study (also by Estee Lauder) found that EUK-134 lowers hydroperoxide levels at the surface of UVA-exposed skin in vivo and concluded that this salen–manganese compound is a \"unique cosmetic tool to protect the skin surface from accumulating oxidative damage\". Other than that, we found a study that examined a serum to manage skin redness in sensitive, pale skin types and contained EUK-134 along with a bunch of other ingredients. The formula examined did reduce facial redness so EUK-134 seems to be tolerated well even by redness-prone, sensitive skin types ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Thioctic Acid",
    "description": "Alpha-Lipoic Acid (ALA) is a great antioxidant that's also part of the body's natural antioxidant system . It's soluble both in water-rich and lipid-rich environments so it's versatile and can interact with many types of evil oxidants as well as other nice antioxidants. ALA seems to be a great choice for topical use as studies show it can penetrate the skin rapidly where it's converted to DHLA (dihydrolipoic acid), an even more potent antioxidant molecule.  A nicely designed (we mean double-blind, placebo-controlled) 12-week study from 2003 confirmed that 5% ALA cream can decrease skin roughness and improve general signs of photoaging statistically significantly.  A slight catch, though, is that burning and warmth in the skin was quite a common side effect , especially in the first 4 weeks. All in all , ALA is definitely a research-proven, great antioxidant but if your skin is sensitive higher concentrations might not be for you."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sorbitan Laurate",
    "description": "An ingredient that helps water and oil to mix together , aka emulsifier. Chemically speaking, it comes from the attachment of sorbitan (a dehydrated sorbitol (sugar) molecule) with the fatty acid Lauric Acid , that creates a partly water (the sorbitan part) and partly oil soluble (lauric part) molecule. Sorbitan Laurate is a good team player that likes to work with many other emulsifiers and is compatible with a wide range of other ingredients."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Synthetic Fluorphlogopite",
    "description": "Synthetic Fluorphlogopite is the synthetic version of the super commonly used mineral, Mica . The advantage of being synthetic is that it has a more consistent quality, fewer impurities and an even lower heavy metal content than Mica (not that Mica's heavy metal content is high). It is also more transparent and has improved light reflection. The two main use cases for Synthetic Fluorphlogopite is being used neat as a superior \"filler\" or skin tone enhancer or it can also serve as a base for multi-layered, composite pigments such as pearl effect pigments where it is coated with one or more layers of metal oxide, most commonly titanium dioxide."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Phytosteryl/​Octyldodecyl Lauroyl Glutamate",
    "description": "An amino-acid (glutamic acid) derived molecule that is claimed to form lamellar liquid crystals similar to the ones formed in the skin between skin cells (called lipid bilayer). The lipid bilayer is like the \"mortar\" between our skin cells (\"the bricks\") and is super important for a healthy skin barrier and keeping water in the upper layers of the skin. So Phytosteryl/Octyldodecyl Lauroyl Glutamate is a skin-lipid-like material that makes your skin nice and smooth (emollient) and keeps your skin hydrated. According to the manufacturer's tests , it is more effective than petrolatum in promoting the recovery of damaged skin and improving rough skin conditions."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Undecylenoyl Phenylalanine",
    "description": "If you have pigmentation issues, Undecylenoyl Phenylalanine is something to look at. It is an amino acid ( Phenylalanine ) derived molecule that is thought to hinder the pigmentation process in a unique way by being a so-called MSH-antagonist . MSH stands for Melanocyte Stimulating Hormone , and as you have probably guessed by its name, it is important in the process of melanogenesis, i.e. the generation of melanin pigments. MSH binds to a receptor on the melanocyte (the skin cell that creates melanin) called Melanocortin 1 Receptor (MC1R), which kicks off a bunch of biological processes that result in the formation of pigment. Our guy, Undecylenoyl Phenylalanine can hinder this binding and thus the whole melanin creation process afterward. The efficacy of the molecule is definitely promising. The manufacturer did several in-vitro (in test tubes) and in-vivo (on people) tests and found Undecylenoyl Phenylalanine to be more effective than a bunch of well-known skin-lightening molecules, such as arbutin , kojic acid or MAP (the vitamin C derivative). We also found two research studies that show that 2% Undecylenoyl Phenylalanine is effective both in the treatment of age spots (or sunspots, the pigmentation that comes with UV and age) and melasma (that comes at a younger age and is usually influenced by hormones). A third study done by Procter&Gamble examined our amino-derivative, combined with Niacinamide and found that the combination of 1% Undecylenoyl Phenylalanine with 5% Niacinamide is more effective than niacinamide alone ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Boron Nitride",
    "description": "Boron Nitride is a graphite-like, crystalline material that has light-diffusing and texture improving properties. It is quite the multi-tasker as it can blur imperfections, add an exceptional creamy feel to products and act as a mattifying agent. In powder makeup products (think blushers, highlighters), it enhances the skin feel and improves the color pay-off. In lipsticks, it gives a creamy feel and a better color on the lips."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydroxypalmitoyl Sphinganine",
    "description": "Unlike most other ceramides, this is a tricky one to recognize by name, but Hydroxypalmitoyl Sphinganine is a type of ceramide . The TL;DR version of ceramides is that along with cholesterol and fatty acids, the lipid trio (in a 50%, 25% and 15% ratio) is in the outermost layer of the skin helping to maintain a healthy skin barrier . This means keeping nasty things out, and important things such as water in. We have a more detailed description of ceramides here . So as a ceramide, Hydroxypalmitoyl Sphinganine is a nice skin-identical ingredient that supports a healthy skin barrier. More specifically, a promising in-vitro study on reconstructed human skin shows that applying our molecule helps the skin to make some more ceramides (types 1,2 and 3). Interestingly, the extra ceramide production does not happen in the usual pathway, but the skin seems to process and transform Hydroxypalmitoyl Sphinganine into these other ceramides. Clinical, aka made on real people studies, have confirmed that products with Hydroxypalmitoyl Sphinganine improve skin hydration, reduce trans epidermal water loss (the amount of water that evaporates out of the skin), and increase the ceramide content of the skin in people with atopic dermatitis or who are being treated with topical tretinoin . A real goodie in our book."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Galactomyces Ferment Filtrate",
    "description": "A famous water-like, yeast-derived ingredient that the whole SKII brand is built on . As legend has it, SKII scientists in the 1970's discovered by chance that aged Japanese sake brewers have amazingly soft and youthful hands in contrast to their aged and wrinkled faces. They concluded that the secret must lie in the yeast that the brewers’ hands were in constant contact with during the sake fermentation process. So Pitera - obtained by a fermentation process of a certain yeast belonging to the genus Galactomyces -  was discovered as an anti-aging, skin-nourishing magic liquid . The company claims that the clear, water-like liquid is loaded with good-for-the-skin stuff and is rich in vitamins, amino acids, minerals and organic acids . As for the science behind Pitera, SKII parent company P&G did an in-vitro (made in the lab) study that confirmed that Pitera-containing moisturizers do indeed help to protect the skin against damage . More specifically, they found that Pitera has antioxidant effects and increases hyaluronan production in epidermal cells. And more hyaluronic acid in the skin means better hydrated, plumper, healthier skin. If that would not be enough, there is also a 2014 study showing that Pitera might be able to help with skin pigmentation and a 2015 study finding that Galactomyces Ferment Filtrate can activate aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) that's important in epidermal homeostasis by upregulating epidermal barrier proteins. English translation equals: Pitera might be able to help with a healthy skin barrier . All in all, both anecdotal and scientific evidence show that Pitera is a skin goodie so if you are into essences and yeast-derived fermentations, it's definitely worth a try."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methicone",
    "description": "Bearing a close relationship to the famous Dimethicone , Methicone is the slightly trimmed down version missing the methyl (-CH3)  groups on one side of the silicone chain. Like most silicones, it has nice emollient properties and improves the spreadability of products. But Methicone's main thing in practice is not being an emollient but a silicone fluid for hydrophobization treatment of powders , i.e. making solid powders (mineral filters & color pigments) very water resistant and easily spreadable. Methicone does this by absorbing traces of water from the surface of pigments that is very useful for mineral sunscreens and makeup products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Collagen Amino Acids",
    "description": "Amino acids are important natural moisturizing factors (NMFs) , that can be found naturally in the skin where they help the epidermis (upper layer of the skin) to stay nice and hydrated . Amino acids are also the building blocks of proteins, such as collagen, so when you thoroughly chop up a big collagen molecule, you end up with an amino acid mixture, like this guy we are writing about. Btw, if you chop it up less thoroughly, you get hydrolyzed collagen , a kind of peptide mixture with smallish chains of amino acids. Amino acids have low molecular weight (about 150 Da), so they can penetrate the upper layer of the skin where they help moisture retention and enhance the skin's suppleness and flexibility . In hair care, Collagen Amino Acids are able to improve shine, texture, and manageability of the hair."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 45410",
    "description": "A cosmetic colorant used as a reddish pigment . Some version of it is a pH-sensitive dye that enables a colorless lip balm to turn red/pink upon application."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Paradisi Peel Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from the peel of the pink grapefruit . In general, the main component of citrus peel oils is limonene (around 90% for grapefruit peel), a super common fragrant ingredient that makes everything smell nice (but counts as a frequent skin sensitizer). Similar to other essential oils, grapefruit peel has also antibacterial and antifungal acitivity . Other than that, citrus peels contain the problematic compounds called furanocoumarins that make them (mildly) phototoxic . So be careful with grapefruit peel oil, especially if it's in a product for daytime use."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Bis-PEG/​PPG-14/​14 Dimethicone",
    "description": "A light and silky, silicone-based emulsifier that helps water and silicone oils to mix nicely together. It is water-soluble and it can impart lubricity and a pleasant skin feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pinus Pinaster Bark Extract",
    "description": "A natural plant extract coming from the bark of the maritime pine that grows along the coast of southwest France. The extract contains potent antioxidant molecules, mainly procyanidins and phenolic acids .  Horphag Research trademarked the name 'Pycnogenol', which refers to a standardized, high-active content version of the pine bark extract. Pycnogenol is a very well researched ingredient with more than 370 published studies and review articles. Most of these are in-vitro (made in the lab, not on real people) or analyse Pycnogenol when taken orally. It's clear from them that Pycnogenol has a load of health benefits including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticarcinogenic magical properties (and a bunch of other things such as improving cognitive function, relieving premenstrual symptoms, or enhancing microcirculation). Regarding Pycnogenol and the skin, we found a study from 2012 that examined its effect on the skin when taken as a supplement. After 12 weeks, Pycnogenol supplements resulted in increased skin hydration and elasticity. The researchers thought this was due to the increased synthesis of extracellular matrix molecules such as hyaluronic acid and perhaps collagen. As for topical application, the studies are also promising. A 2003 research paper, conducted on mice, showed that topical Pycnogenol (used at 0.05-0.2%) has the potential to provide photoprotection for humans in a complementary role to sunscreens. Meanwhile, a 2004 study concluded,  \"pine bark extract is readily absorbed by human skin and can be used for topical application\". Overall, Pycnogenol, or Pinus Pinaster Bark Extract, as it will be listed on the product label, is a well-researched and potent antioxidant that is a welcome addition to any ingredient list."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Triheptanoin",
    "description": "A light, oily liquid (triglyceride of seven carbon length fatty acid, heptanoic acid)  that works as a very high spreadability and low viscosity emollient making the skin nice and smooth."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Phenethyl Alcohol",
    "description": "A colorless liquid used in small amounts as a so-called masking ingredient, meaning it can hide the natural not-so-nice smell of other cosmetic ingredients . It has a nice rose-like scent and can be found in several essential oils such as rose, neroli or geranium. It also has some antimicrobial activity and can boost the performance of traditional preservatives."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Oryzanol",
    "description": "A biologically active component that can be found in rice bran oil . It has natural antioxidant properties and can help to stabilize other unstable plant oils.  Interestingly, it also seems to possess some natural sunscreen abilities ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Disodium Lauriminodipropionate Tocopheryl Phosphates",
    "description": "A bio-available derivative of famous antioxidant, Vitamin E that's claimed to reduce the appearance of skin redness caused by various external skin aggressions such as acne, razor burn or UV light."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lavandula Angustifolia Flower Water",
    "description": "In general, flower waters are diluted versions of essential oils meaning they contain pretty much the same components but in much-reduced concentrations. So lavender flower water is a highly diluted version of lavender essential oil . According to manufacturer claims , it's traditionally used as bath water or wash water and might be useful for acne-prone or oily skin thanks to lavender's antibacterial properties. We wrote in detail about lavender essential oil and why we prefer it not to have in skincare products (in short, it not only contains fragrant components but research shows it might be cytotoxic even at low concentrations) so we would also be cautious with the lavender water . It's much more diluted - so less effect and less side effect - but why risk it?"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PVM/​MA Decadiene Crosspolymer",
    "description": "A big, water-loving polymer molecule that creates nice gels ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acrylates Copolymer",
    "description": "A big polymer molecule that has a bunch of different versions and thus different uses. It can act as a film former, as a thickening agent, or it can increase the water-resistance in sunscreens . It is also used to entrap pigments/inorganic sunscreens within a micron size matrix for even coverage and easy application."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isosorbide Dicaprylate",
    "description": "Isosorbide Dicaprylate (IDC) is a smart, oil-loving skin hydrator and barrier builder molecule. It works synergistically with glycerin as it up-regulates Aquaporin 3 (AQP3), an important transmembrane protein that transports our beloved friend glycerin, along with its’ hydrating groupie water molecules that surround it, into the cell. To put it more simply - AQP3 makes sure that glycerin and water are well distributed in the outer layer of the skin and thus the skin is well-hydrated. IDC is also claimed to upregulate the expression of CD44 (a hyaluronic acid binding receptor), ceramide synthase (an enzyme required for ceramide synthesis), and decrease transepidermal water loss (TEWL). The clinical study done by the manufacturer showed that a direct comparison between 2% IDC versus 2% glycerin lotions revealed a three-fold advantage of IDC in giving skin hydration. Severely dry skin treated with 2% IDC + 2% glycerin showed 133% improvement, whereas 35% improvement was observed with moderately dry skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Quercetin",
    "description": "Quercetin is a polyphenol flavonoid found in lots of plants, such as red onions, broccoli, and blueberries. The reason it is in cosmetics is that - similar to other polyphenols - it is a strong antioxidant and has anti-inflammatory properties . Other than that, a study also showed that adding quercetin to sunscreens helped to stabilize the otherwise not very stable chemical UV filters avobenzone and octinoxate against degradation -- and it did better than traditional stabilizers like octocrylene and vitamin E ! There are also some studies into the use of quercetin as a skin whitening agent, but after some conflicting results, the conclusion is that \" quercetin is not effective in cosmetic applications as a whitening ingredient \". It also shows minor cytotoxicity when compared to some of its polyphenol derivatives (such as rutin ), so quercetin is a good example where more is not better."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate",
    "description": "A mild, biodegradable cleansing agent that is also a very good team-player next to other cleaning agents. It is known for its good foam-boosing abilities while improving the mildness of the formula . Its performance is similar to Isethionates , another group of cleaning agents known for their gentleness."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Limon Fruit Extract",
    "description": "If life gives the cosmetic industry lemon, it makes lemon fruit extract.  As to why, we can write here extremely similar things to our shiny description of orange fruit extract .  Being both of them citruses, they contain very similar active compounds with very similar (potential) effects on the skin. Just like orange fruit, lemon fruit also contains citric acid so it is commonly used as a natural, mild exfoliating agent . If this is the case, it is usually combined with other AHA containing fruit extracts such as bilberry , sugar cane , orange , and sugar maple in a super popular ingredient mix trade named ACB Fruit Mix . But, citrus fruits are chemically complex mixtures with a bunch of other active components such as vitamin C, flavonoids, phenolics, carbohydrates and essential oil (this latter one coming from the rind of the fruit, but still present in some amount in the fruit extract). These have the potential to give lemon extract antioxidant, antibacterial, anti-dandruff, venotonic and moisturizing properties , but the essential oil also brings some questionable compounds such as fragrance allergen limonene or phototoxic compound bergaptene. If your skin is sensitive, be careful with citrus extracts."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Diethylhexyl Syringylidenemalonate",
    "description": "A handy helper ingredient that has photostabilizer properties. It is useful both for color-protecting products so that they do not change color for a long time as well as for stabilizing unstable sunscreen agents , such as famous UVA filter avobenzone . DESM can also increase critical wavelength (the higher value means more UVA protection) in sunscreens and it can boost SPF by about 5 units in high-SPF products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acetyl Glycyl Beta-Alanine",
    "description": "A skin-whitening peptide that goes by the trade name GenoWhite. The manufacturer claims that it hinders the mechanism of pigmentation in two ways: first, it inhibits melanin generating enzymes like Tyrosinase so that less pigment is formed and then it also hinders the transport of the pigment to the upper layers of the skin where it becomes visible (little organelles called melanosomes carry the pigment upwards). The in-vivo (made on real people) test of the manufacturer shows great spot-fading results after 56 days using 2% GenoWhite (with the first visible results showing already after 14 days)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-60 Hydrogenated Castor Oil",
    "description": "A castor oil derived, white, lard-like helper ingredient that is used as a solubilizer to put fragrances (those are oil loving things) into water-based products such as toners."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Beraclay Light Red",
    "description": "A light red or rather pink colored natural clay that can be used as a mineral pigment with benefits. According to its manufacturer , it has disinfecting, smoothing and soothing properties , it's the softest of all clays and it's also great for sensitive skin types."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-8 Dimethicone",
    "description": "A water-soluble silicone (silicones are normally oil soluble) that makes your skin nice and smooth (aka emollient) and improves cushion, texture, and slip in the formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid",
    "description": "Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid is a low molecular weight, chemically chopped up version of the naturally big molecule and current IT-moisturizer, Hyaluronic Acid (HA). The TL; DR version of HA is that it's a huge polymer (big molecule from repeated subunits) found in the skin that acts as a sponge helping the skin to retain water , making it plump and elastic. As HA is a polymer, the subunits can be repeated many times (as a high-molecular-weight version), or just a few times (as a low-molecular-weight version). We wrote in detail at HA about how different molecular weight versions do different things both as a component of the skin and as a skincare ingredient, so click here and read about all the details . Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid can also come in different molecular-weight versions with different properties: 100-300 kDa version : apart from moisturizing, this size might also help the skin to repair itself by increasing its self-defense. It is also claimed to boost the wound healing process and is especially helpful for sensitive skin types (acne, rosacea, inflammation-related skin diseases). 50k Da version : this is the size that is claimed to be able to absorb into the skin and plump up wrinkles , so it is used mainly as an \"anti-aging ingredient\" below 50k, around 10k Da version : there is a Japanese version trade named Hyalo-Oligo that has only a 10k molecular weight and is claimed to penetrate the skin very well, have a unique touch and give deep and long-lasting moisturization . Based on the Evonik-research and the natural role of LMW-HA in the body working as a pro-inflammatory signal molecule , this ultra-low molecular weight version is a controversial ingredient . If you wanna become a real HA-and-the-skin expert, you can read much more about the topic at hyaluronic acid (including penetration-questions, differences between high and low molecular weight versions and a bunch of references to scientific literature)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acer Saccharum Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the Sugar Maple tree, the one whose leaf is on the Canadian flag and gives us maple syrup. The main reason it is used in skin care is that it contains natural AHA acids, namely Malic and Tartaric, and hence why it supposedly helps slough off dead skin cells in combination with other acid-containing fruit extracts as part of the trade name ACB Fruit Mix . The manufacturer claims that both malic and tartaric increase elasticity in the skin, but from our research, the only confirmed uses of these acids are as pH adjusters, especially in the tiny amounts they can be found in the Fruit Mix (less than 1%)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PVP",
    "description": "These three letters stand for Poly Vinyl Pyrollidone, a big molecule created from repeated units of Vinyl Pyrrolidone, aka VP. Its main thing is being an important film former . It was the first synthetic polymer introduced as a hair fixative in the 1950s instead of insect-derived Shellac. So PVP likes to attach itself to surfaces such as the hair and the skin and forms a nice, thin, even film there. The film is useful for holding a hairstyle or extending the wear of color cosmetics and sunscreens. The disadvantage of PVP is that the film is a bit brittle and that PVP loves water (hygroscopic) that tends to destroy the film. This is the reason why hair styled with a PVP based product loses its style in high humidity. To fix this problem, there are now several versions of VP containing film formers that are less sensitive to humidity, for example, the molecule called VP/VA Copolymer ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Malus Domestica Fruit Cell Culture",
    "description": "If you have already heard of the \"plant stem cells trend\" in beauty products you probably know about this guy as it was the first ingredient based on plant stem cells on the cosmetic market . It's a liposomal preparation of apple stem cells but not just any apples. It comes from the rare swiss apple called \"Uttwiler Spätlauber\" (btw, the manufacturer is also Swiss) and the stem cells are claimed to be rich in epigenetic factors and metabolites, which might support the longevity of skin cells . As for now, we only have the claims of the manufacturer and those are also largely based on in-vitro tests (made in the lab and might or might not translate to real skin). Mibelle (the Swiss manufacturer) did one in-vivo (made on real people) study with 20 women that found that a 2% Malus Domestica Fruit Cell Culture cream applied twice daily decreased wrinkle depth of the crow's feet area by 15% in 4 weeks."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydroxyphenyl Propamidobenzoic Acid",
    "description": "An anti-irritant and anti-itch molecule that copies the active ingredient ( Avenanthramides ) in the well-known soothing plant, oat. According to the manufacturer's clinical study (double-blind, 40 people, 4 weeks long), 2% SymCalmin (the trade name of our diluted - 5% - molecule) reduced itchiness significantly by 65% and it also reduced redness by 50%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Spiraea Ulmaria Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the leaves and/or blossoms of Meadowsweet, a native to Europe plant that likes to grow in damp places such as meadows or the banks of streams. It's main \"skincare thing\" is that it contains salicylic acid derivatives that give the extract anti-inflammatory properties. It also has tannins that make Spiraea Ulmaria Extract astringent , as well as spiraeoside that has anti-cellulitic properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine",
    "description": "A thickening and foam-boasting co-surfactant with amphoteric structure meaning that its head contains both a positively and a negatively charged part (surfactants are most commonly anionic meaning their head has a negative charge). It's very mild and gentle , comes from coconut oil and is readily biodegradable."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Copper Gluconate",
    "description": "A copper salt (copper cation + gluconate anion) probably best known for promoting cellular regeneration and wound healing . It works mainly in the final healing phase that complements nicely with the wound healing abilities of its mineral salt sister, zinc gluconate . Other than that, copper is also involved in several enzyme systems : it is a cofactor for the antioxidant enzyme, superoxide dismutase and also a cofactor for the melanin stimulating enzyme, tyrosinase. This means that copper has some tan activating properties , though we think you should not be into tanning at all, as UV is so bad for the skin . The gluconate part is there to promote the bioavailability of copper and it also plays a role in cellular regeneration (involved in the synthesis of ribose sugars, structural components of DNA and RNA)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Lauroamphoacetate",
    "description": "A mild amphoteric (contains both a negative and a positive ion in its water-loving head part) surfactant that gives a nice foam and also has the unique ability to reduce irritation from other co-surfactants."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Saccharomyces/​Camellia Sinensis Leaf/​Cladosiphon Okamuranus/​Rice Ferment Filtrate",
    "description": "This super-long named thing is trade named Hadasei- 3 and it's Tatcha's \" superfluid of Japan’s three essential nutrients of Green Tea, Rice, and Algae \".  The liquid is obtained by fermentation and the basic idea behind any fermented ingredient is that the fermentation process helps to break down the complex bio-molecules in the plants and helps to isolate the beneficial components for the skin. The Algae component is claimed to help skin hydration , while rice gives high-protein nourishment and green tea is indeed an excellent anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory ingredient."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Houttuynia Cordata Extract",
    "description": "Houttuynia cordata is a flowering plant native to Southeast Asia. It is eaten as a leaf vegetable, and also has a long history of use in traditional Chinese medicine , including as an attempted treatment for SARS (it didn’t really work). Regarding cosmetics, however, houttuynia cordata extract has a good bit of potential! The main active components in the plant are these fancy chemicals called flavonoids. Houttuynia cordata specifically has a good amount of polyphenolic flavonoids , four common ones being quercetin , quercitrin, hyperoside, and rutin . All of these exhibit anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antibacterial properties. Quercitrin has also been shown to decrease damage from UVB rays, which is an added bonus. One thing to keep in mind, though, is that the flavonoid content of this extract can depend on if the extract is taken from the roots or the leaves, as well as if it’s a water extraction or an alcohol extraction. Another thing Houttuynia cordata extract contains are polysaccharides , i.e. big molecules from various sugar units (in this case it is galacturonic acid (29.4%), galactose (24.0%), rhamnose (17.2%), arabinose (13.5%), glucuronic acid (6.8%), glucose (5.3%), xylose (2.1%) and mannose (1.8%) ). Polysaccharides and sugars in skincare are excellent humectants and skin hydrators , meaning they help the skin to hold onto water. Last but not least, we also found an in-vitro (made in test tubes) study showing that houttuynia cordata extract had strong anti-allergic effects and could be helpful in treating skin allergies such as eczema (atopic dermatitis)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tapioca Starch",
    "description": "A soft, white powder that can be used as a talc replacement in body powders or in pressed powders. It also has some oil absorbing properties and gives increased cushion and richness to emulsion -type formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Eucalyptus Globulus Leaf Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil created by steam distilling the leaves of the Eucalyptus tree. It's a colorless, pale yellow oil with a camphoraceous aroma used traditionally in vapor rubs to treat coughs. Its name-giving main component is eucalyptol (also called 1,8-cineole, 80-91%) that has significant antibacterial and expectorant properties . Among essential oils, Eucalyptus Globulus counts as rather non-sensitising with an EU sensitizer total of 5% (due to limonene ). However, if your skin is super-sensitive or you are allergic to fragrances, it is still better to avoid it."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 77742",
    "description": "An inorganic (as in no carbon in its molecule) pigment that gives purple or violet shade."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tetrasodium Tetracarboxymethyl Naringeninchalcone",
    "description": "A water-soluble, stabilized molecule derived from the polyphenol naringenin chalcone , which naturally occurs in the peel of citrus fruits and tomato skin and is known for its potent anti-allergic and anti-inflammatory properties. According to the Swiss manufacturer's clinical study with 11 people, an emulsion containing 0.1%Tetrasodium Tetracarboxymethyl Naringeninchalcone applied twice daily for 56 days visibly reduces skin redness and improves the signs of rosacea skin ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-4 Caprate",
    "description": "A water-loving emollient that is used as a solubilizer in water-based, toner-like formulas. Solubilizers are handy helper ingredients to dissolve small amounts of oil-loving materials (such as essential oils or fragrances) into watery liquids. Polyglyceryl-4 Caprate also has some emollient properties , making the skin feel nice and smooth."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Diazolidinyl Urea",
    "description": "An antimicrobial preservative that helps your products not to go wrong too quickly. It works especially well against bacteria, specifically gram-negative species, yeast, and mold. Somewhat controversial, it belongs to an infamous family of formaldehyde-releasers . That is, it slowly breaks down to form formaldehyde when it is added to a formula. We have written more about formaldehyde-releasing preservatives and the concerns around them at Dmdm Hydantoin , but do not get too scared, those are more theories than proven facts. As for Diazolidinyl Urea itself, a study from 1990 writes that at concentrations up to 0.4%, it was a mild cumulative skin irritant, but the CIR (Cosmetic Ingredient Review) reviewed it in 2006 and found that, in concentrations of <0.5%, it is safe as used , as the amount of formaldehyde released will be smaller than the recommended limit (of less than 0.2%). All in all, it is up to your personal decision and skin sensitivity."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate-2",
    "description": "A thick, paste-like emollient ester that is touted as a vegetable-derived lanolin alternative. It has a smooth spreadability and touch, and it gives a substantive film to protect and moisturize the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isostearyl Isostearate",
    "description": "An emollient ester (oily liquid from Isostearyl Alcohol + Isostearic Acid) that gives excellent slip, lubricity and luxurious softness on skin. It's also popular in makeup products to disperse pigments nicely and evenly."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acetamidoethoxyethanol",
    "description": "Acetamidoethoxyethanol is a high-performance moisturizer that's claimed to give both amazing instant and longer term (up to 30 hours) hydration to the skin. It works through interacting with water and keratin (skin protein) to keep the water molecules tightly bound in the upper layer of the skin. This binding mechanism supposedly ensures that Acetamidoethoxyethanol gives great hydration initially as well as over 30 hours. It's also non-sticky, spreads nicely and easily on the skin and plays well with other common ingredients in the formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-2 Caprate",
    "description": "A multi-functional emulsifier that helps water and oil to nicely mix together. It also has a nice skin feeling, can act as a thickener and has some antimicrobial activity that makes it an active ingredient in some natural deodorants."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dimethylmethoxy Chromanol",
    "description": "A synthetic molecule that has a similar structure to α-Tocopherol ( vitamin E ) and works as a super potent antioxidant . It's known for not only protecting against reactive oxygen species ( ROS ) but also against reactive nitrogen species ( RNS ) (both are evil reactive molecules that cause damage to cells and tissues and are responsible for several mechanisms which trigger skin aging). There are different methods to evaluate the antioxidant power of an ingredient and according to the so-called TBA-assay, Dimethylmethoxy Chromanol is a more potent antioxidant than BHT , trolox or tocopherol . Its recommended dosage is only 0.01-0.05%, that also signals how potent Lipochroman-6 is."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "EDTA",
    "description": "An abbreviation that pops up on a lot of ingredient lists. It stands for E thylene D iamine T etraacetic A cid and it's a famous molecule for being an excellent chelating agent , i.e. a molecule that can bind to metal ions (coming usually from water) and make them harmless in a cosmetic formula. With a chelating agent, cosmetic formulas stay nice longer. EDTA is an acid molecule and its salt versions are even more often used, such as the super common Disodium EDTA ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cellulose",
    "description": "A natural polymer (big molecule from repeated subunits) that can be found in the cell wall of green plants. It is a natural and sustainable helper ingredient that can improve the absorption of the formula and it also reduces oiliness on the skin. It is also used as a sensory additive and thickening agent ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Diisopropyl Adipate",
    "description": "A water light oily liquid (aka ester) that has a light skin feeling and is often used to reduce tackiness and lighten the feel of heavier emollients. It's popular in sunscreens to \"lighten up\" oil soluble chemical UV filters."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cyclotetrasiloxane",
    "description": "A four-unit long, cyclic structured, super light silicone that is the small sister of the more commonly used 5-unit long cyclic structured Cyclopentasiloxane . It is a so-called volatile silicone that evaporates off the skin and hair rather than staying on it. Similar to other silicones, it has excellent spreading properties and amazing silkiness . It is often blended with other silicones to achieve unique sensorial properties in the formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Safflower Oil/​Palm Oil Aminopropanediol Esters",
    "description": "A linoleic acid (aka omega-6 fatty acid) stabilized under a ceramide-like structure . It's a bioengineered ingredient obtained by solvent-free enzymatic synthesis from the linoleic-rich safflower oil . Omega-6 Ceramide is claimed to have barrier repairing (by increasing cellular cohesion) and skin soothing activity and is especially recommended for damaged skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 77007",
    "description": "An inorganic (as in no carbon in its molecule) pigment that can range in shade from blue (most common) to violet, pink or even green. It is not permitted in lip products in the US."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Retinal",
    "description": "If you are reading here, we are pretty sure the words retinoids and retinol ring a bell, but if not, you are seriously missing out, please click here immediately to catch up .  The TL;DR version is that retinoids are the royal family of skincare with tretinoin being the king , the only FDA-approved ingredient to treat the signs of photoaging. Retinol is like a grandkid, it has to be converted (through two steps) in the skin to become retinoic acid. The conversion means retinol is both less effective and less harsh on the skin. So where does our current molecule, Retinal, aka Retinaldehyde fit into the family (btw, here is a nice visual family tree about who is who )?  Remember that retinol needed two conversion steps to become retinoic acid? Yes, you are right, Retinal is the intermediate step between retinoic acid and retinol , meaning it needs only one conversion step to become active in the skin. If we go with our royal family analogy, Retinal is Prince William, directly next in line to the throne. Once retinal is converted, it becomes retinoic acid and does the same things we detailed in our tretinoin description. In a nutshell, it is everything you expect from an anti-aging superstar such as decreased wrinkles, smoother, firmer and more elastic skin . This sounds good, but how does Retinal compare to retinoic acid? Good question! We found a study (a pretty good one with 125 patients) that compared 0.05% retinal with 0.05% retinoic acid (and vehicle).  They concluded that \" at week 18, a significant reduction of the wrinkle and roughness features was observed with both retinaldehyde and retinoic acid. \" and the difference between the two was not statistically significant. (Interestingly, in both groups, the results were less significant at week 44, so it might be a good idea to have a retinoid break from time to time?) Also, our guy, Retinal was much better tolerated than retinoic acid known for its harshness. The good tolerability of retinal was also confirmed by another study that compared retinol (ROL), retinal (RAL) and retinoic acid (RA). They found that \" the natural retinoids ROL and RAL do have a good tolerance profile, in contrast with the irritating potential of RA \", meaning retinal is an awesome alternative if you have irritation and flaking issues with prescription products , such as Retin-A. Last, but not least, we want to mention a pretty big (but subjectively evaluated), Avene (the French pharmacy brand famous for its Retinal products) sponsored study that examined the tolerability and efficacy of a 0.1 Retinal + 6% glycolic acid product in the treatment of acne . The product was added next to the standard anti-acne regimen of 1,709 patients for 90 days and the study concluded that the formula was both very well tolerated as well as effective next to other standard anti-acne medications such as benzoyl peroxide and antibiotics. Overall, if you are into retinoids, Retinal is a really awesome and well-proven member of the family that is absolutely worth trying."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cypripedium Pubescens Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the roots of the Lady’s Slipper Orchid. There is not a ton of info out there about what it's doing in a cosmetic product, but according to a Fitoterapia review paper about orchids, it's an Indian folk medicine with muscle relaxant , hypnotic, nerve calming , sedative, and tonic properties . We also found a patent that confirms Lady's Slipper Orchid as a muscle relaxant, it's official CosIng function is tonic (\"produces a feeling of well-being on skin\"), and MakingCosmetics says it's soothing."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Opuntia Ficus-Indica Stem Extract",
    "description": "The extract derived from Prickly Pear, a cactus native to Mexico. It is well-known for its soothing and hydrating properties . Read our shiny explanation about Opuntia Ficus-Indica here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Caprylyl Caprylate/​Caprate",
    "description": "A coconut or palm kernel oil derived, fast spreading emollient liquid that makes your skin feel nice and smooth. It is mild for sensitive skin, leaves a light and dry skin feel and is readily biodegradable."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Madecassoside",
    "description": "One of the main biologically active components of the famous medicinal plant, Centella Asiatica, aka Gotu Kola . It has well established wound healing, skin-soothing and antioxidant activities . There is also a study by La Roche Posay (belongs to L'Oreal) that examined the anti-aging effects of 5% Vitamin C combined with 0.1% Madecassoside . They mention that \" Madecassoside is known to induce collagen expression and ⁄ or to modulate inflammatory mediators thus might  prevent and correct some signs of aging. \" The surprisingly long, 6-month study observed \" significant improvement of the clinical score for deep and superficial wrinkles, suppleness, firmness, roughness, and skin hydration \", but Vitamin C in itself is already an anti-aging superstar, so it is hard to know how much Madecassoside did. Another promising property of Madecassoside is that it seems to inhibit UV-induced melanin synthesis (test formula with 0.05% MA, used twice a day on 23 volunteers for 8 weeks ), making it a great active for hyperpigmentation-prone skin. If that would not be enough, the French manufacturer (Seppic) also has encouraging in-vivo studies on the molecule. Used at 0.2%, Madecassoside reduces redness and peeling in skin with light atopic dermatitis as well as itching in psoriasis-prone skin. If you are into Gotu Kola, read more here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Propylheptyl Caprylate",
    "description": "A crystal clear, oily liquid that makes your skin nice and smooth, aka emollient . It is fast-spreading and leaves a luxurious, silky-soft after-feel . It is also ideal for sunscreen products as it can enhance the solubility of crystalline UV filters."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Disodium Cetearyl Sulfosuccinate",
    "description": "A high-performance emulsifier that helps water and oil to nicely mix together. It has exceptional stabilizing power and can be used in all kinds of formulas including hard to create sunscreens."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acetyl Octapeptide-3",
    "description": "A newer and, molecule-wise, somewhat bigger version of the famous \"Botox-like\" peptide called Acetyl Hexapeptide-8 or Argireline . Just like Argireline, Acetyl Octapeptide-3 is also claimed to influence the muscle contraction process that results in a more relaxed and line-free face, especially around the forehead and the eyes. While Argireline counts as a pretty well-proven peptide, with multiple studies confirming its anti-wrinkle efficacy, we cannot say the same for Acetyl Octapeptide-3. What we have is the manufacturer's claim that comparing 10% Argireline with 10% SNAP-8 solution (that means 0.005% pure peptide powder) the SNAP-8 peptide did a bit better as it reduced wrinkles by 34.98% vs 27.05% reduction for Argireline (twice a day use for 28 days on 17 women). Other than that, we can write here pretty much the same as at Argireline. Obviously, no peptide works as effectively as real Botox, and the Botox-inspired peptides are quick fixes rather than being collagen builders or real preventers of structural aging. They are nice additions to an anti-aging skincare routine but not the real superstars (think vitamin C , AHAs or retinol )."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Macadamia Integrifolia Seed Oil",
    "description": "The golden yellow oil coming from the Macadamia nut, a native Australian nut. Similar to other plant oils, it's loaded with emollient and nourishing fatty acids . It's a high oleic acid oil (50-67% oleic acid and only 0-5% linoleic acid) that makes it very emollient and ideal for dry skin types . Its unique property is that it contains high amounts of a rare fatty acid called palmitoleic acid (12-25%) that give Macadamia oil a \"cushiony\" feel . It's also easily absorbed and makes the skin soft and supple."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Pseudozyma Epicola/​Camellia Sinensis Seed Oil/​Glucose/​Glycine Soja Meal/​Malt Extract/​Yeast Extract Ferment Filtrate",
    "description": "A so-called \"Fermentoil\" that is created by fermenting plant oils with Pseudozyma bacteria . These bacteria produce enzymes that break down oil components increasing the \"nutritional value\" of the oil . More specifically, Fermentoils tend to have much larger free fatty acid content (in normal oils fatty acids are bound to a glycerin molecule and form a so-called triglyceride) and also somewhat increased antioxidant values. They are also more cosmetically elegant , meaning that they are absorbed into the skin faster, have a less greasy skin feel and, for the joy of the cosmetic chemists, they are also easier to emulsify. This long-named guy, Fermentoil Green Tea Seed is claimed not only to contain an increased amount of free fatty acids but also antioxidant vitamin E and polyphenols. It has moisturizing, antioxidant, antiseptic , fungicidal and bactericidal properties and the manufacturer recommends it for oily and acne prone skin types."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methylheptyl Laurate",
    "description": "A coconut-derived, ultra-light ester oil that gives excellent slip and emolliency to the products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrogenated Vegetable Glycerides",
    "description": "Hydrogenated Vegetable Glycerides is a blend of fatty acid mono and diesters (kind of like an oil molecule but not with three but only one or two fatty acid chains on the glycerin) that exists in lots of versions. It can be a consistency-giving wax (think something like glyceryl stearate ), or it can be a rich jelly emollient that acts as a petrolatum alternative."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Menthone Glycerin Acetal",
    "description": "An oil-soluble cooling agent that gives a similar cooling and freshness sensation as Menthol (1% of Menthone Glycerin Acetal vs 0.5% of Menthol). The recommended usage range is 0.1-2%, and the formula pH has to be higher than 6.5."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Cocoyl Sarcosinate",
    "description": "A mild and gentle cleansing agent derived from the amino acid sarcosine and coconut fatty acids. It is known for its good foam boosting abilities and improving the mildness of the formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-10 Stearate",
    "description": "A vegetable-based, PEG-free ingredient whose job is to help water and oil to mix nicely together (emulsifier). It is created by attaching ten water-loving glycerin molecules with the oil-loving fatty acid, stearic acid . The result is a partly water- and partly oil-loving molecule that creates stable and smooth emulsions that are also cosmetically elegant. It also has some moisturizing and softening benefits for skin and hair."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate",
    "description": "A versatile and biodegradable cleansing agent with high cleaning power and strong foaming properties. Unfortunately, these two properties for a surfactant usually mean that it is harsh on the skin, which is the case here as well."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetyl Phosphate",
    "description": "A white to beige powder that helps oil and water to mix nicely together (aka oil in water emulsifier ). It is a good emulsifier choice for stable water-resistant sunscreen formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Dehydroacetate",
    "description": "A helper ingredient that helps to make the products stay nice longer, aka preservative . It works mainly against fungi and has only milder effect against bacteria. It is Ecocert and Cosmos approved, and is popular in natural products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Aluminum Hydroxide",
    "description": "Officially, CosIng (the official EU ingredient database) lists Aluminum Hydroxide 's functions as opacifying (making the product white and non-transparent), as well as emollient and skin protectant . However, with a little bit of digging, it turns out Aluminum Hyroxide often moonlights as a protective coating for UV filter superstar Titanium Dioxide . Specifically, it protects our skin from the harmful effects of nasty Reactive Oxygen Species (free radicals derived from oxygen such as Superoxide and Hydrogen Peroxide) generated when Titanium Dioxide is exposed to UV light. Btw, chlorine in swimming pool water depletes this protective coating, so one more reason to reapply your sunscreen after a dip in the pool on holiday. Other than that, Aluminum Hydroxide also often shows up in composite pigment technologies where it is used the other way around (as the base material and not as the coating material) and helps to achieve higher color coverage with less pigment ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Zingiber Officinale Root Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from ginger , the lovely spice that we all know from the kitchen. It is also a medicinal plant used both in Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine for pretty much everything you can imagine (muscular pain, sore throat, nausea, fever or cramps,  just to give a few examples). As for ginger and skincare, the root extract contains the biologically active component called gingerol that has potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties . Combined with Bisabolol , the duo works synergistically to sooth the skin and take down redness. Other than that, ginger also contains moisturizing polysaccharides, amino acids, and sugars , and it is also quite well known to increase blood circulation and have a toning effect. Last but not least, Ginger also has some volatile, essential oil compounds (1-3%). Those are mostly present in ginger oil , but small amounts might be in the extract as well ( around 0.5% based on manufacturer info )."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Disodium EDTA",
    "description": "Super common little helper ingredient that helps products to remain nice and stable for a longer time . It does so by neutralizing the metal ions in the formula (that usually get into there from water) that would otherwise cause some not so nice changes. It is typically used in tiny amounts, around 0.1% or less."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methyl Trimethicone",
    "description": "Methyl Trimethicone is a very light, volatile silicone (it evaporates from the skin rather than absorbs into it) that's similar to super commonly used Cyclopentasiloxane but it dries even faster when applied to the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dibutyl Ethylhexanoyl Glutamide",
    "description": "An amino acid (L-Glutamic acid) based oil gelling agent that magically turns liquid oils into nice gels. Often used togeather with fellow amino-acid based oil gelling agent, Dibutyl Lauroyl Glutamide ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Chondroitin Sulfate",
    "description": "Though its name does not reveal it, this molecule is a relative of famous IT-moisturizer, Hyaluronic Acid . Just like HA, it is a glycosaminoglycan (aka GAG), meaning that it is a big sugar molecule from repeated subunits (what's more, one of the subunits is the same, glucuronic acid). Along with HA and other GAGs, it likes to hang out in the dermis (middle) layer of the skin where it is part of the gooey, bouncy stuff outside of the cells called extracellular matrix (ECM). As for skincare, Sodium Chondroitin Sulfate is probably too big to go right into the dermis (though much smaller than HA with 5000-50 000 Da molecular weight), but it has a comparable water binding ability to HA (which means a crazy water binding ability) and better affinity for the skin surface . This means that it forms a nice, water-rich film on the skin bringing an immediate and strong moisturising effect."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein/​PVP Crosspolymer",
    "description": "A polymer (big molecule from repeated subunits) that improves the film-forming and aesthetic (no tacky after-feel) properties of sunscreen formulas . It also boosts SPF values, in some cases by as much as 70%, at least according to the manufacturer ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "No Title",
    "description": "The trade name of the algae extract coming from the green micro-algae called Dunaliella salina . It's claimed to have \" outstanding skin energizing properties\" and to be able to give a \"radiant and luminous looking skin\". Read way more about Algae Extracts in cosmetics here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glycol Distearate",
    "description": "A so-called diester created from two stearic acid molecules and an ethylene glycol molecule. Its main thing is being an opacifier and pearling agent in cleansing products making them white and glossy. It can also give body to creams and emulsions."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dibutyl Lauroyl Glutamide",
    "description": "An amino acid ( L-Glutamic acid) based oil gelling agent that magically turns liquid oils into nice gels."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Homosalate",
    "description": "An oil-soluble chemical sunscreen agent that protects the skin from UVB (295-315 nm) with a peak protection at 306 nm. Homosalate is not a strong UV filter in and of itself (gives only SPF 4.3 protection at max. allowed 10% concentration) and it is not photostable (looses 10% of its SPF protection in 45 mins) so it always has to be combined with other sunscreens for proper protection. Its big advantage, though, is that it is a liquid and is excellent for dissolving other hard to solubilize powder sunscreen agents, like the famous Avobenzone . Regarding Homosalate's safety profile, we do not have the best news. In-vitro (made in the labs) studies have shown that it might have some estrogenic activity. Do not panic, these studies were not conducted on real humans under real world conditions. Still, if you are a 'better safe than sorry' type, be careful when using Homosalate containing sunscreens long-term and full-body. As of 2020, Homosalate is permitted to be used up to 10% in the EU and 15% in the US, but the EU is currently considering restricting it to only 1.4% (probably taking effect from 2022)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-30 Dipolyhydroxystearate",
    "description": "PEG-30 Dipolyhydroxystearate is a popular water-in-oil (w/o) emulsifier , meaning that it helps the oily and watery parts of the formula to mix in a way where water droplets are dispersed in the continuous oil phase and not the other way round. Compared to the more commonly used oil-in-water (o/w) emulsions, w/o emulsions tend to be heavier and less cosmetically elegant, but PEG-30 Dipolyhydroxystearate is claimed to help with this and enables a light and elegant skin feel . It also has a molecular structure that creates large anchors both in the water and in the oil phase making the resulting emulsion not only cosmetically elegant but also very stable."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Diethylhexyl Carbonate",
    "description": "A very low viscosity and high spreadability emollient fluid that gives a nice light skin feel. It can also be used to solubilize crystalline actives such as chemical UV filters."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate",
    "description": "A soft, mild cleansing agent with amphoteric structure meaning that its head contains both a positively and a negatively charged part (surfactants are most commonly anionic meaning their head has a negative charge).  It also has great foaming abilities and is recommended for baby products and other non-irritating cleansers."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Bis-Ethylhexyl Hydroxydimethoxy Benzylmalonate",
    "description": "A clear, colorless liquid that gives advanced protection for the skin lipids and truly photostabilizes UV filters , at least according to its manufacturer . It's as effective of an antioxidant as pure Vitamin E, aka tocopherol and as stable as its esterified version tocopheryl acetate . It's claimed to efficiently and continuously work over 24 hours by a continuous three-phase mechanism: it dims oxidative stress, builds up protection from ROS (evil free radicals) and prevents the formation of further reactive species. If that would not be enough, it also seems to be a promising ingredient for acne prevention . In an in-vivo test on 22 volunteers, a 2% Bis-Ethylhexyl Hydroxydimethoxy Benzylmalonate formula decreased skin oiliness by 20% after 8 weeks of treatment, and skin inflammation and redness also improved by 25%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 75120",
    "description": "A natural, soluble colorant (aka dye) that comes from the seeds of the annatto bush. It gives an orange hue ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glyceryl Acrylate/​Acrylic Acid Copolymer",
    "description": "Glyceryl acrylate/acrylic acid copolymer is the fancy word for a common polymer (big molecule from repeated subunits), namely polyacrylic acid (aka carbomer when it comes to cosmetics) with glycerin attached to it in some places. The main thing of this polymer is that it forms a hydrogel (trade named Lubrajel) that can sit on top of the skin and provide moisturizing, water-soluble ingredients such as glycerin to the skin . Think of it as a very thin, wet sponge that a cosmetic manufacturer can fill with good ingredients for your skin. It also works as a thickening agent (remember, it is a carbomer type of molecule), and can provide the skin with a nice slippery feel. It can also draw water to the skin (thank you, pendant glycerol groups!), providing skin hydration. Also, don’t let people scare you into thinking polyacrylic acid is dangerous because of the toxicity of acrylic acid. Since acrylic acid is dangerous due to its ability to absorb into the skin (since it’s small), when you chain them together into a polymer (which is big), this danger is no longer significant."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Arnica Montana Extract",
    "description": "A nice yellow flower living in the mountains that's famously used to treat bruisings. Its role in skincare is questionable though. Read more here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-10 Laurate",
    "description": "A glycerin-derived gentle cleansing agent that is described as being skin and eye-friendly, and not leaving the skin dry or tight. It's also used as a co-emulsifier or solubilizer that helps to blend small amounts of oily things into water-based products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Nobilis Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from the whole plant of the Mandarin Orange . In general, the main component of citrus oils is limonene , a super common fragrant ingredient that makes everything smell nice (but counts as a frequent skin sensitizer).  The majority of the essential oil is in the peel , but the leaf also contains some with slightly different chemical composition. Both the peel and the leaf oil contains some phototoxic compounds (the leaf oil contains methyl-N-methyl anthranilate), so it's a good idea not to use Mandarin Orange Oil containing products during the day."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methoxycinnamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine",
    "description": "A colorless, odorless liquid that works as a water-soluble UVB filter with a peak protection of 306 nm. Chemical sunscreen agents are typically oil-soluble so being water-soluble is unique and it makes it possible to create cosmetically elegant, non-oily, non-tacky, silky and smooth feeling formulas. It is also used as a color protectant in hair care formulations . We could not figure out its regulatory status as a sunscreen agent, though. Its manufacturer only says it's registered \"as a new cosmetic ingredient in the EU\", but it is probably not an officially approved sunscreen filter (yet)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Grandis Peel Oil",
    "description": "The essential oi l coming from the rind of the grapefruit . In general, the main component of citrus peel oils is limonene (86-95% for grapefruit peel), a super common fragrant ingredient that makes everything smell nice (but counts as a frequent skin sensitizer). Other than that, citrus peel also contains the problematic compound called furanocoumarin that makes them mildly phototoxic . In general, the more sour-bitter the fruit, the more problematic it is regarding phototoxicity: orange and clementine peel contain less of it while lemon, grapefruit, and bergamot contain some more. Be careful with it if it is in a product for daytime use."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Schisandra Sphenanthera Fruit Extract",
    "description": "A species of Schisandra berry that's used as a traditional Chinese Medicine for thousands of years. According to manufacturer info ,  it's used for stressed, sensitive and hyper reactive skin and has anti-irritant, anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory properties. A research paper we found on Schisandra does confirm that the fruit has antioxidant properties, and is traditionally used to treat and prevent hyperproliferative and inflammatory skin diseases (like psoriasis)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lavandula Angustifolia Flower/​Leaf/​Stem Oil",
    "description": "Read more about lavender essential oil in cosmetics here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Caramel",
    "description": "The caramel in cosmetics is pretty much the same one that you know from the kitchen. It is derived by controlled heat treatment of food-grade carbohydrates (sugars) and works as a brown colorant ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Diheptyl Succinate",
    "description": "Diheptyl Succinate is a natural, \"silicone-alternative\" emollient that usually comes to the formula with Capryloyl Glycerin/Sebacic Acid Copolymer . The two together is trade-named LexFeel N and depending on their ratio, the duo can mimic both super light, Cyclomethicone -type skin feel as well as more viscous Dimethicone like skin feel. The duo also plays well with pure natural oils, and it can reduce their greasiness and tackiness and make them feel nicer on the skin. LexFeel N is also very eco-friendly, 100% natural (Ecocert approved) , sustainable and biodegradable."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Capryloyl Glycerin/​Sebacic Acid Copolymer",
    "description": "The friend of Diheptyl Succinate as the duo is usually used together and is touted as a natural silicone alternative . Read more there >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ectoin",
    "description": "Ectoin is a surprisingly well-researched, multi-functional active that can do from pollution & light protection to skin hydration, soothing , and barrier repair , several things to your skin. It is an extremolyte , a small stress-protection molecule that protects microorganisms living under extreme conditions such as salt lakes, hot springs, arctic ice, the deep sea, or deserts. It was discovered in 1985 in a microorganism living in a salt lake in the Egyptian desert. The key skill of Ectoin is protection that applies also to the skin. Its main mode of action is binding water molecules (aka kosmotropic) and creating hydro complexes. These complexes then surround important biomolecules (e.g. cells, proteins, enzymes) and form a stabilizing hydration shell around them. This protection mechanism means good things when it comes to our skin: Ectoin has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, pollution& light protecting, skin hydrating, barrier repairing as well as anti-aging properties. A placebo-controlled 10-person study examined a four-week treatment with 0.5% Ectoin in the crow's feet area and found a significant anti-wrinkle effect (-19% mean wrinkle depth) in 100% of the participants. Another double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical study with 24 participants used a 2% Ectoin cream twice a day for 4 weeks and found an improvement in all of the measured parameters, such as wrinkle volume, skin scaling, roughness, and elasticity. Another remarkable property of Ectoin is protecting the epidermal immune cells called Langerhans cells from UV damage . 0.3% and 0.5% Ectoin cream was used twice a day for 14 days on the forearm and then irradiated with 1.5 MED UV (one and a half times the UV dose that causes detectable redness). While the untreated, UV-stressed area showed a 40% decrease in viable Langerhans cells, 0.5% Ectoin showed 100% protection (and 0.3% showed ~95% protection). The soothing efficacy is also backed up by multiple in-vivo studies. A 20-person study compared 1% Ectoin cream to 0.25% hydrocortisone treatment on surfactant irritated skin and found similar effectiveness in reducing skin redness.  Another study with 23 females with sensitive skin found that a 1% Ectoin cream helped to tolerate a 0.5% or 1% retinol treatment much better. A tiny, 5-person study examined the long-term (7 days) skin hydration effect of 1% Ectoin. During the study, hydration levels increased up to 200% compared to placebo, and even 7 days after stopping the treatment hydration status was largely preserved. Higher concentration (5-7%) Ectoin treatments are also used as OTC medical products for the treatment of eczema or atopic skin. The anti-pollution magic properties are also well-established and Ectoin is currently the only anti-pollution active ingredient approved for use in medical products (e.g. inhalation solutions) in Europe. Clinical studies showed a reduction of inflammations in human lungs of patients with COPD (a pulmonary disease) and pollution-induced asthma. But coming back to the skin, Ectoin protects both from PMs (Particulate Matters, including ultrafine) as well as PAHs ( Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons ) and heavy metals. If that weren't enough, Ectoin is also shown to protect the skin from blue and visible light, and pigmentation resulting from environmental stress (think UV, pollution, oxidative stress). All in all, we think Ectoin is one of those under-the-radar actives that deserves more hype than it is currently getting. As an amazing all-around skin protectant , it is a useful addition to any skincare routine."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Drometrizole Trisiloxane",
    "description": "A L'Oréal-group exclusive sunscreen agent that was invented in 1999 and is commonly called Mexoryl XL. It is an oil-soluble, photostable chemical sunscreen with both UVB and UVA protection with peak absorbance at 303 nm (UVB) and at 344 nm (UVA)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Butane",
    "description": "A colorless and odorless gas used as a propellant in cosmetic products that come in a spray form."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Candelilla/​Jojoba/​Rice Bran Polyglyceryl-3 Esters",
    "description": "A natural emulsifier that helps oil and water to nicely mix together. It is claimed to bring a silicone-feel to natural formulations and to give an ultra-soft texture and cushion touch . It is a natural wax derivative (from rice bran, candelilla, and jojoba waxes) that also has some moisturizing properties as it can retain 6 times its own weight in water, forming a water cushion on the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Raspberry Seed Oil/​Tocopheryl Succinate Aminopropanediol Esters",
    "description": "This long-named thing comes from the enzymatic biocatalysis of Raspberry Seed Oil and a Vitamin E derivative and is claimed by its manufacturer to be able to repair injured skin and restore a healthy barrier function (so that the skin is healthy and hydrated again). The manufacturer did some in-vivo (made on real people) studies to show that 1% Vitaskin-E cream did indeed decrease Trans-Epidermal-Water-Loss and reduced cracks and scales on dry lips better than placebo."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Steareth-2",
    "description": "A waxy solid material that helps oil and water to mix together, aka emulsifier . It is derived from the fatty alcohol, stearyl alcohol by ethoxylating it and thus making the molecule a little water-soluble. This version has only a small amount of ethoxylation and thus the molecule is still largely oil soluble. It is often mixed with more water-soluble emulsifiers (such as Steareth-20 ) to create stable emulsion systems."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Soluble Collagen",
    "description": "Soluble Collagen refers to the big, natural collagen molecules mostly extracted from fish or bovine skin . Spotting collagen on the ingredient list, you might think that, aha , this must be there to supplement the collagen content of our own skin, but you have to know that collagen is a huge-huge molecule that cannot absorb to the middle layer of the skin where collagen is and even if it could, it cannot just magically go the right places to become part of the skin's own collagen network. Putting collagen on your skin for anti-aging purposes is like throwing tent poles onto a ramshackle tent and expecting the tent to magically become nice and firm again. The strong point of collagen is being a large molecule with tremendous water binding capacity , i.e. an amazing humectant and moisturizer . It produces a water-rich film on the skin giving the stratum corneum (the uppermost layer of the skin) great hydration, making it nice and smooth and reducing trans-epidermal-water loss (the process of water evaporating out of your skin). It is also so gentle and non-irritant that it can actually be used in cleansers to reduce the irritating potential of harsh surfactants , aka cleansing agents. If you are fine with animal-derived ingredients and know that collagen in a jar has nothing to do with wrinkles but everything to do with skin hydration , Soluble Collagen is a nice ingredient."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "C10-30 Cholesterol/​Lanosterol Esters",
    "description": "A clear, pale yellow oil-like liquid that's claimed to be similar to the lipids that are naturally in the outermost layer of the skin.  It's not only similar to them but it is also biomimetic, meaning that it can mimic the functionality of our skin lipids . The skin lipids play a super important role in maintaining a healthy skin barrier and keeping the skin nice and moisturized and not dry or cracked.  So C10-30 Cholesterol/Lanosterol Esters, aka Super Sterol Liquid can do something similar: it is an extremely efficient emollient that can repair even dry hands or cracked lips and it is great at maintaining a healthy skin barrier. A goodie for super dry skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hexylresorcinol",
    "description": "A molecule that is naturally present in the bran of rye and other cereals. It has been used for a long time in the food industry as an \"anti-browning agent\" for fresh-cut fruits or shrimps. It turns out that Hexylresorcinol works as an \"anti-browning agent\" also in cosmetic products. It is a pretty well-researched molecule with significant tyrosinase (the famous enzyme needed to produce melanin) inhibiting abilities . The clinical study of the manufacturer showed that 0.5% Hexylresorcinol has a comparable skin-lightening effect to gold-standard, 2% Hydroquinone. Even better, a 12-weeks, double-blind, placebo-controlled study with 65 volunteers confirmed the effectiveness of our skin-lightening molecule and it measured an average of 88% skin-lightening improvement . The study also included before and after photos (always a good sign!) and the skin-lightening was indeed visible and significant (though the pigmentation spots did not completely disappear, just so you have realistic expectations)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glyceryl Laurate",
    "description": "A glycerin and lauric acid derived multi-functional ingredient that works as a co-emulsifier (helps water and oil to mix together next to other emulsifiers), emollient (makes skin nice and smooth) and anti-microbial agent (preservative booster). It also has some thickening and refatting properties in cleansing formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tetrapeptide-17",
    "description": "A peptide sequence based on skin's own structure that's claimed to minimize the appearance of wrinkles , boost collagen production and reduce skin roughness."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Oligopeptide-68",
    "description": "A skin-brightening peptide that is claimed to have a unique mechanism of action on lightening both constitutive (our default skin color) and facultative (such as tanning) pigmentation. It works by inhibiting the MITF gene that plays an important role in controlling melanin producing skin cells called melanocytes. In the in-vivo (made on real people) test of the manufacturer, 23 Asian volunteers used a 5% ß-White formula for 56 days twice a day and 87% reported a more uniform skin tone and 91% felt that their skin was brighter than before. As for research, we found one study from 2016 that combined Oligopeptide-68 with sunscreen and another skin-lightening active called Diacetyl Boldine (DAB). The conclusion was that \"combination of DAB serum at night and DAB/TGF-β1 biomimetic oligopeptide-68/sunscreen cream in the morning and at noon was effective and safe for facial melasma . They were superior to HQ in pigment reduction.\"  HQ refers to the famous Hydroquinone that's the gold-standard skin-lightening ingredient, so having comparable or superior results is a very promising outcome. Overall , if you are into skin-lightening or fading pigmentation spots, Oligopeptide-68 might be something to try."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Algin",
    "description": "A large sugar molecule (aka polysaccharide) that's used as a gelling agent and comes from brown seaweed. Combined with calcium salts, it forms a rigid gel used in \"rubber masks\"."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Caprooyl Tetrapeptide-3",
    "description": "A four amino acid, biomimetic (i.e. a molecule in nature is copied synthetically in a lab) peptide that copies a growth factor that boosts the production of key components of the dermal-epidermal junction (the place where the top two layers of the skin meet). These key components are important skin-structure giving proteins such as collagen VII, laminin-5, and fibronectin. What this means in practice, and according to the in-vivo (made on people) tests of the manufacturer , is that Caprooyl Tetrapeptide-3 might be able to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles . The clinical study had 27 volunteers who used a 2.5%  ChroNOline (the diluted and trade named version of our peptide molecule) cream twice a day and the researchers measured a 16% percent reduction in fine lines and wrinkles after 28 days. In mature volunteers (aged 50-65 ), the improvement continued to a reduction of 27% after 56 days."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Zinc Gluconate",
    "description": "If you are fighting acne and have looked into oral supplements, chances are that zinc gluconate sounds familiar to you. It is a zinc salt that has research proving it to be effective against inflammatory acne , though not quite as effective as the antibiotic minocycline (31.2% vs. 63.4% success rate). However, zinc supplements are easily available, have little-to-no side effects, so supplementing them with a 30mg per day dose can still be a good idea. As for smearing zinc gluconate all over your face, it is also not a bad idea. Zinc has multiple magic abilities: it is antibacterial (including evil, acne-causing P. acnes) and sebum-regulating (5α-reductase inhibitor), great for acne-prone skin types. It also stimulates antioxidant enzyme systems (mainly superoxide dismutase ) and has nice wound healing abilities acting mainly in the first, proliferation phase. So great for skin types in need of healing and soothing. What about the gluconate part? It is there to promote the absorption and bioavailability of zinc and also plays a role in cellular regeneration (involved in the synthesis of ribose sugars, structural components of DNA and RNA)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dimethylacrylamide/​Acrylic Acid/​Polystyrene Ethyl Methacrylate Copolymer",
    "description": "This long-named thing is a big molecule that works as a film-forming and viscosity controlling agent . It often comes together with Polysilicone-11 ,  a silicone elastomer to create \"water-coated silicone technology\" that makes the incorporation of oil-loving silicone elastomers easy into water-based formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Melaleuca Leucadendron Cajuputi Leaf Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from a tree that belongs to the same family as more skincare-famous Melaleuca Alternifolia, aka Tea Tree . The main component of the Cajeput Oil is 1,8-Cineole (about 65%), that has antiviral, antimicrobial as well as penetration enhancer abilities. On the con side, topical use of 1,8-Cineole has local irritant properties and can induce edema so the pros might not worth the cons especially if your skin is sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Leptospermum Scoparium Branch/​Leaf Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from the Manuka tree native to New Zealand. It is distantly related to the Australian Tea Tree Oil , although their chemical composition is very different. The main antibacterial active in tea tree oil is terpinen-4- ol (40%), while manuka's main actives are so-called cyclic triketones, such as Leptospermone, Iso-leptospermone, and Flavesone (20-30%). Both oils are antibacterial and antifungal but in different ways. While tea tree oil is a pretty well established anti-acne ingredient, manuka has more of a \"might be useful\" status for problem skin. Its strong suit is treating fungal infections such as athlete's foot, nail bed infections or foot odor. Other than that, manuka can help to relax muscles (useful for treating muscle and joint pain) and also has some antioxidant activity."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sorbitan Caprylate",
    "description": "A handy multi-functional helper ingredient that helps water and oil to mix (aka emulsifier ), helps to thicken up a formula and boosts the effectiveness of traditional preservatives ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "No Title",
    "description": "The trade name for a peptide complex that is claimed to \"boost the dermal-epidermal junction\" (DEJ) and thus result in firmer and younger looking skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hesperidin",
    "description": "Hesperidin is an active compound coming from the peel and membranes of citrus fruits. It is a flavonoid with small but promising studies showing antiinflammatory, antioxidant, skin-brightening and skin barrier repairing activities."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methyl Glucose Sesquistearate",
    "description": "A mild, corn-sugar derived, oil-loving emulsifier that helps oil and water to mix nicely together . It is safe for sensitive skin or eye-care formulations and gives a light, satiny after-feel. It is often used together with its water-loving buddy Peg-20 Methyl Glucose Sesquistearate ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hexyl Laurate",
    "description": "A fast spreading emollient ester (hexyl alcohol + lauric acid) that's used in water in oil emulsions or in water-free formulas. It gives a light skin feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Snail Egg Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the eggs of the garden snail, or Cornu aspersum. When it comes to snails and cosmetics, the snail slime is a pretty common ingredient that does have nice repair and hydration properties.  As for the eggs extract, a study from 2015 examined it in vitro (in the lab, not on real people!) and found promising skin regenerative properties . More specifically, snail eggs extract seem to promote the production of extracellular matrix components (fibronectin, collagen 1 and MMPs) and it also seems to improve the cell survival after UVB irradiation. The results from the study are promising but do not forget that it's in-vitro so it may or may not apply when we slather snail eggs extract on our face."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polygonum Aviculare Extract",
    "description": "A flavonoid-rich plant extract coming from knotgrass that is claimed to protect the skin from both UV and Infrared damage .  By now it's pretty well-known that UV-light is the number one external skin-aging factor, however, *sigh* it looks like UV is not the only kind of light that causes bad things to happen to the skin. Infrared light (760 nm to 1 mm) is the spectral band above visible light and there is some research concluding that it can accelerate skin aging via multiple mechanisms, one of them being the stimulation of the production of evil collagen-destroying enzymes called matrix metalloproteinases (MMP). Therefore, protecting the skin from infrared light is probably a meaningful thing to do even though there are currently no proven ways to do so. As for Knotgrass Extract, we only have the manufacturer's claim that says it can inhibit Cathepsin G, an enzyme involved in photoaging and thus modulating the origin of sun and infrared induced MMP production. The manufacturer also did in-vivo tests to show that a 2% Elix-IR lotion, used twice a day for 28 days can increase skin firmness (by 11.9%) and elasticity (by 4.8%) and visibly reduce the appearance of wrinkles (by 20%) and smoothes the surface of the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cocamide MEA",
    "description": "A cleansing agent whose main thing is adding viscosity and foam to cleansing formulas . Chemically speaking, it is the little sister of Cocamide DEA and has similar properties to that guy. However, being a mono ethanolamine instead of di ethanolamine has the advantage that the nitrosamine-concern does not apply for Cocamide MEA."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetearyl Nonanoate",
    "description": "A waxy solid material (the ester of nonanoic acid and cetearyl alcohol) that makes your skin nice and smooth, aka an emollient . It is also claimed to give extra hydration to the skin and give formulas velvety and silky feeling. It is solid at room temperature but melts on contact with the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Xanthophyll",
    "description": "A fat-soluble carotenoid pigment that can be found in dark green vegetables such as spinach, cabbage or broccoli, as well as in colorful vegetables and fruits such as corn, oranges, or peaches. It has significant antioxidant properties when taken orally or applied topically. According to the manufacturer's claims , Lutein is much more than just a simple antioxidant. It also increases skin hydration and elasticity and absorbs potentially harmful blue light (the one at 400-500 nm also called high energy visible light, aka HEV light). Whether HEV light is bad for the skin or not remains to be seen , but Lutein, being an awesome antioxidant, is a nice addition to any cosmetic product even if HEV-protection turns out to be a fad."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Trifluoroacetyl Tripeptide-2",
    "description": "A 3 amino-acid peptide that works by inhibiting the production of progerin, a cell-aging accelerator protein.  The manufacturer claims that Trifluoroacetyl Tripeptide-2 can bring back cell activity to a 20-year-old young cell level and the ingredient can nicely increase skin elasticity, firmness and reduce skin-sagging . In their in-vivo (made on real people) tests, they found that 2%  Progeline cream can lift the sagging jaw-line by up to 10% in 56 days and improve skin elasticity and firmness by about 20% in 28 days."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 75470",
    "description": "Carmine is a natural pigment that gives a bright, strawberry red shade . It counts as a special snowflake as it is the only organic pink/red colorant permitted for use around the eye area in the US. Outside of the US though, it is not that often used, as unlike most other colorants (that tend to be synthetic or if natural, plant-derived), Carmine is animal-derived and comes from an insect called Coccus cacti . This makes it both very expensive and excludes it from animal-friendly, vegan cosmetic products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acrylates/​C12-22 Alkyl Methacrylate Copolymer",
    "description": "Acrylates/C12-22 Alkyl Methacrylate Copolymer is a big molecule created from repeating subunits (aka polymer) used as a film-former . It is great at improving the water and wear resistance of sunscreens and makeup products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Collagen",
    "description": "The big and important protein molecule that usually comes from animal skin such as fish or bovine. The gist of the \"collagen in topical skincare\" subject is to know that collagen in a jar has nothing to do with wrinkles but everything to do with skin hydration . We have a shiny explanation about this at soluble collagen, so click here to read more >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Onsen-Sui",
    "description": "Hot spring water from Japan. It's claimed to have some anti-inflammatory and vasodilative effect ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methyl Gluceth-10",
    "description": "A pale yellow, corn-derived liquid that works as a humectant ingredient helping the skin to cling onto water. It has a smooth, silky feel and can reduce the tackiness of other humectants."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Stearyl Heptanoate",
    "description": "A solid emollient that melts at skin temperature and gives a silky but non-oily skin-feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Phenoxyethyl Caprylate",
    "description": "An almost water light emollient liquid that works especially great in sunscreen formulas . It gives a pleasant non-oily and non-tacky skin-feel, helps to solubilize chemical UV filters, and has a slight SPF boosting effect."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lactobacillus Ferment Lysate Filtrate",
    "description": "Lactobacillus Ferment Lysate Filtrate is a probiotic ingredient with soothing and maybe some anti-aging properties. It is produced by promoting Lactobacillus bulgaricus cells to secrete stress response elements. The secretion is then isolated and extracted from the live bacteria cell and voila, Lactobacillus Ferment Lysate Filtrate. As for what it does in a cosmetic product, the manufacturer did several in-vitro (made in tubes) and one in-vivo (made on people) study. The in-vitro studies found plenty of good things:  Lactobacillus Ferment Lysate Filtrate promoted oxygen uptake, collagen production, and ATP (the energy molecule in our body) synthesis in test tubes , however, these things might or might not happen when we smear it onto our faces. The only in-vivo, aka made on people study shows that our probiotic guy has some nice soothing and anti-irritant props . Though it was done only with 5 people,  5% of Lactobacillus Ferment Lysate Filtrate showed a 47% reduction in redness."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Oleth-3 Phosphate",
    "description": "A partly water, partly oil soluble molecule created by the attachment of (ethoxylated) oleyl alcohol (oil-soluble part) and phosphoric acid (water-soluble part). It works as an emulsifier helping water and oil to mix and as a dispersing agent helping insoluble solid particles (such as mineral UV filters or pigments) to be evenly dispersed in cosmetic formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Poloxamer 407",
    "description": "A synthetic big copolymer molecule that is used mainly as a solubilizer (make small amounts of oil-loving things soluble in water-based formulas) and gelling agent . In general, poloxamers are interesting big molecules composed of three blocks: the middle block is an oil-loving part (from propylene oxide units, if you're into chemistry), while the left and right blocks are two water-loving parts (from ethylene oxide units). This means that poloxamers are partly water and partly oil soluble and thus they are surface active agents acting as emulsifiers and/or cleansers . The size of both the oil and water-soluble part can vary, and the numbers in the name of the molecule refer to both the overall size of the whole molecule and to the ratio of the water-soluble part. This particular guy, Poloxamer 407, is a big one with significant water-soluble part (70%) hence it works as a solubilizer to make small amounts of oil-loving ingredients (such as essential oils) soluble in water-based formulas. It is also the best gelling and body giving agent out of the poloxamers commonly used in cosmetic products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Silica Silylate",
    "description": "A handy white powder that likes to absorb oily things. It has great oil and sebum absorption (aka mattifying) abilities and can also act as a thickening agent in the oil phase of a formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 77163",
    "description": "Bismuth Oxychloride has been around since the 1950s and it was one of the first synthetic materials to give a pearl-like effect in cosmetic products. It is a white powder with a fabulous sheen and a nice skin feel and it is still very popular in decorative cosmetics. It has one major drawback: it is sensitive to light. Upon prolonged UV exposure, it can lose its sheen and become gray."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acetyl Tetrapeptide-2",
    "description": "A four amino acid peptide that is claimed to mimic the youth hormone called thymopoietin. It works by compensating the loss of thymic factors that come with age and is thought to stimulate the skin immune defenses and to help the skin regenerate ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglutamic Acid",
    "description": "A natural high-molecular weight amino acid polymer (big molecule from repeated subunits) that is claimed to have awesome, better than IT-moisturizer HA , skin hydrating properties . It is a film-forming polymer that improves both the moisture binding and retention properties of the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cocamide DEA",
    "description": "A cleansing agent whose main thing is being a very good team player next to other (anionic) cleaning agents and working as an excellent foam booster and viscosity builder . The downside of Cocamide DEA is that it may contain residual content of Diethanolamine, a secondary amine known to be a potential source of harmful nitrosamines. But do not panic, Cocamide DEA is considered safe as used in cosmetics, still, the cosmetic industry is actively looking at alternatives and it is used less and less often."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Benzoyl Peroxide",
    "description": "The gold standard topical ingredient in treating acne . There is no miracle cure for acne (we do really wish for one, *sigh*), but Benzoyl Peroxide (BP) is probably the closest thing we have. But, as usual, big effects come with big side effects, so we think BP is best used as a last resort (at least, in the topical treatment field). The good thing about BP is that it is amazingly effective against inflammatory-type acne . Not so much against blackheads or whiteheads, but against acne that is caused by the evil bacteria called Propionibacterium acnes (and that is most types of acne).  Apart from being antibacterial , it is also anti-inflammatory , keratolytic and wound-healing , all of which are properties that make it so darn effective against spots. Another big pro of BP is that there is no bacterial resistance to it, meaning if it works once it will continue to work. Antibiotics are also a common way to treat acne, but antibiotic-resistant P. acnes are increasing worldwide. BP will probably help you even if antibiotics have stopped working, and the two are also often combined for a more complex acne therapy. Btw, BP plays nice not only with antibiotics but also with retinoids . The side-effects part? BP works its antibacterial magic by being a powerful oxidizing agent, meaning it is a pro-oxidant. As in the opposite of an antioxidant . BP literally generates evil ROS (reactive oxygen species) in the skin that kills P. acnes but also harms the surrounding skin cells. Ongoing BP-use ages your skin, which is why, we say, use it as a last resort. If you do use BP, please also use a good sunscreen and a good antioxidant serum to apologise to your skin (btw, these things are useful in any case). Use the BP treatment at night and the antioxidant serum in the morning so that they do not cancel each other out. Another side effect of BP is that it can be very skin drying . BP is an example where more is not better . In fact, it is equally effective at concentrations of 2.5, 5.0 and 10%, but the higher the concentration the more irritating and drying side effects occur. So using BP at 2.5% percent is the ideal amount . Another side effect which is good to know is that BP can bleach bedsheets and clothes. Be careful with your expensive satin bedsheets. Overall , Benzoyl Peroxide is a uniquely effective topical acne treatment, but it comes at a price. Use it as a last resort and for good measure (and with plenty of moisturizers, sunscreen, and antioxidant serum)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isocetyl Stearate",
    "description": "A clear pale yellow oily liquid (an ester) that makes your skin feel nice and smooth, aka emollient . It has a rich, but non-greasy skin-feel , and can provide a mild feel to the products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG/​PPG-17/​6 Copolymer",
    "description": "A water-loving emollient and humectant that gives a nice skin feel and slip to the product. It works well with facial toners."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Disodium Uridine Phosphate",
    "description": "Disodium Uridine Phosphate is a nucleotide (the building blocks of DNA and RNA) precursor that's claimed to support DNA repair in the cell , in particular, the process of nucleotide excision repair. If you are wondering what the heck this means, let's back up: DNA is the super important big molecule in all our cells that serves as the recipe or template from which everything inside us is built . It is super important to have a flawless DNA as a messed up template will result in messed up biochemical molecules and all kinds of diseases. Changes to DNA can happen just spontaneously (luckily super rare) or due to some external thing, such as UV light . Because a flawless DNA is so important, the body has repair mechanisms that can fix most of these changes. Due to UV light,  sometimes faulty lesions (called pyrimidine dimer ) appear on the DNA strand and that can be fixed by nucleotide excision repair , where DNA repair enzymes cut out the faulty part, create the new, correct fragment and put it back in. So our guy, Disodium Uridine Phosphate might be able to help with this super useful repair process, though the manufacturer data we have seen examined only the whole \"Celligent\" complex that also has other antioxidants in it . The whole complex was found in-vivo (with 20 volunteers) to reduces erythema (redness) and promote the regeneration of skin damaged by UV irradiation but it's hard to know what specifically Disodium Uridine Phosphate contributed."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Extract",
    "description": "When it comes to Tea Tree, the essential oil is the one that steals the show with its well-documented antimicrobial and anti-acne effects. The extract is not very well defined, and it probably contains the active components of the oil in much-reduced concentrations. Manufacturers still mention soothing, antimicrobial, purifying and antiseptic properties for the tea tree extract."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acetyl Dipeptide-1 Cetyl Ester",
    "description": "A soothing dipeptide (tyrosine + arginine) based molecule that functions as a \" messenger of tranquility and muscle relaxation \". It works via stimulating the skin nerve cells to release met-enkephalin , which is an opioid (i.e. relaxing, pain-relieving) messenger molecule. This means that Acetyl Dipeptide-1 Cetyl Ester can \"signal\" our skin cells to \"relax\" and it can instantly decrease skin irritations coming from heat, chemical stinging or mechanical stresses. It is also claimed to be able to prevent the onset of wrinkles and expression lines thanks to its muscle relaxation properties. Regarding the research, we could find one study that compared the calming effects of our guy with the soothing molecule called 4-T-Butylcyclohexanol . They irritated the skin with Capsaicin (the active in chili peppers) and examined how the test products relieved the burning/stinging sensation. They found that both molecules worked, but 4-t-Butylcyclohexanol worked somewhat better."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isopropyl Lauroyl Sarcosinate",
    "description": "A colorless to light yellow oily fluid that works as an emollient (makes your skin nice and smooth) and a solvent for poorly soluble materials, such as sunscreen agents. It also has a light touch, low odor, and good spreadability. It is derived from the amino acid sarcosine and is biodegradable."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Aronia Melanocarpa Fruit Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the dark colored berry called black chokeberry . It looks similar to the blueberry but is even darker and the berries do not taste nice and yummy but are rather sour. It's mainly used for juice, jam, and wine production but not as a fruity snack. As for skincare and the black chokeberry, we have good news: the berries are loaded with stuff good-for-the-skin including  high amounts of antioxidant polyphenols (mainly anthocyanins), some astringent tannins , hydrating sugar compounds as well as some minerals (relatively high contents of potassium and zinc, and some quantities of Na, Ca, Mg, and Fe) and nice vitamins (vitamins B1, B2, B6, and C). Overall, Aronia Melanocarpa is a potent antioxidant berry that's nice to spot on the ingredient list."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Avena Sativa Kernel Flour",
    "description": "A finely powdered form of Oat Extract that has the same skin soothing, skin protecting and antioxidant benefits we have written about at Avena Sativa Kernel Extract . It is loaded with skin-goodies such as anti-inflammatory agent beta-glucan , skin nourishing lipids, and moisturizing carbohydrates. A real goodie for dry, irritated, inflamed or eczema-prone skin ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Potassium Cocoyl Glycinate",
    "description": "An amino-acid based cleansing agent that is described as extremely mild and having outstanding foamability. It can also reduce the harshness and leftover of stronger surfactants such as SLS or fatty acid soaps."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Acrylates Crosspolymer-2",
    "description": "A spherical powder that holds more than 20 times its dry weight in water. Sodium Acrylates Crosspolymer-2 gives formulas a unique gel-to-water-to-powder transformation. It also has a blurring effect on lines & wrinkles."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tetrapeptide-30",
    "description": "A four amino acid peptide (Proline – Lysine – Glutamic Acid – Lysine; PKEK) whose main magic power is to fade hyperpigmentation (aka age spots) and even out the skin tone . According to its German manufacturer , Tetrapeptide-30 has a nice anti-inflammatory function that leads to a dual action in hindering the pigmentation process. It acts as a tyrosinase inhibitor (the famous enzyme needed to create melanin), and it also blocks the transfer of the melanin up into the top layers of the skin. The manufacturer has done several clinical studies to back up its claims and examined what Tetrapeptide-30 is doing on Caucasian, Asian as well as on ethnic skin. The results confirmed skin-brightening, reduction of age spots, reduction of skin redness and even some reduction of acne lesions. In the reduction of age spots, the peptide showed some synergistic effects with the nice vitamin-C derivative, called SAP ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Diethylhexyl Butamido Triazone",
    "description": "A chemical sunscreen agent that's very oil soluble and requires relatively low concentrations to achieve high SPF values (it gives an SPF 12.5 at the max allowed concentration of 10%). It protects in the UVB and UVA II range (but not in UVA I) with a peak protection at 310 nm. It's particularly suitable for water-repellent and water-resistant formulations. Regarding photostability, Diethylhexyl Butamido Triazone is super photostable . It looses 10% of its SPF protection abilities only in 25 (!!) hours when 2 hours counts already as \"photostable\" in the world of chemical sunscreens. Btw, it is not a FDA-approved sunscreen agent, so you will not find it in sunscreens coming from the US. It's allowed up to 10% in Europe and up to 5% in Japan."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acacia Decurrens Flower Wax",
    "description": "The flower wax coming from Mimosa that has nice skin protecting and film-forming properties. It also has a nice, sweet smell well known to perfumers. Mimosa wax often comes to the formula together with sunflower and jojoba waxes as the three of them is trade named Acticire and form a natural texture agent that works both as an emollient bringing softness to the formula as well as an active ingredient with skin-repairing , protecting, and moisturizing properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglycerin-3",
    "description": "Three glycerin molecules attached together. It is a humectant and moisturizer ingredient just like glycerin, but the larger molecular structure penetrates slower into the skin and gives milder, longer lasting moisture."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Raspberry Ketone",
    "description": "It is the main aroma compound of red raspberries and has a sweet, floral, berry or jam-like raspberry scent. It's used to make cosmetic products smell nice. The molecule used in cosmetics is created synthetically, as the natural one costs a fortune (20 000 $/kg, wow, according to Wikipedia )."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Olive Oil Glycereth-8 Esters",
    "description": "An olive oil derived ingredient modified to be water-dispersible while also keeping the original properties of olive oil. While being an emollient , it also has a very gentle cleansing action and can be used as a co-emulsifier and enhancer in cleansing products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Helianthus Annuus Seed Wax",
    "description": "A hard wax coming from sunflower that has a high melting point and gives excellent thermal stability to the formulas. Similar to other waxes, it is used to stabilize products and give body to them , or to keep stick type formulas, such as lip balms, solid."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "SH-Polypeptide-1",
    "description": "Sh-Polypeptide-1 is a cell signaling protein also called Basic Fibroblast Growth Factor and is twin sister to Acidic Fibroblast Growth Factor . We can write here pretty much the same things as we did on aFGF: it is a mitogenic (= stimulates cell proliferation) ingredient that stimulates fibroblast cell growth and proliferation . According to manufacturer info, it also stimulates the synthesis of collagen and other extracellular-matrix (the gooey stuff between cells) components. Growth Factors and skincare is a big, complicated and controversial topic, so if you wanna know more, we have a more detailed explanation on Epidermal Growth Factor, the most common one used in skincare ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 77288",
    "description": "An inorganic (as in no carbon in its molecule, it is Cr2O3) pigment that gives dull olive green shades . It is not permitted in lip products in the US."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Triethoxysilylethyl Polydimethylsiloxyethyl Hexyl Dimethicone",
    "description": "A silicone fluid used mainly to treat insoluble powders (such as mineral sunscreen agents or pigments) so that they are easily and evenly dispersable both in the formula and on the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "SH-Polypeptide-9",
    "description": "Sh-Polypeptide-9 is a cell signaling protein also called Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor. As its name suggests, its main function is to stimulate the formation of blood vessels. As to what it does in cosmetic products, we found manufacturers info claiming that it plays a role in supplying fibroblast cells (VIP skin cells that make collagen) with nutrients, in the growth and migration of cells and in wound healing . It usually comes to the formula as part of a Growth Factor mix trade named BIO-Placenta , that combines EGF , IGF-1 , FGF1 , FGF2 and this guy to form a synergistic growth factor cocktail . BIO Placenta is claimed to do pretty much everything you would want from an anti-aging active including anti-wrinkle, skin rejuvenation, elasticity enhancement, moisturizing and cell vitalization properties. This all sounds great and Growth Factors are for sure potent cell signaling molecules, but the use of them in cosmetic products is somewhat controversial , so if you are new to the topic, read our explanation at EGF to get a (hopefully) balanced view ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Barosma Betulina Leaf Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from Buchu, a South-African medicinal plant traditionally used to treat urinary tract infections. As for skincare, the main active component of Buchu leaves is a flavonoid called diosmin that can act as an APN (aminopeptidase N) inhibitor. APN is an enzyme that plays some role in the sebocyte (the skin cells that create sebum) differentiation and sebum generation process and inhibiting it means less sebum produced by the skin . The manufacturer did some in-vivo tests with 20 volunteers for 28 days and found that Barosma Betulina Leaf Extract does have a  \"statistically significant\" sebum regulating effect, though do not expect miracles, the average reduction of sebum was only 13% that we think is not that much."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isoamyl p-Methoxycinnamate",
    "description": "An oil-soluble, chemical sunscreen agent that protects in the UVB (290-320 nm) range with a peak absorbance at 310 nm and with some additional protection in the UVA II (320-340nm) range. It is a newer generation UV filter that is approved up to 10% in the EU, but not (yet) available in the US due to impossible FDA regulations."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dipentaerythrityl Hexacaprylate/​Hexacaprate",
    "description": "A medium viscosity, odorless oily liquid that leaves an excellent afterfeel, with the skin feeling soft and conditioned. The feel is described by the manufacturer as slightly oily but not tacky or sticky. Dipentaerythrityl Hexacaprylate/Hexacaprate often comes to the formula mixed with two other emollients, Tridecyl Stearate , and Tridecyl Trimellitate , as the trio can match the aesthetic and textural properties of ruined-by-natural-marketers mineral oil ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lentinus Edodes Mycelium Extract",
    "description": "The fermentation broth of the nice, edible mushroom known as Shiitake . Apart from the gourmet food industry, it is also used in several industrial applications as it contains biocatalytic enzymes (such as laccase, cellulase, and ligninolytic peroxidases) useful for breaking down things both in the paper and textile industries. The latter one, the textile industry, uses Shiitake ferment to break down dyes in waste streams in an environmentally friendly way and this gave the skincare industry an idea: if Shiitake ferment can break down synthetic pigments, it might be able to do that to natural pigment, i.e: melanin . Based on the in-vitro (in a test-tube) and in-vivo tests by the manufacturer , the idea seems to work. On a panel of ten volunteers, 2% Shiitake Ferment was compared to nothing, to 0.05% Glabridin (the powerful active ingredient in licorice root ) and to 2% Kojic acid. The Shiitake formula came out on top. It lightened UVB-treated skin by 50% after 28 days (just for comparison, untreated skin lightened by 30%). Overall , Shitakee ferment is an interesting new approach to skin-brightening , so if you suffer from extra pigmentation, it might be something to experiment with."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Whey Protein",
    "description": "Protein fragments, aka peptides and growth factors derived from milk (whey). It is claimed to boost the production of important extracellular matrix components (the gooey stuff between the skin cells) such as hyaluronic acid, collagen I and fibronectin. The in-vivo (made on people) tests showed reduced wrinkles and improved firmness within two weeks by using 0.5% of Whey Protein."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "SH-Oligopeptide-2",
    "description": "Sh-Oligopeptide-2 is also called Insulin-like growth factor 1 and it belongs to the same group of ingredients (Growth Factors) as its better-known sister, Epidermal Growth Factor or Sh-Oligopeptide-1 . This guy consists of 70 amino acids and, similar to EGF, it is also claimed to stimulate cell proliferation and wound healing . There is also a study that indicates EGF and IGF1 work in synergy to promote keratinocyte (skin cell) proliferation. The topic of Growth Factors in skincare is complex and controversial . If you are new to it, read our shiny explanation on EGF to get a (hopefully) balanced impression about the pros and cons."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "4-Methylbenzylidene Camphor",
    "description": "4-Methylbenzylidene Camphor is a chemical sunscreen agent that protects in the UVB range (290-320 nm) with a peak absorbance at 301 nm. It is an oil-soluble powder that is slightly photo-unstable (it takes 65 minutes to lose 10% of its protecting power and 345 minutes to lose half of it), but it can still help to stabilize the famously unstable UVA filter, avobenzone . Regarding its safety, we do not have the best news. Two possible concerns are that it absorbs into the body and might have some estrogenic activity there. But do not panic, the latter one was only shown in rats and is probably not the case in humans. Still, this is a UV filter that is currently being phased out of use. It is not approved in the US and Japan, and the EU also banned it starting in 2026 (however it is approved in Australia up to 4%)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tripeptide-29",
    "description": "A small, three-amino acid peptide (Glycine-Proline-Hydroxyproline) found naturally in our collagen structure . The theory behind Tripeptide-29 is the following: Collagen is a long sequence of amino acids and breaking it down produces short amino acid sequences, aka peptides. These peptides \"signal\" to the skin that collagen was lost and that new collagen should be produced. So putting collagen-fragment-identical peptides on the skin might trick it into thinking that new collagen is needed . The unique thing about Tripeptide-29 is that it is not produced by traditional methods such as chemically chopping up collagen as it gives lots of random peptides, but it is produced via modern peptide synthesis (from non-animal and non-GMO sources) that gives it exceptional purity . So Tripeptide-29 is available as a pure powder, unlike most peptides that are available as diluted solutions, which makes it possible to use it in much higher concentrations . This sounds great but there is a catch : the efficacy data from the manufacturer contains only two tests, both in-vitro, aka done in test tubes, not on real people. Based on the lab test, 3% Tripeptide-29 can increase collagen type I synthesis by 400% after 48 hours. However, if anything happens when Tripeptide-29 is applied on real human skin is a good question with no answer (at least we could not find one). Overall, the theory is nice, but the proof is missing. If you are into peptides and experimenting, this sure sounds interesting but if you like the tried and true this one is not for you."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-10 Behenate/​Eicosadioate",
    "description": "A pale yellow, waxy solid (chemically an ester of decaglycerin and a blend of behenic and eicosadioic acids) that works as an alcohol gelling agent and as a t hickener and stabilizer for oil-in-water preparations."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PEG-12 Glyceryl Dimyristate",
    "description": "A type of lipid that is used in liposome technology. It has a special chemical structure (a water-loving PEG head with two oil-loving tails) that allows forming thermodynamically stable liposomes . This means when Peg-12 Glyceryl Dimyristate is mixed with water it forms tiny bilayered circles (with an active ingredient in the middle of it) spontaneously. This is useful both for stabilizing unstable ingredients (such as pure Vitamin C) as well as for solubilizing difficult ingredients (such as cholesterol)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethylhexyl Benzoate",
    "description": "Ethylhexyl Benzoate is a clear, almost colorless, oily liquid with a light and dry skin feel . But it is not only a nice and light emollient but also an excellent solubilizer for hard-to-dissolve sunscreen agents."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Copper Chlorophyll",
    "description": "A modified version of the oil-soluble, natural colorant, Chlorophyll that gives blue/green shades . Compared to Chlorophyll, Copper Chlorophyll has improved stability and brightness."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cocos Nucifera Shell Powder",
    "description": "The powder of the finely ground shells of the Coconut. It comes in different sizes and is used as a scrub ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ornithine",
    "description": "Ornithine is an amino acid that is the active ingredient in the skin-plumping active trade named Adipofill'In. According to the manufacturer , Adipofill'In is able to increase fatty tissue volume by activating the transcription factor called HIF-1α and thus it has a lipofilling -like effect through a non-invasive method. It is supposed to be an especially useful active for deep wrinkles, such as the nasolabial fold (the wrinkle between the nose and mouth). In their in-vivo test made with 20 volunteers using 2% Adipofill'In cream twice a day for 60 days, the manufacturer measured up to 37.6% reduction of wrinkle depth and up to 27.5% reduction of skin roughness."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isopentyldiol",
    "description": "A water-soluble, colorless, odorless humectant liquid that makes your skin nice and smooth (aka emollient) and gives a dry, non-tacky skin feel. It also has great instant and some longer-lasting moisturizing effect and works in synergy with fellow moisturizer, sorbitol ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Methyl Oleoyl Taurate",
    "description": "A sulfate-free, mild cleansing agent that is used next to other cleansing agents (aka co-surfactant) mainly as a foam booster and viscosity builder ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydroxypropyl Bispalmitamide MEA",
    "description": "A bio - mimetic ceramide molecule that is claimed to be similarly effective as ceramide 3 at moisturizing the skin and helping the barrier function. We have more about ceramides here . The advantages of Hydroxypropyl Bispalmitamide MEA are a lower melting point and hence easier formulation and better price point than real ceramides."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hamamelis Virginiana Bark/​Leaf/​Twig Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from witch hazel that has astringent, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and anti-bacterial properties. We have written in way more details about Hamamelis Virginiana Extract here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Unshiu Peel Extract",
    "description": "Out of the more than 900 Citrus species known today, Citrus Unshiu is a seedless, easy to peel tangerine coming from the Japanese town Satsuma. The peel extract used in cosmetics is mainly created from the \"press-cake\", the by-product of the juice industry and as it turns out, what's waste to one industry is a useful ingredient to another. In cosmetics, the main thing of the Citrus Unshiu Peel Extract is being a skin-brightening or whitening agent . In-vitro (made in test tubes) and animal studies both show promising results for inhibiting tyrosinase, the famous enzyme regulating melanin production. It also contains antioxidant components such as carotenoids, coumarins,  limonoids, and flavonoids that might be useful for the skin to protect itself from UV caused damages. The downside of citrus peel extracts (that prevents our goodie rating) is that they usually contain some amount of essential oil components, though the amount is probably way too low to worry about unless you're super-duper sensitive."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ceresin",
    "description": "A hydrocarbon wax produced by the purification of another hydrocarbon wax , ozokerite . Similar to ozokerite, it is mostly used in stick type products to keep them nice and solid ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Water",
    "description": "The much-much diluted version of the famous Tea Tree Essential Oil , the so-called hydrosol that is created as a by-product of steam-distillation used for producing essential oils. In general, hydrosols contain the same components as their big sister essential oil but in way-reduced concentrations. We have seen a specification saying 99% of the tea tree water is water, and about 1% consists of very small amounts of the dissolved essential oil and the water-soluble parts of the tea tree leaves. So tea tree water might have some soothing, antibacterial and anti-acne properties but much less strong than the essential oil ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetyl Lactate",
    "description": "Cetyl Lactate is a multipurpose emollient that gives the formula a nice slip and makes your skin silky and smooth. It is also claimed to reduce tackiness and greasiness in the formulation."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Lauryl Methacrylate/​Sodium Methacrylate Crosspolymer",
    "description": "A synthetic copolymer (big molecule from repeated subunits) that is used as a slip and surface modifier . It is claimed to give sunscreen formulas long-lasting, lightweight and non-sticky properties."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acacia Decurrens/​Jojoba/​ Sunflower Seed Wax Polyglyceryl-3 Esters",
    "description": "A 100% plant-based moisturizing and texturizing agent that is based on the transesterification of Sunflower, Jojoba, and Mimosa waxes. The resulting material is a soft, smooth butter halfway between liquid emollients and solid butters. It has similar emollient and moisturizing properties to lanolin , however, it is much more compatible with water in oil emulsions. 5% of the wax ester makes it possible to include up to 15% water into traditionally water-free formulas such as lip balms or massage oils."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyamide-8",
    "description": "A so-called organogellant (a gelling agent that likes organic compounds such as oils) that helps to increase the viscosity of the oils phase in the formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Terephthalylidene Dicamphor Sulfonic Acid",
    "description": "A L'Oréal-group exclusive sunscreen agent commonly called Mexoryl SX. As opposed to most sunscreen agents, it is water soluble and protects in the UVA range with a peak absorbance at 345 nm."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Retinyl Retinoate",
    "description": "Retinyl Retinoate (RR) is a less well known but super interesting member of the retinoids (vitamin A derivatives), aka the \"royal family of skincare\".  Unless you live under a skincare-news-shielding rock, you must have heard about tretinoin , the FDA-approved anti-aging superstar, and retinol , the most common OTC version of tretinoin. You can read more about whos-who in the retinoid family here . Enter Retinyl Retinoate, a molecule that is created by attaching retinol to retinoic acid . The attachment makes the molecule more stable (pure retinol is unstable and hard to formulate) as well as more active . If you read our shiny description about retinol you will know that it is not active and has to be converted by our metabolic machinery to become retinoic acid, the biologically active molecule. The conversion is not very effective and takes two steps. Retinyl Retinoate also has to be converted , but in the first step , our cells break up the molecule to become retinoic acid (the active) and retinol , meaning that it becomes active both after the first conversion step as well as later on once retinol is further converted. The Korean research group, who invented the molecule, did several studies published in well-respected journals to prove that Retinyl Retinoate has better anti-aging activity than retinol . In marketing materials, RR is often touted to be 8 times as active as retinol, but as far as research goes we can cite that  \" the biological activity of retinyl retinoate was in between the properties of retinol and retinoic acid. Retinyl retinoate showed higher biological activity than that of retinol, such as RAR activity and collagen synthesis. Also, retinyl retinoate showed a similar side-effect to that of retinol, and not retinoic acid .\" As for in-vivo, aka done on real people studies, there is one from 2010 that compares 0.06% Retinyl Retinoate to placebo and to 0.075% retinol. The conclusion of this study was that 0.06% RR is \"significantly\" more effective than placebo or retinol , and RR also had a faster-acting effect. Another study (in test tubes + mouse skin) concluded that RR increases the Hyaluronic acid production more than other retinoids and is also less of an irritant . RR shows promise for treating acne . In an 8 week, double-blind clinical study, 0.05% retinyl retinoate \"showed a significant decrease in both inflammatory and non-inflammatory lesions, and in sebum amount\". It even had some activity against P.acnes that makes it a promising ingredient for acne prone skin, especially when combined with other actives. Overall , we find Retinyl Retinoate a very interesting and promising member of the retinoid family. It is not as proven as good old retinol (the multiple studies on RR come from the same research guys), but it promises several advantages (more stable, more active, less irritating), so we say that if you like retinoids, RR is worth trying."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Aristotelia Chilensis Oil",
    "description": "Maqui Berries are small, dark berries , similar to better-known blackberries, that grow natively in the temperate rainforests of Chile . The fruit is touted as a \"superfruit\" rich in antioxidant anthocyanins and other phenolics. The oil is a dark green liquid that, similar to other plant oils, is loaded with unsaturated fatty acids (86%) such as nourishing oleic acid (33%) and barrier-repairing linoleic acid (46%). We could not find any other research-verified info about Maqui Oil, though some websites claim that it is rich in Vitamin E and is generally a strong antioxidant oil."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate",
    "description": "Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate is a variation of current IT moisturizer, Hyaluronic acid , where some water-loving -OH groups are replaced by amphipathic (partly water-loving and partly water-hating) acetyl groups. The modified molecule is claimed to have even better moisture retention ability than normal HA and better affinity to the skin surface. The better affinity comes from the acetyl groups that act as tiny \"anchors\" to attach the HA molecule to the skin. Staying on top of the skin better and longer means longer-lasting surface hydration and improved elasticity . It is also less sticky and more cosmetically elegant than normal HA, so no wonder the nickname of this molecule is super hyaluronic acid."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-10 Eicosanedioate/​Tetradecanedioate",
    "description": "An oily liquid (ester) that is not oil-soluble (as most other esters), but water soluble . It has nice emollient and skin moisturizing properties, and an elegant skin-feel. It can also reduce the stickiness of glycerin and oils in the formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polypropylsilsesquioxane",
    "description": "Polypropylsilsesquioxane is a silicone resin that forms a flexible, durable film on the skin. The film is resistant to wash-off and rub-off and is useful for creating long-lasting makeup products and sunscreens."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydroxymethoxyphenyl Decanone",
    "description": "A nature-identical (but synthetic) molecule that copies a phyto-active found in grains of paradise , a spice from the ginger family. It is claimed to be a 4-in-1 active with potent topical & cellular antioxidant, anti-irritant, and hyaluronic acid booster activity, however, the manufacturer did only some in-vitro and ex-vivo (as in nothing done on real people... ) tests to back up these claims."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrogen Dimethicone",
    "description": "A silicone molecule that is half-way between Dimethicone and Methicone , meaning that some of the methyl (-CH3) groups are replaced with a hydrogen atom (in Methicone half of the CH3 groups are replaced). This makes Hydrogen Dimethicone a handy pigment bonding agent used for the hydrophobization treatment of powders as the H atoms can absorb traces of water from the surface of pigments. It almost always comes stuck together with either Titanium Dioxide, Zinc Oxide or Mica. In suncare products, it binds to physical UV filters to maximize their protection while minimizing any white casts. It also has good chemical stability with no irritation. In makeup, it is often paired with Mica where it offers nice hydrophobic properties and improves skin adhesion - meaning it will make it easier for products to stay where they should be."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isocetyl Stearoyl Stearate",
    "description": "An emollient ester giving a long-lasting lubricious skin feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acetyl Tetrapeptide-3",
    "description": "A relatively new, four amino acid peptide that promises to help combat hair loss alongside red clover extract as part of the trademarked technology Capixyl . The main thing of  Acetyl Tetrapeptide-3 is to stimulate the synthesis of key Extra Cellular Matrix (aka ECM, the gooey stuff between cells that make up the framework of our skin) components in the scalp.  According to the manufacturer’s lab studies, the expression of type III collagen increased by 65% and the expression of laminins (anchoring proteins found in the ECM) was up a massive 285%, resulting in a stronger ECM bed for hair anchoring . Together with red clover extract , the duo has a synergistic action and works to combat hair loss thanks to a neat multi-faceted approach: it not only stimulates important ECM components but also inhibits the DHT-causing 5-a-reductase enzyme (DHT is the annoying hormone largely responsible for male pattern baldness) and reduces micro-inflammation around hair follicles . The manufacturer’s study over 4 months showed the total impact of Capixyl was an increased anagen (growth phase)/telogen (resting phase) ratio of +46%, resulting in significantly denser hair. All in all , Acetyl Tetrapeptide-3 is a promising ingredient in the fight against hair loss, but as the only results we could find were from the manufacturer, take these claims with a pinch of salt until more research is done."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Acrylates/​Dimethicone Copolymer",
    "description": "A polymer molecule (big molecule from repeated subunits) whose main thing is being a film-former . It is often dissolved in a volatile carrier fluid that evaporates from the skin leaving a nice, flexible film with great water, oil and abrasion resistance , oxygen permeability, and long-lasting cosmetic effect . These properties are especially useful for sun protection formulas and long-lasting foundations."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "No Title",
    "description": "A bacteria species that can ferment plant oils by producing enzymes and is used to create \"fermented oils\". The fermentation process produces various types of polysaccharides and lipids and increases the free fatty acid content of the oils. Fermented oils also tend to have quicker skin absorption, a less-greasy skin feeling and are easier to mix with water, aka emulsify. Pseudozyma Epicola in itself is not a valid INCI name, it should be part of a longer name coupled with some oils and/or plant extracts that were fermented using the bacteria. See more here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Mannose",
    "description": "Mannose is one of the many sugar molecule s out there and similar to the other ones, it works as a great humectant and moisturizer in cosmetic products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Lauryl Sulfate",
    "description": "The famous or rather infamous SLS (not to be confused with SLES ). It is a cleansing agent known for being too good at the job and potentially irritating the skin. But, on the positive side,  it can produce copious, creamy and luxurious foam compared to the more gentle and thus nowadays much more commonly used Sodium Laureth Sulfate . In fact, SLS is so good at irritating the skin that it is very commonly used in dermatological studies just for that. It is a so-called \"primary irritant\", a substance that irritates the skin in one go (without prior sensitization) but doesn't do any other big harm (such as being carcinogenic or systematically toxic - those claims are not true). Also, the formula can greatly influence the irritating potential of SLS, and mixing it with other cleaning agents makes it milder . If it's not in a cleanser, it works as an emulsifier or even as a penetration enhancer for active materials."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "C30-45 Alkyl Dimethicone",
    "description": "A silicone wax that functions as a thickening agent and also gives great lubricity and skin feel."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Retinyl Propionate",
    "description": "Retinyl Propionate (RP) is a less well-known, but pretty interesting member of the retinoids , aka the \"royal family of skincare\". You can read the who's who here but the TL;DR version is that tretinoin is the king himself (the FDA-proven anti-aging active molecule), retinol is like Prince George (two conversion steps needed to be active) and Retinyl Palmitate is like Prince Charlotte (George's little sister), 3 steps away from the throne. Similar to Retinyl Palmitate, Retinyl Propionate is also a retinol ester with retinol and propionic acid being attached together. This puts our molecule in the place of little Princess Charlotte on the family tree, quite far away from the throne.  However, not all retinol ester molecules are made equal when it comes to being transformed and being effective on the skin. As Dr. Fulton (the scientist behind both Retin-A and RP) puts it in his patent paper,  \"Other esters of vitamin A obtained from, for example, palmitic acid and acetic acid do not have the therapeutic advantages found with vitamin A propionate ..... Presumably, the [Retinyl Palmitate] molecule is so large, it is not able to transdermally reach the necessary part of the skin for activity. Similarly, vitamin A acetate is too small molecularly and therefore easily recrystallizes from any solution.....vitamin A propionate is the appropriate molecular weight and configuration to both remain in a stable solution and to be transdermally delivered to a site where it is active.\" So while the effectiveness of other retinol esters is highly questionable, Retinyl Propionate seems to be the most effective retinol ester molecule , and it \" unexpectedly provides all the benefits of vitamin A acid but minimizes the negative side effects \", at least according to Dr. Fulton, the inventor of the molecule. We know what you are thinking! This sounds great and all, but what about some proof? Some backup data not from the inventor himself?  We looked into it and found three studies working with Retinyl Propionate. In a 2007 study by Dr. Draelos, she references a 12-week, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial that compared the effectiveness of 0.15% retinol with 0.3% Retinyl Propionate . Both actives were effective in reducing the appearance of facial wrinkles and hyperpigmentation and the 0.3% RP worked a bit better. Another research that was done by Procter & Gamble combined multiple anti-aging actives including niacinamide, peptides and 0.3% of Retinyl Propionate and they compared this regimen with a 0.02% tretinoin regimen. They found that the cosmetic regimen was tolerated better, worked faster and gave comparable results. All this sounds very promising for RP, however, it is hard to know how much the other actives contributed to the positive results. Last, but not least there is a study from 1998 that tested a 0.15% Retinyl Propionate cream and after 24 weeks found no statistically significant difference between the effects of the retinyl propionate cream and the placebo preparation for any of the clinical parameters of skin photoaging. However, after 48 weeks, the 0.15% RP worked wonders for actinic keratoses , a rough, scaly patch caused by UV damage (its name contains actinic, but it is not acne, has nothing to do with it (!)). So, it seems that the minimum effective dose of Retinyl Propionate is larger than 0.15% which is not surprising given that it has to do three conversion steps to reach the active form, retinoic acid. But 0.3% RP (or more, obvs) seems to be an effective dose , and even though the proof is not as solid as it is for retinol itself, if you are looking for a more gentle alternative , or if you are in the mood for experimentation , Retinyl Propionate looks like a noteworthy alternative and the most promising option among retinol esters ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Benzophenone-5",
    "description": "Benzophenone-5 is the sodium salt brother of Benzophenone-4 , and just like that guy, this one also works mainly as a photoprotectant to extend product shelf life , or as a color-protectant for products in clear packages."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Phenylbenzimidazole Sulfonate",
    "description": "The salt form of the water-soluble chemical sunscreen , Ensulizole . What we wrote there ( UVB filter with a peak protection at 306 nm), applies here as well. In fact, the pure acid form (aka Phenylbenzimidazole Sulfonic Acid) can be incorporated into a sunscreen formula only if it is neutralized with a base (otherwise it is not water-soluble), so even if the acid form in on the ingredient list, what you have in the formula is a salt form, just like this one. You can read more here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Coptis Japonica Root Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the root of the traditional medicinal herb, Coptis Japonica or Japanese Goldthread . The plant is used traditionally in East Asia for its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and antimicrobial abilities. Other than that, there is also an abstract from the International Journal of Cosmetic Science that found Coptis Japonica Root Extract and its active component called berberine to show potent inhibition of triglyceride (aka fat) accumulation and subcutaneous preadipocytes (the cells that become later fat cells) differentiation meaning that Goldthread Extract might also be useful in slimming and anti-cellulite products ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Caffeyl Glucoside",
    "description": "The water-soluble, stabilized, and purified version of the famous antioxidant molecule, caffeic acid (caffeic acid attached to the sugar molecule, glucose), the main phyto-active of green coffee. Caffeyl Glucoside is also claimed to have a strong anti-inflammatory and photoprotective effect ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Copper Palmitoyl Heptapeptide-14",
    "description": "Copper Palmitoyl Heptapeptide-14 is the payload peptide (a short chain of amino acids) in the encapsulated copper peptide technology trade named X50 Antiaging. The delivery system (called The Cosmetic Drone) is a high-tech capsule where our peptide is wrapped in a biocompatible polymer shell (created from Lactic Acid/Glycolic Acid Copolymer, Polyvinyl Alcohol) and another peptide , which has an affinity to the fibroblast receptors, sits on the outside of the capsule and guides it to the right place in the skin. The right place in this case is the fibroblast cell (the important collagen-producing cell in the dermis), so once Copper Palmitoyl Heptapeptide-14 is there, it promotes the gene expression of both collagen and elastin . According to the 30-person in-vivo (made on real humans) test of the manufacturer, the participants experienced an average of 33% reduction in wrinkles and 19% increase in elasticity in 28 days. Thanks to the advanced delivery system, the active works at the tiniest concentration of 0.001%. Fun fact: the unit of sale for the X50 Antiaging powder is not kg as all other actives but it is g, this is how little you need from it."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Rosmarinyl Glucoside",
    "description": "The water-soluble, stabilized and bio-available version of rosmarinic acid (rosmarinic acid attached to the sugar molecule, glucose), the active super component in Rosemary . It is known for its potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. According to manufacturer's info , it not only inhibits important inflammation pathways, but it also protects important ECM (Extra Cellular Matrix - the gooey stuff between the skin cells) components, such as collagen and hyaluronic acid . Both are done by inhibiting evil enzymes that attack these important skin building blocks, such as famous collagen-destroying enzyme MMP, and HA eating enzyme hyaluronidase."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polysilicone-15",
    "description": "A silicone-based, chemical sunscreen agent that protects the skin in the UVB range (290-320 nm) with a peak absorbance at 312 nm. It is a colorless to pale yellow liquid with nice and non-shiny (at least compared to most other sunscreens) sensorial properties. It is a pretty good team player and can stabilize the famously unstable UVA filter, avobenzone and works especially well with Ensulizole to achieve high SPF protection. It is approved up to 10% as a sunscreen filter in the EU and most parts of the world, except for the United States."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Tremella Fuciformis Polysaccharide",
    "description": "A  big sugar molecule coming from the edible fruit bodies of the Silver Ear mushroom in China . Its sugar constituents include Glucuronic acid , the same guy that is one of the building blocks of IT-moisturizer Hyaluronic Acid . It is claimed to have similarly awesome water-binding capacities meaning it works as an excellent skin moisturizer and humectant . We have more info about Tremella Fuciformis here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Asiatic Acid",
    "description": "One of the biologically active components of Gotu Kola . It's a bit less prominent than its sister component, Asiaticoside , but in-vitro (made in the lab) studies show that Asiatic Acid also stimulates GAGs (glycosaminoglycans - polysaccharides that are part of the liquidy stuff between our skin cells) production as well as collagen I synthesis. English translation equals that it probably contributes to the well-established moisturizing and wound healing abilities of Gotu Kola ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Glycereth-7 Trimethyl Ether",
    "description": "A light yellow liquid ester that gives a slightly dry, silky emollience on the skin. Its unique property is that it is both water-soluble as well as castor oil soluble. This dual solubility is a rare trait that enables the addition of water into waterless formulas, such as lipsticks or balms. Glycereth-7 Trimethyl Ether is also very pH stable and dissolves salicylic acid so it can be a nice helper ingredient in alcohol-free (alcohol is a very good solvent for SA) salicylic acid formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Methyl Stearoyl Taurate",
    "description": "A mild cleansing agent that's used mainly next to other cleansing agents (co-surfactant)  to improve foam density and regulate viscosity ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Poloxamer 188",
    "description": "A synthetic big copolymer molecule that is used as a solubilizer, mild cleansing agent and foam booster or stabilizer. If you want to understand poloxamers more, we have a shiny description at Poloxamer 184 and Poloxamer 407 . This particular poloxamer, the 188 is quite similar to the 184 version, but it is more water-soluble (80% water-soluble parts) so it can act more as a solubilizer helping to dissolve oil-loving things in water-based formulas. Similar to 184, this one also works as a mild cleansing agent, but while 184 is claimed to be more effective at cleansing, the 188 is better at foaming."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Secale Cereale Seed Extract",
    "description": "As a plant extract, it is hard to know what it is exactly: it might be little exfoliant particles, or - if you are looking at the ingredient list of an anti-aging product - it is most likely a rye extract rich in arabinoxylans with possible skin smoothing and glow enhancing properties . According to manufacturer claims , their rye extract can improve the skin’s mechanical resistance and reduce the appearance of gravity wrinkles. The manufacturer did a 20-person, 56-day long study that showed an antiwrinkle effect at both the crow’s-feet and the nasolabial fold : a 13% and 23% decrease in the number of wrinkles, a 15% and 26% reduction of the total surface of wrinkles, and a 16% and 27% reduction of their length."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Bakuchiol",
    "description": "At first glance, you could think that Bakuchiol is your average plant extract . It is derived from the seeds of Psoralea Corylifolia , aka Babchi, a plant important in Indian and Chinese medicine . The molecule was first isolated in 1973 and several anti-something properties are known about it: it has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-tumor, anti-bacterial and hepatoprotective magical abilities like plenty of other Ayurvedic plant extracts. What makes Bakuchiol a special snowflake is the recent discovery that it behaves on the skin in a way very similar to well-known skincare superstar, retinol . While chemically, it has nothing to do with the vitamin-A family, aka retinoids , comparative gene expression profiling (a fancy way of saying that they compared how retinol and bakuchiol modify the way  skin cells behave and produce important skin proteins such as collagen) shows that retinol and bakuchiol regulate skin cell behavior in a similar way. To be more specific, both Bakuchiol and retinol upregulate collagen I, III and IV production and downregulate MMP, the evil collagen attacking enzyme in our skin. This means more collagen stays in our skin and we all know that more collagen equals firmer, more wrinkle-free skin .  A 12-week clinical study using a 0.5% Bakuchiol formula with 17 people using it twice a day confirmed a significant improvement in lines and wrinkles, elasticity, firmness and an overall reduction in photo-damage. Also, the test formula was very well tolerated, without any retinol-like side effects. What's more, a 2018 double-blind study with 44 people compared 0.5% Bakuchiol with 0.5% retinol cream and found that \" bakuchiol is comparable to retinol in its ability to improve photoaging and is better tolerated than retinol \". A super promising result after 12 weeks. If you are not a daredevil-type who doesn't want to stop using a super well-proven retinol for a newbie like Bakuchiol, we have good news. The two also work very nicely together and Bakuchiol can actually help to stabilize the otherwise unstable and hard to formulate retinol . And we are still not done, as Bakuchiol shows not only anti-aging properties but also nice anti-acne effects. 1% Bakuchiol seems to be very effective in itself (57% reduction in acne after 6 weeks treatment) and even better when combined with 2% salicylic acid (67% reduction in acne after 6 weeks). We like that Bakuchiol is such a good team player!  The molecule works against acne in multiple ways: It downregulates 5α-reductase (a sebum-controlling enzyme), it is antibacterial (including P. acnes), anti-inflammatory and it inhibits lipid-peroxidation, an evil oxidative process that is recently thought to be a very early trigger in the acne process. We feel that this description is becoming very long so we will just mention that Bakuchiol also seems to positively regulate hydration-related genes such as Aquaporin 3 and also shows some melanin-inhibiting properties . Overall , we think Bakuchiol is an awesome molecule with lots of promise both for anti-aging and anti-acne . But the proof compared to the well-established superstars is far from solid, so in a skincare routine, we would rather add Bakuchiol next to retinol than straight up replace it. Unless you are a gimme-the-newest-shiny-thing-under-the-sun-type."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyquaternium-37",
    "description": "A cationic polymer molecule (a big molecule with repeated subunits and a positive charge) that acts both as a film-former and conditioning ingredient as well as a thickening agent ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Myristyl Nicotinate",
    "description": "Myristyl Nicotinate (MN) might not sound familiar, but Niacinamide probably does. If it does not, click here to catch up . Our molecule is an oil-soluble derivative of skincare superstar, niacinamide that was developed to deliver nicotinic acid to the skin without causing flushing (tiny amounts of the acid form of niacinamide cause skin flushing, but otherwise, it is a skin goodie similar to nia). And research shows that Myristyl Nicotinate delivers. It is a stable and well-tolerated molecule that is known to enhance epidermal differentiation and skin barrier function . It is also a nice addition to retinoic acid therapy to reduce the side effects such as flaking and irritation."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Diethylhexyl 2,6-Naphthalate",
    "description": "An oily, emollient liquid that works as a photostabilizer and solvent in sunscreen formulas . More specifically, it helps to stabilize famous UVA filter, Avobenzone and it is also an excellent solvent for oil-soluble, solid sunscreen agents."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Methyl Diisopropyl Propionamide",
    "description": "A molecule that gives a long-lasting cooling and chilling effect to the formula. It is not derived from menthol and,  according to the manufacturer, is not allergenic."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Gelatin",
    "description": "An animal-derived gelling agent that is a close relative to Hydrolyzed Collagen . It is created from the connective tissue (bone and skin) of animals (usually cows or pigs) and helps to thicken up water-based formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Myristyl Malate Phosphonic Acid",
    "description": "Myristyl Malate Phosphonic Acid (let’s call it MMPA) is a synthetic phospholipid . You may have heard of phospholipids in your biology class, since they’re a main component in human cell membranes. Because of this, it makes sense that cosmetic companies want to try making some similar molecules for skin care - our skin is made of cells, after all! So MMPA is the main advertised component of the complex trade named Revidrate, which the manufacturer claims will act on the outer layers of the skin to promote the activity of natural moisturizing factors. This is basically to say that MMPA helps your skin hydrate itself . It is said to do this through promoting some complex pathways within your cells that help mature keratinocytes (the cells in the outer layer of the skin).  A 38-person clinical study was conducted by the company to substantiate these claims that showed promising moisturization results after 2 months of using a cream twice a day with 3% Revidrate. All in all, MMPA seems like a promising goodie and there is no reason not to try it, especially if it’s included in a formulation with other proven ingredients."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Benzotriazolyl Dodecyl P-Cresol",
    "description": "Benzotriazolyl Dodecyl P-Cresol is a broadband UV absorber used to stabilize products in transparent packaging. It protects sensitive ingredients such as colors, fragrances, or natural extracts from photooxidative degradation . The recommended usage rate is 0.01% - 0.1%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "PPG-10 Methyl Glucose Ether",
    "description": "A sugar derived liquid that works as a water-soluble emollient (makes your skin nice and smooth), fragrance fixative and humectant (helps skin to hold onto water) on the skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Disodium Phenyl Dibenzimidazole Tetrasulfonate",
    "description": "This long-named molecule is a chemical sunscreen agent that protects the skin from the UVA II rays (320-350 nm mainly) with a peak absorbance at 335 nm. Unlike most other sunscreen filters, it is not oil, but water-soluble helping formulators to create less greasy sunscreens. It also has a good safety profile with very low skin penetration and is approved up to 10% in the EU and pretty much everywhere else except for the United States (due to old and bad FDA sunscreen regulations)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Mentha Piperita Leaf Oil",
    "description": "Some variation of peppermint essential oil known for its grassy-minty smell and refreshing sensations. Its main active component is menthol , a known skin irritant. Read more here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Myristoyl Hexapeptide-16",
    "description": "A six amino acid peptide (Leu-Lys-Lys-Thr-Glu-Thr) attached to the oil-soluble fatty acid, myristic acid for better bioavailability. It is known to significantly stimulate keratin genes , i. e. it can convince the cells to produce more keratin, the super important structural protein in hair, nails and the outermost layer of the skin. Most often you will meet Myristoyl Hexapeptide-16 combined with Myristoyl Pentapeptide-17 in eyelash growth products, as the two together can visibly increase eyelash length after two weeks."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Myristoyl Pentapeptide-17",
    "description": "A five amino acid peptide (Lys-Leu-Ala-Lys-Lys) attached to the oil-soluble fatty acid, myristic acid for better bioavailability. It is known to significantly stimulate keratin genes , i. e. it can convince the cells to produce more keratin, the super important structural protein in hair, nails and the outermost layer of the skin. Most often you will meet Myristoyl Pentapeptide-17 combined with Myristoyl Hexapeptide-16 in eyelash growth products, as the two together can visibly increase eyelash length after two weeks."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Diisostearoyl Polyglyceryl-3 Dimer Dilinoleate",
    "description": "A viscous oily liquid (ester) that is known for providing extraordinarily long-lasting coverage . It is used to enhance water resistance in sunscreen formulas or to give long-wear properties to makeup items such as lipsticks or smudge-proof mascaras."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Acrylates/​C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer",
    "description": "A pre-neutralised form of super common thickener and emulsion stabilizer, Acrylates/ C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer . We have more info at Carbomer and Acrylates/​C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Human Adipose Derived Stem Cell Conditioned Media",
    "description": "If you see \"some kind of cell conditioned media\" on the ingredient list, it always means a Growth Factor Cocktail for your skin . In this case, we are talking about Adipose-Derived Stem Cells (ADSC), i.e. cells that differentiate later into fat cells.  These cells are known to secrete various growth factors that have significant wound healing and antioxidant properties . If you are new to Growth Factors , they are medium long amino acid sequences (= small proteins = big peptides) that work as a cell signaling molecules to stimulate cell growth, proliferation, healing and/or differentiation . The whole Growth Factors and skincare topic is pretty big and somewhat confusing, so if you want to dip your toes into it, we have a shiny description at Epidermal Growth Factor , the first GF that found its way into cosmetic products and also at Human Fibroblast Conditioned Media , a GF Cocktail similar to this one, but coming from different type of cells."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Propane",
    "description": "The small sister of Butane (once carbon shorter chain length alkane), Propane is also a gas used as a propellant in cosmetic products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Rutin",
    "description": "Rutin is a polyphenol flavonoid found in many plants, for example, citrus fruits. The main reason it's used in cosmetics is its high antioxidant and free radical-scavenging ability (similar to that of superstar ascorbic acid ), but also has some antibacterial nature and wound-healing properties. There is also an in-vitro (made in Petri dishes on animal cell lines) study showing potential for rutin as a skin-whitening agent and people have even tried using it to increase the UV-blocking ability of SPF agents, but with inconsistent results. Either way, its antioxidant abilities should still help protect the skin against sun damage from the UV light that isn’t blocked by SPF agents!"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Opuntia Ficus-Indica Fruit Extract",
    "description": "The extract of Prickly Pear, a cactus that’s native to Mexico. Its main unique thing is that it can reduce the neurosensory irritation caused by the application of topical products such as retinoids (slow reaction) or alpha hydroxy acids (fast reaction). We have a shiny description about Opuntia Ficus-Indica Extract here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrolyzed Placental Protein",
    "description": "A chemically chopped up version of protein coming from bovine placenta (yes, it is an animal-derived ingredient). Proteins are long amino acid chains, so when you chop them up you get peptides (short amino-acid chains) and amino acids, nice molecules that are known as the \"building blocks of life\". In general, amino acids, peptides, and proteins are moisturizing, nourishing and regenerating ingredients when you smear them on your face, so is probably Hydrolyzed Placental Protein. According to manufacturer's information , it also works as a film forming, protecting and restructuring agent . Due to its high amino acid content, it improves surface hydration and elasticity and due to its larger peptide and protein molecules, it forms a nice film on the skin that reduces trans-epidermal-water-loss (i.e. hinders water evaporating out of the top layers of the skin).  These effects help to maintain the water content of the skin cells and result in a healthy skin &  nice complexion."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "C15-19 Alkane",
    "description": "A nice-feeling, light emollient that makes the skin soft and smooth. It gives a fresh and gliding sensation with a powdery or soft after-feel depending on the exact grade used. It is a popular alternative to replace silicones. Chemically speaking, it is an alkane (stable, non-reacting hydrocarbon) that used to be produced from petrochemicals, but today's versions are typically vegetable based. It is readily biodegradable."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dilinoleic Acid/​Propanediol Copolymer",
    "description": "Dilinoleic Acid/Propanediol Copolymer is a slightly tacky, glossy emollient that is commonly used in lip products as it is soluble in lip product's favorite oil, castor oil ; it sticks well to the skin (substantive) and gives a nice glossy appearance. It also often comes to the ingredient list (especially in non-lip products) combined with Phytosteryl Sunflowerseedate and Hydrogenated Vegetable Glycerides; in this case, the trio serves as a vegetable lanolin alternative, bringing rich emollience to the formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cetylhydroxyproline Palmitamide",
    "description": "A pseudo-ceramide that is similar to Ceramide 2 in structure and activity and is claimed to be a great ingredient for a healthy skin barrier or to repair damaged skin or hair. In general, Ceramides are super important lipids in the outer layer of the skin and we have written some more about them here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 77510",
    "description": "An inorganic (as in no carbon in its molecule) pigment that has a very intense, dark blue color . It is not permitted in lip products in the US, and only the version Ferric Ammonium Ferrocyanide is permitted in the EU."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Eucalyptus Citriodora Oil",
    "description": "The essential oil coming from Eucalyptus Citriodora that has a surprisingly different chemical structure from the better known, and much more commonly used Eucalyptus Globulus essential oil . It contains hardly any eucalyptol (0.6%), but its main components are citronellal (85%) and limonene (15%) giving the oil a strong, fresh, sweet, and balsamic aroma . Its EU sensitizer total percentage is 20% , that counts as quite high so be careful with it if you have sensitive skin."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Biotinoyl Tripeptide-1",
    "description": "A three amino acid peptide where the famous collagen fragment, Tripeptide-1 , aka GHK is combined with Biotin , the well-known supplement for stronger nails and hairs. The result of the combination is Biotinoyl Tripeptide-1, a peptide claimed to be helpful for reducing hair loss and for making the eyelashes appear longer, fuller, and stronger . As for proof, the manufacturer did some in-vitro (made in test tubes) studies that show that our molecule can promote hair bulb keratinocyte proliferation and also helps optimal hair anchorage by stimulating the synthesis and organization of the adhesion molecules laminin 5 and collagen IV. This means that our peptide might help the hair to be stronger and to stay longer in its place, though these are only in vitro results that might or might not translate to real-world use. As for a clinical, made on real people study, the manufacturer did one for eyelash growth with 30 volunteers. Using a mascara with 2% of SpecPed LashLD  (trade name for the diluted, buyable version of Biotinoyl Tripeptide-1), the lashes got longer by 17% and thicker by 19% after 30 days."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethyl Menthane Carboxamide",
    "description": "A menthol derivative that gives a strong cooling effect on the skin (and in the mouth). But, unlike menthol , it is virtually nonvolatile, odorless and tasteless. It is often combined with other cooling agents such as Menthyl Lactate and/or Methyl Diisopropyl Propionamide for even more cooling to make us think that the formula is hard-working. We have also bumped into a theory about skin cooling having some \"secondary\" anti-aging benefit by increasing the calcium ions in the skin. But, the referenced research is about sensory neurons in rats and extrapolating antiaging benefits from that and the general role of calcium in the skin seems pretty far-fetched to us."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Potassium Acrylates/​C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer",
    "description": "A pre-neutralised form of super common thickener and emulsion stabilizer, Acrylates/ C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer . We have more info at Carbomer and Acrylates/​C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Jojoba Oil/​Macadamia Seed Oil Esters",
    "description": "Jojoba Oil/Macadamia Seed Oil Esters is the major component of a skin surface lipid mimetic mixture trade named L22. So what the heck is a skin surface lipid mimetic mixture? Let's start with skin surface lipids (SLSs): these are the oily substances that your skin produces (mainly the sebaceous glands, a smaller part comes from the epidermis) to keep the skin nice and moisturized. The main components are fatty acids (FAs), triglycerides, cholesterol, chole steryl esters, wax esters, and squalene. This mixture has a super important role in keeping the skin barrier healthy. So Jojoba Oil/Macadamia Seed Oil Esters is a jojoba and macadamia oil-derived ingredient that contains fatty acids, triglycerides, and wax esters. It comes to the formula with Squalene , Phytosteryl Macadamiate (botanical sourced version of cholesteryl ester) and Phytosterols (botanical version of cholesterol) in the ratios found in young, healthy adult skin. So the main skill of L22 is barrier repair and skin hydration and the manufacturer did several double-blind, vehicle-controlled studies to show it really works. It compared 3% of L22 with 3% of olive oil or 3% of caprylic/capric triglyceride alone or combined with Ceramide 2 in a vehicle. 60 minutes after the application, barrier recovery was by far the best by the L22 + Ceramide 2 (0.1%) combination , followed by L22 alone, and then by Olive + Ceramide 2 and Olive alone. Skin hydration was measured 4 hours after application and again, the L22 + Ceramide 2 combination performed the best followed by L22 alone. Another study compared 3% L22 with 3% petrolatum (the gold standard occlusive agent). After 1 hour, they performed similarly both for barrier repair and skin hydration, but after 2 weeks of use and a 1 week regression period, L22 showed significantly better results. So the bottom line is: if barrier repair is something that you are interested in, the skin surface lipids of L22 can definitely be worth a try. Even better, if the formula also contains Ceramide 2 ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Aphanizomenon Flos-Aquae Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from a rare, blue-green algae that's touted to have retinoid-like effects but without the side effect. If you do not know what retinoids are, you are seriously missing out, please click here and catch up on the topic . To be more specific about the \"retinoid-like effects\", the manufacturer found that Lanablue (the trade name of this algae) affects gene expression (a fancy way of saying how an ingredient might influence how a skin cell produces different things such as proteins) and regulates epidermal differentiation (how skin cells at the bottom of the top layer of our skin replicate) similar to good-old retinol. However, that is only in-vitro (made in test-tubes) data, that may or may not happen on real human skin. As far as clinical data goes, the manufacturer did a 21 days study with 40 volunteers and found that 3% Lanablue showed a \"clear reduction of the skin microrelief\", or to say it in another way, it made the skin smoother . Based on the data we have seen, we think that \"retinoid-like effects\" claim for this algae is an exaggeration. If you are into retinol alternatives, Bakuchiol is a more promising molecule to check out."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ci 77289",
    "description": "An inorganic (as in no carbon in its molecule, it is Cr2O3X(OH), the hydrated version of this guy ) pigment that gives blue-green shades . It is not permitted in lip products in the US."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Phytosteryl Macadamiate",
    "description": "Phytosteryl Macadamiate is the combination of phytosterol and fatty acids coming from Macadamia oil. It is a botanical version of cholesteryl esters found in skin surface lipids. It comes to the ingredient list as part of L22, a skin surface lipid mimetic whose main job is barrier repair and skin hydration ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Diisopropyl Dimer Dilinoleate",
    "description": "Diisopropyl Dimer Dilinoleate is an oil-like, emollient liquid that gives a cushiony feel to skin and make-up products. It has a good combination of rich feel, but good slip and low tack. It is also popular in lipsticks and lip glosses instead of lanolin or castor oil."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sodium Stearate",
    "description": "A very classic, old-school cleansing agent, a soap (the sodium salt of Stearic Acid ). It is known for its rich, creamy foam and being quite harsh on the skin . If it's not in a soap bar, it can also function as an emulsifier or consistency agent."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Isopropyl Cloprostenate",
    "description": "A synthetic prostaglandin analog that belongs to the same class of actives used originally on glaucoma patients. As a side effect, people noticed longer and stronger eyelashes so prostaglandin analogs made their way into eyelash growth products. Isopropyl Cloprostenate does work when it comes to eyelash growth, however, it is not without possible side-effects and is kind of a controversial ingredient . An FDA-warning letter mentions among others ocular irritation, hyperemia, iris color change, macular edema and ocular inflammation that may happen and the FDA is generally not happy about prostaglandin analogs being used in cosmetic products."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Hydrolyzed Marine Collagen",
    "description": "The chemically chopped up version of collagen coming from a marine (fish) source. It works as a moisturizer and emollient . Read more about hydrolyzed collagen here >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Citrus Unshiu Extract",
    "description": "The extract coming from the Satsuma Mandarin, an easy to peel, seedless citrus from Japan. Mainly the peel extract is used in cosmetics for its skin-brightening and antioxidant abilities. We have some more details at Citrus Unshiu Peel Extract >>"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-19",
    "description": "A Botox-mimicking peptide (kind of like the famous Argireline ) that is supposed to relax the mimic facial wrinkles such as crow's feet or thinker's wrinkles. It is obviously not as effective as real Botox, but according to the manufacturer's data , 5% of the BoNT-L peptide liquid (the diluted, sold version of the peptide) can reduce mimic wrinkles by 38% in 28 days (tested on 15 volunteers)."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Cocamidopropylamine Oxide",
    "description": "A secondary cleansing agent (co-surfactant) that's a good aid next to other (anionic) cleansing agents. It improves foam, the mildness of the formula and builds viscosity, pretty much all the things co-surfactants are used for."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Dmpa/​Isophthalic Acid/​Smdi Copolymer",
    "description": "A clear polymer (big molecule from repeated subunits) molecule that is used to coat silica beads to modify its light reflecting properties and create the illusion of a smoother skin surface and obscures imperfections. Based on the manufacturer's in-vivo (made on real people) tests , 3%-5% ChronoSphere Opticals (the trade name of the technology) makes a pretty visible difference in smoothing out fine lines and wrinkles on the face. Don't forget, this is only an instant fix that lasts until you wash your face, but pretty cool."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "N-Butyl Alcohol",
    "description": "A clear, colorless liquid with a wine-like odor. It is usually used in tiny amounts as an aromatic and flavor ingredient ."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Disiloxane",
    "description": "A very thin and very volatile (evaporates from the skin rather than absorbs into it) silicone fluid that gives silky softness and great spreadability to the formulas."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Anthocyanins",
    "description": "A water-soluble, natural colorant (a dye) that gives red&purple shades . Anthocyanins are also the dyes that give several edible fruits and berries their color such as acai, blackcurrant or raspberry."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Ethylhexyl Dimethyl PABA",
    "description": "Ethylhexyl Dimethyl PABA is a chemical sunscreen agent that protects in the UVB range (290-320 nm) with a peak absorbance at 312nm. Other than that, we struggle to write anything positive about this guy, as it is photo unstable (looses 10% efficacy in 20 mins and 50% in 85 mins), not an unfrequent allergen in sunscreens and shows some endocrine effect in animal studies. All this does not mean that it is not considered safe as used, it is (and is approved up to 8% in the EU and US and up to 3% in Japan), but we do think that there are plenty of other and better UV filters out there."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Phytosteryl Sunflowerseedate",
    "description": "There is not much information about Phytosteryl Sunflowerseedate on its own out there, but it usually comes to the formula combined with Dilinoleic Acid/​Propanediol Copolymer and Hydrogenated Vegetable Glycerides . The trio acts as a vegetable lanolin alternative , bringing rich emollience to the formula."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Polyglyceryl-3 Cetearyl Ether Olivate",
    "description": "An olive oil-derived emulsifier (helps to mix water and oil) that creates light emulsions with a velvety skin feel. The recommended usage concentration is 4-6%."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "No Title",
    "description": "No content found"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "CI 77947",
    "description": "CI 77947 is the name of Zinc Oxide on the ingredient label when it is used as a colorant."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Castor Oil/​IPDI Copolymer",
    "description": "A castor oil-derived polymer that can thicken up oils . It can form clear oily gels, and it can also suspend particles such as pigments, glitters, or mineral filters."
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Sericite M12 NLL",
    "description": ""
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "No Title",
    "description": ""
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "No Title",
    "description": "No content found"
  },
  {
    "ingredient": "Maleated Soybean Oil Glyceryl/​Octyldodecanol Esters",
    "description": "An environmentally friendly, biodegradable film former and SPF booster used in sunscreen products. It helps sunscreens create a nice, even layer on the skin that stays there for a long time."
  }
]