Peptide Skincare & BeautySkin science and ingredient guides

Skin science article

Allies of Skin 35% Vitamin C+ Perfecting Serum Versus Murad Rapid Dark Spot Correcting Serum

Allies of Skin 35% Vitamin C+ Perfecting Serum Versus Murad Rapid Dark Spot Correcting Serum This brightening serum is formulated around 3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid and Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate to brighten dull-looking skin and fade the look of dark spots. This b

By Peptide Skincare & Beauty Editorial TeamPublished

Allies of Skin 35% Vitamin C+ Perfecting Serum Versus Murad Rapid Dark Spot Correcting Serum

This brightening serum is formulated around 3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid and Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate to brighten dull-looking skin and fade the look of dark spots.

This brightening serum is formulated around Glycolic Acid and Tranexamic Acid to fade the look of dark spots and brighten dull-looking skin.

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

No concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Ethoxydiglycol

3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid

Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate

Dimethyl Isosorbide

Isodecyl Neopentanoate

Glutathione

Superoxide Dismutase

Ethylhexylglycerin

Caprylyl Glycol

Phenoxyethanol

Ethoxydiglycol, 3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, Dimethyl Isosorbide, Isodecyl Neopentanoate, Glutathione, Superoxide Dismutase, Ethylhexylglycerin, Caprylyl Glycol, Phenoxyethanol

Water

Alcohol Denat.

Glycolic Acid

Butylene Glycol

Glycerin

Methyl Gluceth-20

Tranexamic Acid

4-Ethylresorcinol

Hexapeptide-2

Rice Amino Acids

Urea

Yeast Amino Acids

Trehalose

Inositol

Taurine

Betaine

Zinc Gluconate

Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate

Allantoin

Hydroxyethylcellulose

Sodium Metabisulfite

Sodium Sulfite

Sodium Hydroxide

PPG-26-Buteth-26

PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil

Polyquaternium-4

Disodium EDTA

Limonene

Benzyl Salicylate

Linalool

Parfum

Water, Alcohol Denat., Glycolic Acid, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Methyl Gluceth-20, Tranexamic Acid, 4-Ethylresorcinol, Hexapeptide-2, Rice Amino Acids, Urea, Yeast Amino Acids, Trehalose, Inositol, Taurine, Betaine, Zinc Gluconate, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Allantoin, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Sodium Metabisulfite, Sodium Sulfite, Sodium Hydroxide, PPG-26-Buteth-26, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Polyquaternium-4, Disodium EDTA, Limonene, Benzyl Salicylate, Linalool, Parfum

Reviews

Be the first to review

Alternatives

Similar Comparisons

The reference edit

Ingredients, questions
& further reading.

Connected source records selected through this article’s public topic index.

01

Formula cabinet

Ingredients & structured notes

Ingredient index

Ingredients Explained

  1. 01Ethoxydiglycol (aka Diethylene Glycol Monoethyl Ether) is one of the cosmetic world's quiet problem solvers.
  2. 02In a formula, it is a solvent that dissolves tricky ingredients that don't want to mix in and helps spread ingredients evenly across your skin without leaving a greasy or sticky feeling
  3. 03This makes it great for hard-to-dissolve actives like vitamin C, benzoyl peroxide, and self-tanner DHA.
  4. 04It also has mild humectant and penetration enhancer abilities so it can help some actives absorb a little deeper.
  5. 05The penetration boost is backed by lab research: studies using human skin samples found it improved how well an active dissolves into the upper layer of skin rather than tearing down your skin barrier. Reviews of its mechanism also describe it inter…
  6. 06Just know this penetration-enhancing effect is not universal. It helps a lot in some formulas and did very little in others (so the benefit really depends on the specific product).
  7. 07Safety-wise, the evidence is reassuring. The Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel reviewed it and concluded it's safe for use in cosmetics and recognized it as non-irritating, non-sensitizing, and non-comedogenic in skincare.
  8. 08Typical leave-on skincare usage lands around 1-10%. The EU has sets caps of 2.6% in non-spray products, 10% in rinse-offs, 7% in oxidative hair dye, and 5% in non-oxidative hair dye.
  9. 093-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid is one of the most popular "stable" vitamin C derivatives in skincare.
  10. 10Plain ascorbic acid is fantastic but notoriously fragile; it browns, oxidizes, and loses potency fast. So attaching an ethyl group to the third carbon of the molecule gives it some cool perks:
  11. 11In a formula, it does the 3 classic vitamin C jobs: it acts as an antioxidant, helps brighten skin tone by inhibiting tyrosinase, and supports collagen.
  12. 12The evidence is reasonably solid for a cosmetic ingredient; Liao and colleagues (2018) showed it's significantly more stable than ascorbic acid while still being effective.
  13. 13A 2021 study by Zerbinati and colleagues tested a serum with 30% 3-O-ethyl-l-ascorbic acid and 1% lactic acid significantly increased collagen production, reduced UVB-induced DNA damage, and decreased melanin on a reconstructed pigmented skin model.
  14. 14Typical real world usage sits around 0.5-5% (and 1-2% is common for daily serums).
  15. 15Amounts up to 30% have been shown to be non-irritating on human skin samples, but two isolated cases reported allergic contact dermatitis so a patch test is sensible if you have reactive skin.
  16. 16Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate (THD) is a stable and oil-soluble form of Vitamin C.
  17. 17THD is special in that it has the ability to travel deeper into skin than traditional ascorbic acid while maintaining the same skin benefits (double win!).
  18. 18Because it’s oil-soluble, THD dives deep into your skin’s fatty layers (think ceramides and cholesterol) to fight off the kind of free radicals that mess with your skin barrier. This makes it a great pair with water-based vitamin C (ascorbic acid) t…
  19. 19Even at just 0.1%, THD is already showing great antioxidant activity. When used up to 2%, it helps keep your skin happy and calm, especially when it’s stressed from pollution or sun.
  20. 20Want to fade dark spots or tackle hyperpigmentation? You’ll want 5% or more. Pairing it with brightening buddies like niacinamide or licorice root gives even better results. One study even used 30% THD with other brighteners and saw real results on …
Source · skinsort.com ⟶
02

Product index

Related product references

03

Comparison edit

Read side by side

Continue reading

Related articles