AlumierMD Microderm Polish Versus PCA Skin Daily Exfoliant

AlumierMD Microderm Polish Versus PCA Skin Daily Exfoliant

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Water

Hydrated Silica

Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate

Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine

Propanediol

Glycerin

Citrus Grandis Peel Oil

Jojoba Esters

Coco-Glucoside

Cetearyl Olivate

Glycol Distearate

Glyceryl Oleate

Sorbitan Olivate

Glyceryl Stearate

Caprylyl Glycol

Caprylic Acid

Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer

Xylitol

Disodium EDTA

Sodium Hydroxide

Limonene

Sodium Chloride

Benzoic Acid

Citral

Linalool

Tetrasodium EDTA

Citric Acid

Sodium Benzoate

Potassium Sorbate

Water, Hydrated Silica, Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Propanediol, Glycerin, Citrus Grandis Peel Oil, Jojoba Esters, Coco-Glucoside, Cetearyl Olivate, Glycol Distearate, Glyceryl Oleate, Sorbitan Olivate, Glyceryl Stearate, Caprylyl Glycol, Caprylic Acid, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Xylitol, Disodium EDTA, Sodium Hydroxide, Limonene, Sodium Chloride, Benzoic Acid, Citral, Linalool, Tetrasodium EDTA, Citric Acid, Sodium Benzoate, Potassium Sorbate

Cellulose Acetate

Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside

Acrylates Copolymer

Sodium Cocoamphoacetate

Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice

Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride

Benzyl Alcohol

Ethylhexylglycerin

Bisabolol

Hydrolyzed Jojoba Esters

Sclerotium Gum

Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Oil

Salicornia Herbacea Extract

Lavandula Angustifolia Oil

Camellia Oleifera Leaf Extract

Avena Sativa Kernel Extract

Water, Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate, Propanediol, Cellulose Acetate, Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside, Acrylates Copolymer, Coco-Glucoside, Glyceryl Oleate, Sodium Cocoamphoacetate, Glycerin, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Benzyl Alcohol, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Ethylhexylglycerin, Bisabolol, Hydrolyzed Jojoba Esters, Sclerotium Gum, Sodium Hydroxide, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Oil, Salicornia Herbacea Extract, Tetrasodium EDTA, Lavandula Angustifolia Oil, Camellia Oleifera Leaf Extract, Avena Sativa Kernel Extract

Alternatives

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.

Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine is a synthetic cleansing agent, though it is derived from coconut oil.

It is used to enhance the texture of products by boosting lather and thickening the texture. As a cleanser, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine is mild.

Coco-Glucoside is a surfactant, or a cleansing ingredient. It is made from glucose and coconut oil.

Surfactants help gather dirt, oil, and other pollutants from your skin to be rinsed away.

This ingredient is considered gentle and non-comedogenic. However, it may still be irritating for some.

Glycerin (or glycerol) is a compound naturally found in your skin. It's a powerhouse humectant that pulls water into the stratum corneum.

Topically, glycerin does several things at once:

Your skin makes glycerin on its own (mostly from sebaceous oil breakdown) and shuttles it to your outermost layer of skin, or your epidermis, via aquaporin-3.

Aquaporin-3 is a transporter that is essential for normal skin hydration, elasticity, and repair. Interestingly, mice lacking in AQP3 have dry and less elastic skin that can be fully corrected with glycerin.

This ingredient is non-irritating, plays well with almost every ingredient, and works across all skin types. Typical use is anywhere between 3-10% but can go up to 79% in some leave-on products.

Just know very high concentrations (>40%) can feel tacky in low humidity.

Glycerin is the name for this ingredient in American English. British English uses Glycerol/Glycerine.

Glyceryl Oleate is the monoester of glycerin and oleic acid. It is a skin-conditioning emollient that also helps form emulsions.

What makes glyceryl oleate special is its "re-fatting" effect.

When you wash your hair and skin with a surfactant-based cleanser, the surfactants grab onto everything. This includes your skin's natural lipids, or the fats that live in your skin barrier and sebum. Once you rinse these surfactants away, it leaves your skin feeling tight, dry, and clean (in a not-good way).

Re-fatting is essentially putting some of these lipids back. Glyceryl oleate deposits a thin layer of emollient lipids back on the skin or hair surface reduce some of the barrier damage.

Also, glyceryl oleate isn't a foreign molecule to your skin. It's chemically identical to something your skin already produces and manages naturally. This is why it tends to be well-tolerated with low risk of irritation.

Typical use levels range from 0.5-5%.

Glyceryl Oleate has a function of "perfuming" in the CosIng database. This just means that the ingredient has some scent character that can contribute to the product's overall smell.

The scent of this ingredient is described as "waxy".

As an ester of oleic acid, this ingredient may not be fungal acne safe. This is because oleic acid falls into the carbon-chain length that Malassezia can use as a substrate.

Propanediol is an all-star ingredient. It softens, hydrates, and smooths the skin.

It’s often used to:

Propanediol is not likely to cause sensitivity and considered safe to use. It is derived from corn or petroleum with a clear color and no scent.

Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate is a surfactant that helps water and oil mix so that dirt, sweat, sebum, and sunscreen can rinse away easily. It's not technically a sulfate, but behaves similarly in formulas.

What it does:

Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate is a strong cleansing surfactant and is much stronger than many mild cleansers. Because it works deeply, it can disrupt the skin's barrier. This can lead to dryness or irritation for those with sensitive skin.

Compared to gentler surfactants, it's effective but more likely to dry or irritate if not balanced with soothing ingredients.

CIR considers sodium α-olefin sulfonates (including C14-16) to be safe for use in rinse-off products when properly formulated. It is poorly absorbed through normal skin but absorption increases if the skin barrier is already damaged.

Sodium Hydroxide is also known as lye or caustic soda. It is used to adjust the pH of products; many ingredients require a specific pH to be effective.

In small amounts, sodium hydroxide is considered safe to use. However, large amounts may cause chemical burns due to its high alkaline.

Your skin has a natural pH and acid mantle. This acid mantle helps prevent harmful bacteria from breaking through. The acid mantle also helps keep your skin hydrated.

"Alkaline" refers to a high pH level. A low pH level would be considered acidic.

Tetrasodium EDTA is the salt formed from neutralizing ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid with sodium hydroxide. It is a chelating agent and used to prevent metal ions from binding to other ingredients. This helps keep the product and ingredients stable.

Tetrasodium EDTA comes as a white solid and is soluble in water.

Water. It's the most common cosmetic ingredient of all. You'll usually see it at the top of ingredient lists, meaning that it makes up the largest part of the product.

So why is it so popular? Water most often acts as a solvent - this means that it helps dissolve other ingredients into the formulation.

You'll also recognize water as that liquid we all need to stay alive. If you see this, drink a glass of water. Remember to stay hydrated!

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