Asap Firming Eye Lift Versus Medik8 Eyelift Peptides

Asap Firming Eye Lift Versus Medik8 Eyelift Peptides

This anti-aging eye moisturizer is formulated around Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 and Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5 to soften the look of wrinkles and refine skin texture.

This anti-aging eye moisturizer is formulated around Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 and Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 to soften the look of wrinkles and refine skin texture.

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Water

Diheptyl Succinate

Isodecyl Neopentanoate

Octyldodecyl Stearoyl Stearate

Polyquaternium-28

Glycerin

Acrylic Acid/Vp Crosspolymer

Sodium Hyaluronate

Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1

Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5

Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7

Biphenyl Azepanyl Methanone

N-Hydroxysuccinimide

Nicotiana Benthamiana Octapeptide-30 Sh-Oligopeptide-2

Panthenol

Cynara Scolymus Leaf Extract

Dunaliella Salina Extract

Hydrogenated Lecithin

Fructan

Caffeine

Glucose

Tocopherol

Capryloyl Glycerin/Sebacic Acid Copolymer

Glyceryl Acrylate/Acrylic Acid Copolymer

Xanthine

Chrysin

Pantolactone

Butylene Glycol

Glyceryl Stearate Citrate

Caprylyl Glycol

Steareth-20

Polyglyceryl-3 Stearate

Decyl Glucoside

Pvm/Ma Copolymer

Propanediol

Phenethyl Alcohol

Sodium Hydroxide

Disodium EDTA

Benzyl Alcohol

Ethylhexylglycerin

Phenoxyethanol

Hyaluronic Acid

Water, Diheptyl Succinate, Isodecyl Neopentanoate, Octyldodecyl Stearoyl Stearate, Polyquaternium-28, Glycerin, Acrylic Acid/Vp Crosspolymer, Sodium Hyaluronate, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7, Biphenyl Azepanyl Methanone, N-Hydroxysuccinimide, Nicotiana Benthamiana Octapeptide-30 Sh-Oligopeptide-2, Panthenol, Cynara Scolymus Leaf Extract, Dunaliella Salina Extract, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Fructan, Caffeine, Glucose, Tocopherol, Capryloyl Glycerin/Sebacic Acid Copolymer, Glyceryl Acrylate/Acrylic Acid Copolymer, Xanthine, Chrysin, Pantolactone, Butylene Glycol, Glyceryl Stearate Citrate, Caprylyl Glycol, Steareth-20, Polyglyceryl-3 Stearate, Decyl Glucoside, Pvm/Ma Copolymer, Propanediol, Phenethyl Alcohol, Sodium Hydroxide, Disodium EDTA, Benzyl Alcohol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Phenoxyethanol, Hyaluronic Acid

Alcohol Denat.

C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate

Xanthan Gum

Tribehenin

Hydrolyzed Rice Protein

Hesperidin Methyl Chalcone

Ceramide Ng

PEG-10 Phytosterol

Dehydroacetic Acid

Glycine Soja Protein

Sodium Benzoate

Superoxide Dismutase

Benzoic Acid

Sorbic Acid

Dipeptide-2

Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-12

Carbomer

Potassium Sorbate

Chlorhexidine Digluconate

Polysorbate 20

Sodium Dextran Sulfate

Water, Alcohol Denat., Glycerin, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Xanthan Gum, Tribehenin, Hydrolyzed Rice Protein, Benzyl Alcohol, Butylene Glycol, Steareth-20, Hesperidin Methyl Chalcone, Ceramide Ng, PEG-10 Phytosterol, Dehydroacetic Acid, Glycine Soja Protein, Sodium Benzoate, Superoxide Dismutase, Phenoxyethanol, Benzoic Acid, Sorbic Acid, Dipeptide-2, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1, Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-12, Chrysin, Carbomer, Potassium Sorbate, Chlorhexidine Digluconate, Polysorbate 20, N-Hydroxysuccinimide, Sodium Dextran Sulfate, Tocopherol

Alternatives

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

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

Benzyl Alcohol is an aromatic alcohol with several roles: it's a preservative, solvent, and mild fragrance component with a floral scent.

This ingredient has been deemed safe for use in cosmetic formulations at concentrations up to 5%, and up to 10% in hair dyes. You'll typically see 0.5-2% in most rinse-off or leave-on products.

As a preservative, it works by disrupting the membrane of microbial proteins. This helps keep bacteria and fungi from growing in your products.

The sensitization picture is actually quite assuring as well:of nearly 71,000 patients patch tested with benzyl alcohol, only 0.21% showed a positive reaction with most of them being weakly positive.

This led researchers to conclude that benzyl alcohol cannot be regarded as a significant contact allergen.

It is worth noting this ingredient is classified as one of the EU's regulated fragrance allergens and restricted to 1% in finished products.

Labels must also declare it in concentrations above 0.001% in leave-on products and 0.01% in rinse-off products.

At concentrations around 5%, localized redness and itching can appear as a direct irritant response and not as a true allergic reaction.

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

Overall, Butylene Glycol is a safe and well-rounded ingredient that works well with other ingredients.

Though this ingredient works well with most skin types, some people with sensitive skin may experience a reaction such as allergic rashes, closed comedones, or itchiness.

We don't have a description for Chrysin yet.

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.

We don't have a description for N-Hydroxysuccinimide yet.

Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 (formerly Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-3) is a synthetic peptide. Its main job is to fight what researchers call "inflammaging".

"Inflammaging" is the slow, low-grade chronic inflammation that quietly breaks down collagen as we age.

This ingredient calms down a specific inflammation signal in your skin cells (called IL-6). When left unchecked, this signal triggers enzymes that break down collagen and elastin.

Clinical testing showed statistically significant improvements in:

Studies also found the more of this ingredient used, the more your skin produces Collagen I, fibronectin, and hyaluronic acid.

You'll likely see this ingredient paired with Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 in the well-known Matrixyl 3000 complex for enhanced anti-aging effects.

A 3% concentration applied twice daily for two months showed meaningful skin rejuvenation results in clinical panels.

Fungal acne note: Usually a palmitic acid component can feed Malassezia in unbound form, but here is is covalently bonded to the peptide. This means it is very difficult for Malassezia to access, and therefore very unlikely to cause fungal acne.

Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 (aka Pal-GHK) is a synthetic signal peptide made of three amino acids attached to palmitic acid.

That fatty acid attachment is the key: it boosts the peptide's ability to penetrate the skin barrier. This puts it closer to the dermal cells where it can actually make a difference.

Once there, it acts as a matrikine, a signaling peptide that prompts fibroblasts to produce more collagen, fibronectin, and hyaluronic acid.

In vitro studies show it can boost collagen production in skin cells even when UV-damaged skin samples were treated with it at a tiny concentration (it almost fully restored dermal collagen at 5ppm). It achieved this at 100x lower concentration than retinoic acid, which needed 500 ppm to do the same thing.

Human clinical data is promising, but modest:

A study of 23 female volunteers found a small but statistically significant increase (~4%) in skin thickness after treatment at 4 ppm.

A separate small trial of 15 women showed statistically significant reductions in wrinkle length, depth, and skin roughness after applying it twice daily for four weeks.

You'll likely see Pal-GHK paired with Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 as part of the Matrixyl 3000 complex.

Phenoxyethanol is one of the most widely used preservatives in skincare (and for good reason!).

It has a large spectrum of antimicrobial activity and especially effective bacteria, yeast, and mold while only having a weak effect on your skin's natural microbiome.

On a cellular level, it disrupts the cell membranes of microbes by poking holes that make the cell leak. This shuts down the chemical reactions the microbe needs to make energy so it can no longer survive.

Another perk of this ingredient is that it stays functional across a wide pH range (3-10).

You'll often see it paired with boosters like Ethylhexylglycerin; one study showed that a 1:9 ratio of Ethylhexylglycerin to Phenoxyethanol damages bacterial membranes as effectively as doubling the Phenoxyethanol concentration on its own.

Typical use concentrations range from 0.3-1% depending on the formula, and this ingredient is capped at 1% int the EU.

Safety-wise, the fear mongering does not hold up to the evidence. The EU's Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety and FDA consider it safe as a preservative at up to 1%, including for children of all ages.

Adverse systemic effects only showed up in animal studies at exposures roughly 200x higher than what people get from cosmetics. And despite its very widespread use, this ingredient is a rare sensitizer and allergic reactions are uncommon.

Steareth-20 is an emulsifier and solubilizer. It is created from stearyl alcohol with ~20 units of ethylene oxide to give it a strong preference for water.

As an emulsifier, it helps oil-in-water emulsions like lotions, creams, and cleansers stay stable. It also solubilizes small amounts of oil-loving ingredients (like fragrance) into water-based formulas.

You'll likely find this ingredient with steareth-2 (it's oil-loving sister) where the two work together to give products a cushiony feel.

Typical use levels sit at around 1-5% and this ingredient has been found to be non-irritating by the CIR Expert Panel.

Tocopherol is a fat-soluble antioxidant known as Vitamin E.

You'll find this ingredient in the vast majority of skincare (for good reason). It works to neutralize free radicals, or unstable molecules generated by UV exposure, pollution, and other environmental stressors, before they can cause oxidative damage to your skin cells.

Topically applied tocopherol has been shown to protect against UV damage by ramping up the skin's own natural defense enzymes.

It also acts as a skin conditioning agent; some studies show that regular topical use can improve the skin's water-binding capacity over 2-4 weeks.

This ingredient is especially loved for being a team player. When combined with Vitamin C, the photoprotective effect of both ingredients roughly doubles and the combo also helps reduce UV-induced DNA damage.

This ingredient has some brightening potential but it's more of a prevention ingredient than spot-fader. Cell studies show it can slow down melanin production but it's worth noting that it's not the most powerful brightener out there.

In formulations, it also serves as a stabilizer that helps protect other oxidation-prone ingredients from degrading.

Concentrations usually range from 0.1-1% in most leave-on products.

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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