Babor Pro Growth Factor Concentrate Versus Paula's Choice Peptide Booster

Babor Pro Growth Factor Concentrate Versus Paula's Choice Peptide Booster

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

This anti-aging treatment is formulated around Tripeptide-1 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

Butylene Glycol

Phenoxyethanol

Alcohol

Ectoin

Lecithin

Carbomer

Ethylhexylglycerin

Lactic Acid

Sodium Hydroxide

Cetyl Hydroxyethylcellulose

Rutin

Dipotassium Phosphate

Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1

Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7

Cyclotetrapeptide-24 Aminocyclohexane Carboxylate

Phaseolus Lunatus Seed Extract

Water, Butylene Glycol, Phenoxyethanol, Alcohol, Ectoin, Lecithin, Carbomer, Ethylhexylglycerin, Lactic Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Cetyl Hydroxyethylcellulose, Rutin, Dipotassium Phosphate, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7, Cyclotetrapeptide-24 Aminocyclohexane Carboxylate, Phaseolus Lunatus Seed Extract

Glycerin

PEG-8 Dimethicone

Tripeptide-1

Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-12

Myristoyl Hexapeptide-16

Myristoyl Pentapeptide-17

Hexanoyl Dipeptide-3 Norleucine Acetate

Azelaoyl Bis-Dipeptide-10

Glycoproteins

Phospholipids

Adenosine

Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate

Arginine

Valine

Glycine

Alanine

Glutamic Acid

Serine

Threonine

Yeast Extract

Isoleucine

Proline

Histidine

Phenylalanine

PCA

Phytic Acid

Panax Ginseng Root Extract

Sodium PCA

Psidium Guajava Fruit Extract

Euterpe Oleracea Fruit Extract

Ahnfeltiopsis Concinna Extract

Dextran

Hydrolyzed Silk

Glyceryl Polymethacrylate

C12-16 Pareth-9

Trideceth-12

Sodium Lactate

Aspartic Acid

Polysorbate 20

Caprylyl Glycol

PEG-8

C11-15 Pareth-7

Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride

Phytosteryl/Octyldodecyl Lauroyl Glutamate

Citrate Buffer

Trimethylsiloxyamodimethicone

Water, Glycerin, PEG-8 Dimethicone, Tripeptide-1, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7, Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-12, Myristoyl Hexapeptide-16, Myristoyl Pentapeptide-17, Hexanoyl Dipeptide-3 Norleucine Acetate, Azelaoyl Bis-Dipeptide-10, Glycoproteins, Phospholipids, Adenosine, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Arginine, Valine, Glycine, Alanine, Glutamic Acid, Serine, Threonine, Yeast Extract, Isoleucine, Proline, Histidine, Phenylalanine, PCA, Phytic Acid, Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Sodium PCA, Psidium Guajava Fruit Extract, Euterpe Oleracea Fruit Extract, Ahnfeltiopsis Concinna Extract, Dextran, Hydrolyzed Silk, Lecithin, Glyceryl Polymethacrylate, C12-16 Pareth-9, Trideceth-12, Sodium Lactate, Carbomer, Aspartic Acid, Polysorbate 20, Butylene Glycol, Caprylyl Glycol, PEG-8, C11-15 Pareth-7, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Phytosteryl/Octyldodecyl Lauroyl Glutamate, Ectoin, Citrate Buffer, Trimethylsiloxyamodimethicone, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Hydroxide, Ethylhexylglycerin

Alternatives

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

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

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.

Carbomer is a synthetic thickening and gelling agent. It's basically the ingredient that gives a lot of serums, gels, creams, and sunscreens their smooth, non-sticky texture.

Although legally permitted at very high levels, carbomers are normally used at concentrations below 1%.

It also needs to be neutralized to actually thicken, and because it is a large molecule, it doesn't really penetrate the skin barrier.

Allergy-wise, the risk is very low. Clinical studies show carbomers have low potential for skin irritation/sensitization even at concentrations up to 100%.

A 2024 UK study patch-tested 1,302 patients and found true allergy to the parent group of carbomer to be rare with no confirmed relevant reactions.

Ectoin is a compound found naturally in some species of bacteria. It can be synthetically created for skincare use.

This ingredient is an osmolyte; Osmolytes help organisms survive osmotic shock (it protects them from extreme conditions). It does this by influencing the properties of biological fluids within cells.

When applied to the skin, ectoin helps bind water molecules to protect our skin. The water forms a sort of armor for the parts of our skin cells, enzymes, proteins, and more.

Besides this, ectoin has many uses in skincare:

A study from 2004 found ectoin to counteract the damage from UV-A exposure at different cell levels. It has also been shown to protect skin against both UV-A, UV-B rays, infrared light, and visible light.

Studies show ectoin to have dual-action pollution protection: first, it protects our skin from further pollution damage. Second, it helps repair damage from pollution.

In fact, ectoin has been shown to help with:

Fun fact: In the EU, ectoin is used in inhalation medication as an anti-pollution ingredient.

Ectoin is a highly stable ingredient. It has a wide pH range of 1-9. Light, oxygen, and temperature do not affect this ingredient.

The chemical name for this ingredient is Tetrahydromethylpyrimidine Carboxylic Acid.

Ethylhexylglycerin is created from glycerin. It is a multitasker ingredient that:

The CIR Expert Panel found minimal skin absorption or sensitization of any kind in a safety assessment. Though this ingredient is considered well-tolerated, a small number of cases of allergic dermatitis have been published since 2002. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure.

Industry-reported use ranges from 8% in rinse-off products and 2% in leave-on formulations.

Lecithin is a term for a group of substances found in the cell membranes of plants, animals, and humans. They are made up of phospholipids.

Thanks to its amphiphilic structure (water-loving head and oil-loving tail), it is a true multitasker:

It plays well with most ingredients and is typically used at 0.1-1%. However, concentrations up to 50% have been reported in moisturizers.

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.

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.

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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