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Skin science article

Beauty of Joseon Green Plum Refreshing Cleanser Versus Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser

Beauty of Joseon Green Plum Refreshing Cleanser Versus Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser This mild gel cleanser is made to cleanse while calming and soothing your skin. This mild cream cleanser is made to cleanse without leaving your skin tight or dry. What's insi

Beauty of Joseon Green Plum Refreshing Cleanser Versus Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser

This mild gel cleanser is made to cleanse while calming and soothing your skin.

This mild cream cleanser is made to cleanse without leaving your skin tight or dry.

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Water

Prunus Mume Fruit Water

Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine

Phaseolus Radiatus Seed Extract

Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate

Glycerin

Sodium Chloride

Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract

Houttuynia Cordata Extract

Nelumbo Nucifera Flower Extract

Oryza Sativa Extract

Prunus Mume Fruit Extract

Vaccinium Angustifolium Fruit Extract

Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride

Coconut Acid

Ethylhexylglycerin

Caprylyl Glycol

Sodium Isethionate

Citric Acid

Butylene Glycol

1,2-Hexanediol

Hydroxyacetophenone

Dextrin

Melia Azadirachta Leaf Extract

Melia Azadirachta Flower Extract

Gardenia Florida Fruit Extract

Propylene Glycol Laurate

Sodium Citrate

Disodium EDTA

Water, Prunus Mume Fruit Water, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Phaseolus Radiatus Seed Extract, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Glycerin, Sodium Chloride, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Houttuynia Cordata Extract, Nelumbo Nucifera Flower Extract, Oryza Sativa Extract, Prunus Mume Fruit Extract, Vaccinium Angustifolium Fruit Extract, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Coconut Acid, Ethylhexylglycerin, Caprylyl Glycol, Sodium Isethionate, Citric Acid, Butylene Glycol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Hydroxyacetophenone, Dextrin, Melia Azadirachta Leaf Extract, Melia Azadirachta Flower Extract, Gardenia Florida Fruit Extract, Propylene Glycol Laurate, Sodium Citrate, Disodium EDTA

Cetearyl Alcohol

Panthenol

Niacinamide

Pantolactone

Xanthan Gum

Sodium Benzoate

Water, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Panthenol, Niacinamide, Pantolactone, Xanthan Gum, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Sodium Benzoate, Citric Acid

Reviews

Alternatives

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

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

Citric Acid is an alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) naturally found in citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, and limes.

Like other AHAs, citric acid can exfoliate skin by breaking down the bonds that hold dead skin cells together. This helps reveal smoother and brighter skin underneath.

However, this exfoliating effect only happens at high concentrations (20%) which can be hard to find in cosmetic products.

Due to this, citric acid is usually included in small amounts as a pH adjuster. This helps keep products slightly more acidic and compatible with skin's natural pH.

In skincare formulas, citric acid can:

While it can provide some skin benefits, research shows lactic acid and glycolic acid are generally more effective and less irritating exfoliants.

Most citric acid used in skincare today is made by fermenting sugars (usually from molasses). This synthetic version is identical to the natural citrus form but easier to stabilize and use in formulations.

Rosacea skin has a lower threshold for acids generally, with 62.5% of rosacea subjects in one study reacting to lactic acid in a sting test. This is why we mark citric acid as a potential rosacea trigger.

However, this ingredient shows up as a pH adjuster or chelator at roughly 0.1-1% in many products. These low levels are unlikely to be an issue for rosacea skin and becomes a potential trigger at exfoliating concentrations (20%). Because everybody's skin is unique, we recommend a patch test if you are unsure.

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.

Sodium cocoyl isethionate is a natural ingredient from coconut oil. It is an ultra gentle cleanser that gives a nice foam without drying the skin or impacting the skin barrier.

The amount of foam created depends on the amount of sodium cocoyl isethionate used in the product.

This ingredient also helps improve the spreadability of a product.

This ingredient hasn’t been shown in studies to feed fungal acne yeast.

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!

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 Side-by-side

  1. 01Methyl Methacrylate Crosspolymer
  2. 02Synthetic Wax
  3. 03Dibutyl Adipate
  4. 04Coco-Caprylate/Caprate
  5. 05Isopropyl Palmitate
  6. 06Caprylyl Methicone
  7. 07Caprylyl Trimethicone
  8. 08Ethylhexyl Palmitate
  9. 09Silica
  10. 10Vinyl Dimethicone/Methicone Silsesquioxane Crosspolymer
  11. 11Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate
  12. 12Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine
  13. 13Boron Nitride
  14. 14Butyloctyl Salicylate
  15. 15Ethylhexyl Triazone
  16. 16Microcrystalline Wax
  17. 17Polysilicone-15
  18. 18Vinyldimethicone
  19. 19Camellia Japonica Seed Oil
  20. 20Polyglyceryl-4 Diisostearate/Polyhydroxystearate/Sebacate
Source · skinsort.com
02

Product index

Related product references

03

Comparison edit

Read side by side