Skin science article
Beauty of Joseon Revive Eye Serum : Ginseng + Retinal Versus Paula's Choice Ceramide-Enriched Firming Eye Cream
Beauty of Joseon Revive Eye Serum : Ginseng + Retinal Versus Paula's Choice Ceramide-Enriched Firming Eye Cream This anti-aging eye moisturizer is formulated around Panax Ginseng Root Extract and Niacinamide to soften the look of wrinkles and refine skin textu
Beauty of Joseon Revive Eye Serum : Ginseng + Retinal Versus Paula's Choice Ceramide-Enriched Firming Eye Cream
This anti-aging eye moisturizer is formulated around Panax Ginseng Root Extract and Niacinamide to soften the look of wrinkles and refine skin texture.
This anti-aging eye moisturizer is formulated around Ceramide Ns and Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5 to soften the look of wrinkles and strengthen the skin barrier.
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Panax Ginseng Root Extract
Glycerin
Dipropylene Glycol
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
1,2-Hexanediol
Pentaerythrityl Tetraethylhexanoate
Niacinamide
Butylene Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate
Cetearyl Alcohol
Sorbitan Olivate
Cetearyl Olivate
Butylene Glycol
Hydrogenated Lecithin
Tromethamine
Carbomer
Glyceryl Stearate
Macadamia Ternifolia Seed Oil
Adenosine
Theobroma Cacao Extract
Dextrin
Cholesterol
Polyglyceryl-10 Oleate
Retinal
Brassica Campestris Sterols
Phytosteryl/Behenyl/Octyldodecyl Lauroyl Glutamate
Silica
Sodium Hyaluronate
Tocopherol
Aluminum/Magnesium Hydroxide Stearate
Potassium Cetyl Phosphate
Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate
Ceramide NP
Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5
Disodium EDTA
Ethylhexylglycerin
Water, Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Glycerin, Dipropylene Glycol, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, 1,2-Hexanediol, Pentaerythrityl Tetraethylhexanoate, Niacinamide, Butylene Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Sorbitan Olivate, Cetearyl Olivate, Butylene Glycol, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Tromethamine, Carbomer, Glyceryl Stearate, Macadamia Ternifolia Seed Oil, Adenosine, Theobroma Cacao Extract, Dextrin, Cholesterol, Polyglyceryl-10 Oleate, Retinal, Brassica Campestris Sterols, Phytosteryl/Behenyl/Octyldodecyl Lauroyl Glutamate, Silica, Sodium Hyaluronate, Tocopherol, Aluminum/Magnesium Hydroxide Stearate, Potassium Cetyl Phosphate, Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Ceramide NP, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5, Disodium EDTA, Ethylhexylglycerin
Neopentyl Glycol Diheptanoate
Cetyl Alcohol
PEG-100 Stearate
Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/Vp Copolymer
Ascorbyl Glucoside
Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate
Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate-2
Polyglyceryl-10 Dioleate
Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate
Ceramide Ns
Ceramide EOP
Ceramide AP
Ceramide Eos
Acetyl Tetrapeptide-5
Caprooyl Phytosphingosine
Caprooyl Sphingosine
Squalane
Retinol
Vitis Vinifera Seed Extract
Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract
Punica Granatum Fruit Extract
Dunaliella Salina Extract
Pongamia Glabra Seed Oil
Tocopheryl Acetate
Allantoin
Bisabolol
Carnosine
Panthenol
Sodium PCA
Pullulan
Glyceryl Ascorbate
Behenic Acid
Dimethicone
Sodium Citrate
Sodium Polyacrylate
Caprylyl Glycol
Ethylhexyl Stearate
Ceteareth-25
Sodium Hydroxide
Trideceth-6
Propyl Gallate
Polysorbate 20
Mica
Phenoxyethanol
Chlorphenesin
Sodium Benzoate
Water, Neopentyl Glycol Diheptanoate, Cetyl Alcohol, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/Vp Copolymer, Ascorbyl Glucoside, Potassium Cetyl Phosphate, Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate-2, Polyglyceryl-10 Dioleate, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, Ceramide Ns, Ceramide EOP, Ceramide AP, Ceramide Eos, Ceramide NP, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5, Acetyl Tetrapeptide-5, Caprooyl Phytosphingosine, Caprooyl Sphingosine, Cholesterol, Squalane, Retinol, Vitis Vinifera Seed Extract, Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract, Punica Granatum Fruit Extract, Dunaliella Salina Extract, Pongamia Glabra Seed Oil, Tocopheryl Acetate, Allantoin, Bisabolol, Carnosine, Panthenol, Sodium PCA, Pullulan, Glyceryl Ascorbate, Behenic Acid, Dimethicone, Sodium Citrate, Sodium Polyacrylate, Caprylyl Glycol, Ethylhexyl Stearate, Ceteareth-25, Sodium Hydroxide, Trideceth-6, Propyl Gallate, Polysorbate 20, Disodium EDTA, Mica, Phenoxyethanol, Chlorphenesin, Sodium Benzoate
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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.
Ceramide NP (formerly known as Ceramide 3) is one of the skin's naturally occurring lipids.
Since ceramides are the major lipid components of the skin, they are crucial for maintaining skin barrier and hydration. Ceramide NP most closely mirrors the dominant kind in human skin amongst ceramide subtypes.
This ceramide works by slotting into gaps within the stratum corneum's lipid matrix to limit trans-epidermal water loss (TEWL) and shield the skin against external irritants.
A study with 312 patients found that using a ceramide-containing routine for 4 weeks reduced the severity of atopic dermatitis by over 61%.
Another clinical study in subjects aged 60 and older found that a ceramide body wash and moisturizer improved skin dryness and itchy skin in 15 days.
Overall, ceramides are considered non-irritating and safety tests have found little to no observable adverse effects from using this ingredient.
Ceramide NP is usually sourced from plants (like soybean or rice bran), or produced synthetically.
Cholesterol is a lipid that is naturally found in human skin and is one of the three key components of your skin barrier. In skincare, it is an emollient and barrier-repairing ingredient.
It works by fitting directly into the lipid layers of skin to help restore structure and reduce transepidermal water loss (TEWL).
This is a great ingredient for dry, compromised, or aging skin; our skin starts to produce less cholesterol with age.
Research shows cholesterol works best in combination with ceramides and fatty acids, the other two major components in your skin barrier.
Cholesterol is also a well-establish penetration enhancer and can help other actives absorb more effectively.
Cosmetic-grade cholesterol is usually derived from lanolin but plant and synthetic options also exist. We recommend reaching out to the brand if you have questions about their source of cholesterol.
Disodium EDTA is a chelating agent. It grabs onto and deactivates metal ions that sneak into your products from water, packaging, or air.
This ingredient mainly works behind the scenes and helps with:
On top of that, this ingredient can counteract the effects of hard water by binding to the minerals in it.
One thing worth knowing is that Disodium EDTA has been shown to be a mild penetration enhancer. It can help other ingredients absorb into skin more effectively which can be a double-edged sword (great for actives, but can also make the active too strong if you have sensitive skin).
Clinical patch testing showed no significant skin irritation at typical use concentrations and minimal dermal absorption.
You'll most likely see this ingredient near the end of an ingredient list. It's typically found in concentrations less than 1%.
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 Stearate is made by reacting glycerin with stearic acid (typically sourced from plant oils like palm or coconut). It's an emulsifier, emollient, and mild occlusive.
Emulsifiers help ingredients like oil and water stay mixed so your formula stays nicely blended and uniform in texture.
This ingredient is typically used in concentrations between 1-10%. Studies have found it to be non-sensitizing, non-phototoxic, and non-photoallergenic.
A close cousin of this ingredient is Glyceryl Stearate SE ("self-emulsifying"). This just has a small amount of sodium or potassium stearate added so it can emulsify without a co-emulsifier.
Since this ingredient is an ester of a C18 fatty acid, it may not be fungal acne safe. The Malassezia yeast can potentially metabolize within the C11-C24 range.
Fun fact: The human body also creates Glyceryl Stearate naturally.
Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5 is a synthetic signal lipopeptide. This just means it is a three amino acid chain bolted onto a palmitic acid tail so it can slip through the skin's lipid barrier.
This peptide has a "build more, lose less" approach.
It's designed to mimic the collagen-stimulating activity in your skin by copying a snippet of one of your skin's own matrix proteins. This nudges fibroblasts into making more collagen while inhibiting the enzyme that breaks down skin protein.
The manufacturer's in vivo study of 45 volunteers found 1% and 2.5% reduced the appearance of wrinkles by 7% and 12% respectively, after using it twice daily for 84 days.
This is in the expected range for peptides; they're slow and cumulative actives and not overnight fixers.
Typical use levels range from 1-3% and this ingredient gets along with pretty much everything.
On the fungal acne front: Although palmitic acid sits in the chain length that Malassezia can feed on, this ingredient has it locked in an amine bond. This makes it hard for Malassezia to access as a source of food, and therefore fungal acne safe.
Potassium Cetyl Phosphate is the potassium salt of a mixture. This mixture consists of the esters from phosphoricacid and cetyl alcohol.
Potassium Cetyl Phosphate is an emulsifier and cleansing agent. Emulsifiers help stabilize a product. It does this by preventing certain ingredients from separating.
As a cleansing agent, Potassium Cetyl Phosphate helps gather oils, dirts, and pollutants from your skin. This makes it easier to rinse them away with 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!