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Boots Ingredients Lactic Acid Serum Versus The INKEY List Beta Hydroxy Acid (BHA) Serum

Boots Ingredients Lactic Acid Serum Versus The INKEY List Beta Hydroxy Acid (BHA) Serum This smoothing serum is formulated around Lactic Acid to refine skin texture and brighten dull-looking skin. This acne serum is formulated around Salicylic Acid and Zinc PC

By Peptide Skincare & Beauty Editorial TeamPublished

Boots Ingredients Lactic Acid Serum Versus The INKEY List Beta Hydroxy Acid (BHA) Serum

This smoothing serum is formulated around Lactic Acid to refine skin texture and brighten dull-looking skin.

This acne serum is formulated around Salicylic Acid and Zinc PCA to clear breakouts and refine the look of pores.

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Water

Glycerin

Butylene Glycol

Lactic Acid

Betaine

Xanthan Gum

Sodium Hydroxide

Hydroxyethylcellulose

Sodium Benzoate

Hydroxyethylpiperazine Ethane Sulfonic Acid

Stephania Tetrandra Root Extract

Disodium EDTA

Sodium Nitrate

Water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Lactic Acid, Betaine, Xanthan Gum, Sodium Hydroxide, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Sodium Benzoate, Hydroxyethylpiperazine Ethane Sulfonic Acid, Stephania Tetrandra Root Extract, Disodium EDTA, Sodium Nitrate

Propanediol

Salicylic Acid

Sodium Hyaluronate

Zinc PCA

Phenoxyethanol

Maltodextrin

Ethylhexylglycerin

Biosaccharide Gum-1

Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate

Water, Propanediol, Betaine, Salicylic Acid, Sodium Hyaluronate, Zinc PCA, Phenoxyethanol, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Maltodextrin, Sodium Hydroxide, Ethylhexylglycerin, Biosaccharide Gum-1, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate

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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.

Betaine is a humectant. Like hyaluronic acid, it helps attract and retain moisture in the skin. It’s known for being gentle and for helping the skin maintain balanced hydration.

Betaine is mainly used to improve hydration and support calmer skin. It helps skin cells regulate water balance because it functions as an osmolyte.

Some studies suggest betaine may support making skin tone more even.

Fun fact: Betaine naturally exists in the skin and the body. In cosmetic products, it can be either plant-derived (most commonly from sugar beets) or synthetically produced for consistency and stability.

Betaine is also known as trimethylglycine.

Hydroxyethylcellulose is used to improve the texture of products. It is created from a chemical reaction involving ethylene oxide and alkali-cellulose. Cellulose is a sugar found in plant cell walls and help give plants structure.

This ingredient helps stabilize products by preventing ingredients from separating. It can also help thicken the texture of a product.

This ingredient can also be found in pill medicines to help our bodies digest other ingredients.

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!

Similar Comparisons

The reference edit

Ingredients, questions
& further reading.

Connected source records selected through this article’s public topic index.

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Formula cabinet

Ingredients & structured notes

Ingredient index

Ingredients Explained

  1. 01These ingredients are found in both products.
  2. 02Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
  3. 03Allantoin is a soothing ingredient known for its protective and moisturizing properties; it's basically a quiet workhorse ingredient you can find in a huge range of cosmetics.
  4. 04Though it can be derived from the comfrey plant, allantoin is produced synthetically for cosmetic products to ensure purity.
  5. 05Research shows it can encourage your skin cells to turn over and renew by stimulating keratinocyte and fibroblast proliferation.
  6. 06It also has mild keratolytic properties to help loosen and shed dead skin cells without being harsh.
  7. 07Studies also suggest allantoin can help calm inflammation by dialing down some of the chemical signals your skin sends out when it is irritated.
  8. 08This ingredient is typically used in the 0.1-0.5% range, and the FDA recognizes it as a skin protectant in OTC products up to 2%.
  9. 09Overall, allantoin is a wonderful addition to most routines; it is stable across a wide pH range (~4-8), works well with other ingredients, and is considered non-sensitizing/non-irritating.
  10. 10Fun fact: Allantoin is naturally occurring in comfrey root, beets, chamomile, and wheat sprouts. Our bodies even produce it as a byproduct of uric acid metabolism.
  11. 11Butylene Glycol (or BG) is used within cosmetic products for a few different reasons:
  12. 12Overall, Butylene Glycol is a safe and well-rounded ingredient that works well with other ingredients.
  13. 13Though 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.
  14. 14Glycerin (or glycerol) is a compound naturally found in your skin. It's a powerhouse humectant that pulls water into the stratum corneum.
  15. 15Topically, glycerin does several things at once:
  16. 16Your 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.
  17. 17Aquaporin-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.
  18. 18This 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.
  19. 19Just know very high concentrations (>40%) can feel tacky in low humidity.
  20. 20Glycerin is the name for this ingredient in American English. British English uses Glycerol/Glycerine.
Source · skinsort.com ⟶
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Product index

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Comparison edit

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