Skin science article
BYOMA Moisturizing Gel-Cream SPF 30 Versus Beauty of Joseon Ginseng Moist Sun Serum SPF 50+ PA++++
BYOMA Moisturizing Gel-Cream SPF 30 Versus Beauty of Joseon Ginseng Moist Sun Serum SPF 50+ PA++++ This chemical sunscreen covers most of the UV range, lighter on the deep UVA that drives aging. This chemical sunscreen covers the full UV range and blocks ~98%
BYOMA Moisturizing Gel-Cream SPF 30 Versus Beauty of Joseon Ginseng Moist Sun Serum SPF 50+ PA++++
This chemical sunscreen covers most of the UV range, lighter on the deep UVA that drives aging.
This chemical sunscreen covers the full UV range and blocks ~98% of UVB at SPF 50.
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane 3%
Homosalate 10%
Ethylhexyl Salicylate 5%
Water
Glycerin
Butyloctyl Salicylate
Propanediol
Dimethicone
Beta-Glucan
Sodium Hyaluronate
Caprylhydroxamic Acid
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Ceramide NP
Cholesterol
Phytosphingosine
Caprylyl Glycol
Dextrin Palmitate
Dibutyl Ethylhexanoyl Glutamide
Stearic Acid
Oleic Acid
Dibutyl Lauroyl Glutamide
Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer
Hydrogenated Lecithin
Eugenia Caryophyllus Bud Extract
Hydroxyacetophenone
Lactic Acid
Lecithin
Octyldodecanol
1,2-Hexanediol
Panthenol
Poly C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate
Pullulan
Sclerotium Gum
Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate
Solidago Virgaurea Extract
Tocopherol
Xanthan Gum
Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane 3%, Homosalate 10%, Ethylhexyl Salicylate 5%, Water, Glycerin, Butyloctyl Salicylate, Propanediol, Dimethicone, Beta-Glucan, Sodium Hyaluronate, Caprylhydroxamic Acid, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Ceramide NP, Cholesterol, Phytosphingosine, Caprylyl Glycol, Dextrin Palmitate, Dibutyl Ethylhexanoyl Glutamide, Stearic Acid, Oleic Acid, Dibutyl Lauroyl Glutamide, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Eugenia Caryophyllus Bud Extract, Hydroxyacetophenone, Lactic Acid, Lecithin, Octyldodecanol, 1,2-Hexanediol, Panthenol, Poly C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate, Pullulan, Sclerotium Gum, Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate, Solidago Virgaurea Extract, Tocopherol, Xanthan Gum
Butylene Glycol
Dibutyl Adipate
Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate
Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine
Alcohol
Acrylates Copolymer
C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate
Ethylhexyl Triazone
Phenethyl Benzoate
Arbutin
Silica
Methylpropanediol
Isoamyl P-Methoxycinnamate
Polysilicone-15
Polymethylsilsesquioxane
Panax Ginseng Root Extract
Pentylene Glycol
C30-45 Alkyldimethylsilyl Polypropylsilsesquioxane
Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/Vp Copolymer
Sodium Acrylates Crosspolymer-2
Ethyl Hexanediol
Panax Ginseng Berry Extract
Panax Ginseng Extract
Panax Ginseng Leaf/Stem Extract
Adenosine
Disodium EDTA
Ethylhexylglycerin
Water, Butylene Glycol, Dibutyl Adipate, Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate, Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine, Alcohol, Acrylates Copolymer, Butyloctyl Salicylate, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Ethylhexyl Triazone, Phenethyl Benzoate, Arbutin, 1,2-Hexanediol, Silica, Methylpropanediol, Isoamyl P-Methoxycinnamate, Polysilicone-15, Polymethylsilsesquioxane, Panax Ginseng Root Extract, Pentylene Glycol, Dibutyl Ethylhexanoyl Glutamide, Dibutyl Lauroyl Glutamide, C30-45 Alkyldimethylsilyl Polypropylsilsesquioxane, Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/Vp Copolymer, Sodium Acrylates Crosspolymer-2, Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate, Ethyl Hexanediol, Hydroxyacetophenone, Panax Ginseng Berry Extract, Panax Ginseng Extract, Panax Ginseng Leaf/Stem Extract, Adenosine, Xanthan Gum, Disodium EDTA, Ethylhexylglycerin, Glycerin, Tocopherol
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.
1,2-Hexanediol is a synthetic liquid and another multi-functional powerhouse.
It is a:
Humectant, drawing moisture into the skin
Emollient, helping to soften skin
Solvent, dispersing and stabilizing formulas
Preservative booster, enhancing the antimicrobial activity of other preservatives
Butyloctyl Salicylate is a chemical UV filter structurally similar to octisalate. It is a photostabilizer, SPF booster, emollient and solvent. This ingredient helps evenly spread out ingredients.
According to a manufacturer, it is suitable for pairing with micro Titanium Dioxide, Zinc Oxide, and pigments.
Photostabilizers help stabilize UV-filters and prevents them from degrading quickly.
We don't have a description for Dibutyl Ethylhexanoyl Glutamide yet.
We don't have a description for Dibutyl Lauroyl Glutamide 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.
Hydroxyacetophenone is a small phenolic molecule that earns its place in a formulas as an antioxidant and preservative booster.
As a phenol, it is able to neutralize free radicals to protect both the product and the skin from oxidative stress.
Though it can't kill microbes on its own, it works as a good supporting agent when combined with other preservatives like Phenoxyethanol or 1,2-Hexanediol.
This ingredient naturally occurs as piceol in Norwegian spruce needles (~0.4-1.1% dry weight and in cloudberries). Though the cosmetic-grade material is synthesized for purity and consistency.
You'll usually see it used at low levels and suppliers recommend up to 1% added to a water phase.
Safety testing was done at concentrations like 0.05% in SPF products and 0.5% in a Human Repeated Insult Patch Test. The safety evidence is assuring; this ingredient is safe for cosmetics in current use and also holds safety status as a food flavoring as well.
An honest caveat: the "soothing" and "anti-inflammatory" claims come mostly from supplier marketing rather than published clinical trials. The Cosmetic Ingredient Review's own literature search found no useful efficacy studies on this ingredient.
So the antioxidant and preservative-boosting roles are the well supported ones while the calming benefit is plausible but thinly evidenced.
Overall, this is a well-tolerated, low-irritation multitasker that quietly helps a formula stay fresh and stable.
This is a lab-made ingredient that plays a huge role in improving the texture of a formula.
It's used to thicken watery gel-creams, prevent water + oil from separating, and give products a silky, non-greasy glide.
Safety-wise, a panel of independent toxicologists reviewed this ingredient and concluded it to be safe in cosmetics in the present practices of use and concentration.
A separate sensitization patch test on humans also showed no evidence of allergic reactivity, and a true allergy to this ingredient is considered rare.
Typical usage levels range from 0.015%-3% in leave-on products and 0.078%-3.2% in rinse-off products.
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!
Xanthan gum is used as a stabilizer and thickener within cosmetic products. It helps give products a sticky, thick feeling - preventing them from being too runny.
On the technical side of things, xanthan gum is a polysaccharide - a combination consisting of multiple sugar molecules bonded together.
Xanthan gum is a pretty common and great ingredient. It is a natural, non-toxic, non-irritating ingredient that is also commonly used in food products.