Educated Mess Freeze Frame Peptide Serum Concentrate Versus Medik8 Liquid Peptides

Educated Mess Freeze Frame Peptide Serum Concentrate Versus Medik8 Liquid Peptides

This anti-aging serum is formulated around Resveratrol and Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4 to soften the look of wrinkles and refine skin texture.

This anti-aging serum is formulated around Carnosine and Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5 to soften the look of wrinkles and refine skin texture.

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Water

Glycerin

Acetamidoethoxyethanol

Propylene Glycol

Sodium Acrylates Crosspolymer-2

Cyclopentasiloxane

Polysorbate 20

1,2-Hexanediol

Menthyl Lactate

Resveratrol

Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4

Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-50

Heptapeptide-15 Palmitate

Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-52

Palmitoyl Heptapeptide-18

Diamond Powder

Methylglucoside Phosphate

Copper Lysinate/Prolinate

Sodium Hyaluronate

Lactic Acid/Glycolic Acid Copolymer

Polyvinyl Alcohol

Xanthan Gum

Dimethicone Crosspolymer

Dimethicone

Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6

Hydroxyacetophenone

Glyceryl Caprylate

Phenylpropanol

Phenoxyethanol

Caprylyl Glycol

Water, Glycerin, Acetamidoethoxyethanol, Propylene Glycol, Sodium Acrylates Crosspolymer-2, Cyclopentasiloxane, Polysorbate 20, 1,2-Hexanediol, Menthyl Lactate, Resveratrol, Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-50, Heptapeptide-15 Palmitate, Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-52, Palmitoyl Heptapeptide-18, Diamond Powder, Methylglucoside Phosphate, Copper Lysinate/Prolinate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Lactic Acid/Glycolic Acid Copolymer, Polyvinyl Alcohol, Xanthan Gum, Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Dimethicone, Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6, Hydroxyacetophenone, Glyceryl Caprylate, Phenylpropanol, Phenoxyethanol, Caprylyl Glycol

Butylene Glycol

Inulin

Panthenol

Alpha-Glucan Oligosaccharide

Carnosine

Carbomer

Hydroxypropyl Cyclodextrin

Dunaliella Salina Extract

Ethylhexylglycerin

Citric Acid

Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5

Sodium Benzoate

Acetyl Hexapeptide-8

Tetrapeptide-21

Pentapeptide-18

Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1

Pantolactone

Palmitoyl Tripeptide-38

Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7

Copper Palmitoyl Heptapeptide-14

Potassium Sorbate

Water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Inulin, Sodium Hyaluronate, Panthenol, Alpha-Glucan Oligosaccharide, Carnosine, Carbomer, Polysorbate 20, Caprylyl Glycol, Phenoxyethanol, Hydroxypropyl Cyclodextrin, Dunaliella Salina Extract, Ethylhexylglycerin, Citric Acid, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5, Sodium Benzoate, Acetyl Hexapeptide-8, Tetrapeptide-21, Pentapeptide-18, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1, Pantolactone, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-38, Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7, Glyceryl Caprylate, Lactic Acid/Glycolic Acid Copolymer, Polyvinyl Alcohol, Phenylpropanol, Copper Palmitoyl Heptapeptide-14, Heptapeptide-15 Palmitate, Potassium Sorbate, Xanthan Gum

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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.

Caprylyl Glycol is a humectant, skin conditioner, emollient, and preservative booster derived from either caprylic acid or synthetically created.

Typical use levels vary from 0.3-1% as a preservative booster and go up to 2% to condition skin.

Because it is not a free-fatty acid, this ingredient is fungal acne safe (there's nothing for Malassezia to feed on).

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 Caprylate comes from glycerin and caprylic acid. It is an emollient, co-emulsifier, and preservative booster.

Its short C8 fatty acid chain makes it behave differently from its longer-chain emollient cousins like Glyceryl Stearate. It feels more lightweight, fast-absorbing, and silky instead of rich and waxy.

As a co-emulsifier, its "head" and "tail" sit at the oil-water interface. But overall, the short C8 tail and not being water soluble means it doesn't really have the muscle to emulsify a formula on its own. That's why you'll often see it paired with a primary emulsifier like Cetearyl Glucoside.

Interestingly, Glyceryl Caprylate acts as a preservative booster. This is because its fatty-acid backbone disrupts microbial lipid membranes. It shows excellent activity against bacteria and yeast but is weaker against mold.

Typical concentrations range from 0.5-1% and this ingredient is generally non-irritating.

Because this ingredient has a C8 fatty acid chain, it is outside the range that the Malassezia yeast metabolizes (making it fungal acne safe).

Heptapeptide-15 Palmitate is a synthetic targeting peptide. It's made up of seven amino acids with a palmitic acid tail attached.

This fatty acid attachment increases the molecule's hydrophobicity, improves stability, reduces enzyme degradation, and enhances its ability to cross the skin's lipid barrier (this is a common challenge for peptides).

As a targeting peptide, it sits on the outer shell of an encapsulated ingredient system and seeks out receptors on collagen and elastin producing cells in skin.

Once it binds, the cell internalizes the capsule and releases the active payload inside; it essentially acts as a GPS guiding ingredients to the right place.

It also mimicks the skin's natural growth factors to support skin firmness by upping production of collagen, elastin, glycosaminoglycans (GAGs).

Most of the evidence for this ingredient comes from manufacturer in vitro data, so independent clinical trials are still limited. However, the underlying mechanism is well-supported by the broader cosmetic peptide literature.

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.

This ingredient is a combination of two AHAs, lactic acid and glycolic acid. It has exfoliating properties

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.

Phenylpropanol is a fragrance.

Polysorbate 20 is a gentle, water-soluble emulsifier and mild surfactant. It stops oil and water from separating to keep your formulas blended and stable.

It also acts as a mild penetration enhancer by helping active ingredients absorb slightly better.

The common safety discussion around this ingredient involves a manufacturing byproduct called 1,4-dioxane.

Trace amounts can form during production but the EU's Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety has concluded that levels at/below 10 ppm in finished products are safe (commercial products consistently fall within acceptable margins).

True allergic reactions are uncommon and the CIR Expert Panel has confirmed this ingredient to be safe as used in cosmetics.

Because it is derived from lauric acid, it may not be fungal acne safe.

We don't have a description for Polyvinyl Alcohol yet.

Sodium Hyaluronate is the salt form of hyaluronic acid. It is a long sugar chain that is naturally found in your skin, joints, and connective tissue that maintains hydration and elasticity.

In skincare, it works as a humectant. It pulls water from the environment and deeper layers of skin and binds it to the surface.

Interestingly, the size of the molecule affects its behavior:

Some clinical evidence links low molecular weight versions to improved wrinkle depth, elasticity, anti-inflammatory effects, and barrier repair.

Many serums use a blend of both weights so you can get surface hydration plus longer-lasting and deeper effects.

You'll typically see concentrations between 0.1-2% for this ingredient.

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.

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