Farmacy Honey Halo Ultra-Hydrating Ceramide Moisturizer Versus First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Face Moisturizer

Farmacy Honey Halo Ultra-Hydrating Ceramide Moisturizer Versus First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Face Moisturizer

This barrier-repair moisturizer is formulated around Butyrospermum Parkii Butter and Honey Extract to strengthen the skin barrier and hydrate skin.

This barrier-repair moisturizer is formulated around Avena Sativa Kernel Flour and Squalane to strengthen the skin barrier and calm redness.

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Water

Glycerin

Butyrospermum Parkii Butter

Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride

C13-15 Alkane

Cetearyl Alcohol

Pentaerythrityl Tetraisostearate

1,2-Hexanediol

Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate-1

Diisostearyl Malate

Xylitylglucoside

Honey Extract

Betaine

Panthenol

Hydrogenated Rapeseed Oil

Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil Unsaponifiables

Ceramide NP

Propolis Extract

Royal Jelly Extract

Tocopherol

Ficus Carica Fruit Extract

Hippophae Rhamnoides Oil

Glucose

Bisabolol

Xylitol

Anhydroxylitol

Cetearyl Glucoside

Triolein

Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer

Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer

Arginine

Aroma

Hydroxyacetophenone

Xanthan Gum

Glyceryl Dioleate

Sodium Dilauramidoglutamide Lysine

Sodium Phytate

Sorbitan Isostearate

Citric Acid

Potassium Sorbate

Sodium Benzoate

Water, Glycerin, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, C13-15 Alkane, Cetearyl Alcohol, Pentaerythrityl Tetraisostearate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate-1, Diisostearyl Malate, Xylitylglucoside, Honey Extract, Betaine, Panthenol, Hydrogenated Rapeseed Oil, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil Unsaponifiables, Ceramide NP, Propolis Extract, Royal Jelly Extract, Tocopherol, Ficus Carica Fruit Extract, Hippophae Rhamnoides Oil, Glucose, Bisabolol, Xylitol, Anhydroxylitol, Cetearyl Glucoside, Triolein, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Arginine, Aroma, Hydroxyacetophenone, Xanthan Gum, Glyceryl Dioleate, Sodium Dilauramidoglutamide Lysine, Sodium Phytate, Sorbitan Isostearate, Citric Acid, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate

Glyceryl Stearate Se

Dimethicone

Urea

Cetyl Alcohol

Avena Sativa Kernel Flour

Squalane

Caprylyl Glycol

Allantoin

Persea Gratissima Oil

N-Butyl Alcohol

Carbomer

Chrysanthemum Parthenium Extract

Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract

Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract

Sodium Hydroxide

Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate

Phenoxyethanol

Tetrasodium EDTA

Water, Glyceryl Stearate Se, Glycerin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Dimethicone, Urea, Cetyl Alcohol, Avena Sativa Kernel Flour, Squalane, Caprylyl Glycol, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Allantoin, Persea Gratissima Oil, N-Butyl Alcohol, Carbomer, Chrysanthemum Parthenium Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract, Sodium Hydroxide, Ceramide NP, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Phenoxyethanol, Tetrasodium EDTA

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.

This ingredient is also known as shea butter. It is a plant-derived extract from the nuts of the Africa shea tree and one of the most well-studied emollients.

Because it has a high concentration of fatty acids (primarily oleic, stearic, and linoleic) it is able to form a protective barrier on the skin's surface. This helps seal in moisture and prevents transepidermal water loss (TEWL).

In vitro research found an increase in skin hydration by 58% and a decrease in TEWL by 37.8% after 24 hours of applying this ingredient (pretty impressive for a single ingredient!).

Besides hydration, shea butter also contains triterpenes that have anti-inflammatory potential. In particule, lupeol cinnamate has shown the highest anti-inflammatory activity in vivo.

Shea butter also contains vitamins A and E which may contribute to antioxidant activity.

While Shea Butter has an SPF rating of about 3-4, it is not a sunscreen replacement.

This ingredient may not be fungal acne safe because its fatty acids fall within the C11-C24 range that the Malassezia yeast can metabolize.

Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride (aka MCT Oil) is a lightweight emollient, solvent, and texture enhancer. It is considered a skin-softener by helping to prevent moisture loss.

Though it behaves like an oil, it is not technically one due to its chemical composition. One perk of this ingredient is that it is very stable, resistant to oxidation, and unlikely to go rancid.

In practice, that translates to a long shelf life and a consistently elegant skin feel.

While there is an assumption Caprylic Triglyceride can clog pores due to it being derived from coconut oil, there is no research supporting this. Just patch test if you have concerns.

Fractionated coconut oil and MCT Oil are both listed as Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride according to INCI. This is because INCI names are based on the ingredient’s final chemical composition and not its marketing name or source.

This ingredient is treated as the gold standard fungal acne safe oil. Even though it is coconut derived, the problematic lauric acid is stripped out.

This leaves just caprylic (C8) and capric (C10) acid. These chain lengths actually trend antifungal; a 2020 study found caprylic acid was enough to disrupt Malassezia furfur cell membrane, with a caprylic acid derivative damaging membrane structures at concentrations as low as 0.2%.

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.

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.

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!

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