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First Aid Beauty FAB Pharma White Clay Acne Treatment Pads 2% Salicylic Acid Versus Simple Skincare Kind to Skin Micellar Makeup Remover Wipes

First Aid Beauty FAB Pharma White Clay Acne Treatment Pads 2% Salicylic Acid Versus Simple Skincare Kind to Skin Micellar Makeup Remover Wipes This acne exfoliating pad uses a pre-saturated pad with Salicylic Acid and Kaolin to clear breakouts and balance exce

By Peptide Skincare & Beauty Editorial TeamPublished

First Aid Beauty FAB Pharma White Clay Acne Treatment Pads 2% Salicylic Acid Versus Simple Skincare Kind to Skin Micellar Makeup Remover Wipes

This acne exfoliating pad uses a pre-saturated pad with Salicylic Acid and Kaolin to clear breakouts and balance excess oil.

This cleansing wipe is made to dissolve makeup, sunscreen, and daily buildup.

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Salicylic Acid

Water

Polysorbate 80

Phenoxyethanol

Sodium Hydroxide

Glycerin

Sodium Citrate

Kaolin

Salix Nigra Bark Extract

Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Oil

Butylene Glycol

Potassium Sorbate

Sodium Benzoate

Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract

Chrysanthemum Parthenium Extract

Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract

Capryloyl Glycine

Hexylene Glycol

Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Oil

Sarcosine

Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate

Enantia Chlorantha Bark Extract

Epilobium Angustifolium Flower/Leaf/Stem Extract

Cinnamomum Zeylanicum Bark Extract

Xanthan Gum

Limonene

Oleanolic Acid

Salicylic Acid, Water, Polysorbate 80, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Hydroxide, Glycerin, Sodium Citrate, Kaolin, Salix Nigra Bark Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Oil, Butylene Glycol, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Chrysanthemum Parthenium Extract, Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract, Capryloyl Glycine, Hexylene Glycol, Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Oil, Sarcosine, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Enantia Chlorantha Bark Extract, Epilobium Angustifolium Flower/Leaf/Stem Extract, Cinnamomum Zeylanicum Bark Extract, Xanthan Gum, Limonene, Oleanolic Acid

Cetearyl Isononanoate

Panthenol

Ceteareth-20

Cetearyl Alcohol

Glyceryl Stearate

Ceteareth-12

Benzoic Acid

Dehydroacetic Acid

Disodium EDTA

Tocopheryl Acetate

Water, Cetearyl Isononanoate, Panthenol, Phenoxyethanol, Glycerin, Sodium Citrate, Ceteareth-20, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate, Ceteareth-12, Benzoic Acid, Dehydroacetic Acid, Disodium EDTA, Tocopheryl Acetate

Alternatives

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.

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.

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.

Sodium Citrate is the sodium salts of citric acid. In skincare, it is used to alter pH levels and acts as a preservative.

Its main functions are to maintain the pH of a product and neutralize metal ions.

The acidity of our skin is maintained by our glands and skin biome; normal pH level of skin is slightly acidic (~4.75-5.5).

Being slightly acidic allows our skin to create an "acid mantle". This acid mantle is a thin barrier that protects our skin from bacteria and contaminants.

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.

01

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. 03Arnica Montana Flower is more commonly known as Wolf's Bane. While this flower has been used in traditional medicine, its skin benefits are in question.
  4. 04The FDA considers Wolf's Bane to be an unsafe herb. They advise against taking it orally or applying it to broken skin.
  5. 05Wolf's Bane has been said to have anti-inflammatory properties. However, studies are conflicting about whether this is true.
  6. 06According to the Final report on the safety assessment of Arnica montana, this plant has not been found to cause dermal irritation.
  7. 07This flower contains numerous fatty acids such as palmitic, linoleic, myristic, and linolenic acids. The presence and amount of fatty acids depends on where the flower is harvested.
  8. 08Like other flowers, this ingredient has a natural fragrance. It can also be used to mask, or cover, the unpleasant scents from other ingredients.
  9. 09Butylene Glycol (or BG) is used within cosmetic products for a few different reasons:
  10. 10Overall, Butylene Glycol is a safe and well-rounded ingredient that works well with other ingredients.
  11. 11Though 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.
  12. 12Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract (tea extract) is one of the most well-researched plant extracts in skincare with an impressive resume.
  13. 13Black tea, green tea, and oolong tea are all harvested from the Camellia Sinensis plant.
  14. 14Studies show green tea extract and its catechins (like epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG)) help your skin cells product energy more efficiently and reducing the number of free-radicals that can damage your skin from the inside.
  15. 15In lab-grown skin models, this translated to younger, healthier, and stronger skin.
  16. 16There's also good sun protection data; researchers saw less DNA damage and redness on human skin when green tea was applied before UVB exposure. And the more they applied, the better the protection.
  17. 17Needless to say, this ingredient shouldn't replace your sunscreen. But it is a great supportive ingredient that you can already find in many sunscreens and antioxidant serums.
  18. 18A 2009 study found a 2% green tea lotion was effective for mild-to-moderate acne thanks to its anti-inflammatory and mild antimicrobial activity.
  19. 19The quality of the extract matters a lot here:
  20. 20Good extracts contain 50-90% catechins while lower quality ones are mostly there for marketing. We recommend reaching out to the brand if you have questions about the quality or source of their ingredients.
Source · skinsort.com ⟶
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