Skin science article
First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream Intense Hydration Versus Laneige Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Cream Moisturizer
First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream Intense Hydration Versus Laneige Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Cream Moisturizer This calming moisturizer is formulated around Colloidal Oatmeal and Squalane to calm redness and hydrate skin. This barrier-repair moisturizer is
First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream Intense Hydration Versus Laneige Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Cream Moisturizer
This calming moisturizer is formulated around Colloidal Oatmeal and Squalane to calm redness and hydrate skin.
This barrier-repair moisturizer is formulated around Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid and Ceramide AP to strengthen the skin barrier and hydrate skin.
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Colloidal Oatmeal 0.5%
Water
Stearic Acid
Glycerin
C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
Glyceryl Stearate Se
Glyceryl Stearate
Cetearyl Alcohol
Dimethicone
Squalane
Butyrospermum Parkii Butter
Phenoxyethanol
Caprylyl Glycol
Xanthan Gum
Allantoin
Sodium Hydroxide
Tetrasodium EDTA
Chrysanthemum Parthenium Extract
Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract
Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract
Ceramide NP
Eucalyptus Globulus Leaf Oil
Colloidal Oatmeal 0.5%, Water, Stearic Acid, Glycerin, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Glyceryl Stearate Se, Glyceryl Stearate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Dimethicone, Squalane, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Phenoxyethanol, Caprylyl Glycol, Xanthan Gum, Allantoin, Sodium Hydroxide, Tetrasodium EDTA, Chrysanthemum Parthenium Extract, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract, Ceramide NP, Eucalyptus Globulus Leaf Oil
Butylene Glycol
PPG-5 Caprylyl Ether
Polyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate
Methyl Trimethicone
Pentaerythrityl Tetraethylhexanoate
Ceramide AP
1,2-Hexanediol
Stearyl Dimethicone
Bis-Hydroxyethoxypropyl Dimethicone
Cetyl Alcohol
Lactobacillus Ferment Lysate
Caprylic/Capric/Myristic/Stearic Triglyceride
Palmitic Acid
Panthenol
Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer
Propanediol
Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Glyceryl Caprylate
Dextrin
Tromethamine
Ethylhexylglycerin
Disodium EDTA
Sorbitan Isostearate
Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid
Parfum
Beta-Glucan
Cholesterol
Mannitol
Tocopherol
Acetyl Tetrapeptide-11
Undaria Pinnatifida Extract
Water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, PPG-5 Caprylyl Ether, Polyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate, Methyl Trimethicone, Glyceryl Stearate, Pentaerythrityl Tetraethylhexanoate, Ceramide AP, 1,2-Hexanediol, Stearyl Dimethicone, Bis-Hydroxyethoxypropyl Dimethicone, Cetyl Alcohol, Lactobacillus Ferment Lysate, Caprylic/Capric/Myristic/Stearic Triglyceride, Palmitic Acid, Stearic Acid, Panthenol, Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer, Propanediol, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Xanthan Gum, Glyceryl Caprylate, Dextrin, Tromethamine, Ethylhexylglycerin, Disodium EDTA, Sorbitan Isostearate, Allantoin, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Ceramide NP, Parfum, Beta-Glucan, Cholesterol, Mannitol, Tocopherol, Acetyl Tetrapeptide-11, Undaria Pinnatifida Extract
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.
Allantoin 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.
Though it can be derived from the comfrey plant, allantoin is produced synthetically for cosmetic products to ensure purity.
Research shows it can encourage your skin cells to turn over and renew by stimulating keratinocyte and fibroblast proliferation.
It also has mild keratolytic properties to help loosen and shed dead skin cells without being harsh.
Studies also suggest allantoin can help calm inflammation by dialing down some of the chemical signals your skin sends out when it is irritated.
This 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%.
Overall, 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.
Fun 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.
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.
Glyceryl Stearate is made by reacting glycerin with stearic acid (typically sourced from plant oils like palm or coconut). It's an emulsifier, emollient, and mild occlusive.
Emulsifiers help ingredients like oil and water stay mixed so your formula stays nicely blended and uniform in texture.
This ingredient is typically used in concentrations between 1-10%. Studies have found it to be non-sensitizing, non-phototoxic, and non-photoallergenic.
A close cousin of this ingredient is Glyceryl Stearate SE ("self-emulsifying"). This just has a small amount of sodium or potassium stearate added so it can emulsify without a co-emulsifier.
Since this ingredient is an ester of a C18 fatty acid, it may not be fungal acne safe. The Malassezia yeast can potentially metabolize within the C11-C24 range.
Fun fact: The human body also creates Glyceryl Stearate naturally.
Stearic Acid is a fatty acid that is already found in your skin. It's one of the free fatty acids that works alongside ceramides and cholesterols to maintain your barrier.
In cosmetics, it is a multitasker:
Safety-wise, the CIR Expert Panel has concluded it to be safe in cosmetics when formulated to be non-irritating and non-sensitizing.
Free stearic acid is a C18 fatty acid that the Malassezia yeast can substrate, so this ingredient may not be fungal acne safe.
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.