MediCube Triple Collagen Serum Versus Numbuzin No.4 Collagen 73% Pudding Serum

MediCube Triple Collagen Serum Versus Numbuzin No.4 Collagen 73% Pudding Serum

This anti-aging serum is formulated around Niacinamide and Adenosine to soften the look of wrinkles.

This anti-aging serum is formulated around Collagen Extract and Niacinamide to soften the look of wrinkles and hydrate skin.

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Sea Water

Glycerin

Butylene Glycol

Cetyl Ethylhexanoate

1,2-Hexanediol

Alcohol Denat.

Niacinamide

Glycereth-26

Adenosine

Hydrolyzed Collagen

Hyaluronic Acid

Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid

Sodium Hyaluronate

Soluble Collagen

Collagen Extract

Atelocollagen

Propanediol

Cyclopentasiloxane

Trehalose

Carbomer

Cetearyl Olivate

Tromethamine

Cyclohexasiloxane

Sorbitan Olivate

Ethylhexylglycerin

Disodium EDTA

Dimethicone

Parfum

Sea Water, Glycerin, Butylene Glycol, Cetyl Ethylhexanoate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Alcohol Denat., Niacinamide, Glycereth-26, Adenosine, Hydrolyzed Collagen, Hyaluronic Acid, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Sodium Hyaluronate, Soluble Collagen, Collagen Extract, Atelocollagen, Propanediol, Cyclopentasiloxane, Trehalose, Carbomer, Cetearyl Olivate, Tromethamine, Cyclohexasiloxane, Sorbitan Olivate, Ethylhexylglycerin, Disodium EDTA, Dimethicone, Parfum

Collagen Extract 73%

Water

PEG-240/Hdi Copolymer Bis-Decyltetradeceth-20 Ether

Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride

Methylpropanediol

Polyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate

Hydroxyethyl Urea

Cellulose Gum

Dicaprylyl Ether

Caprylyl Methicone

Glyceryl Polymethacrylate

Glyceryl Stearate

Rose Extract

Wine Extract

Sucrose

Mineral Salts

Potassium Laurate

Tocopherol

Potassium Hyaluronate

Hydrolyzed Elastin

Hydrolyzed Keratin

Hydrolyzed Silk

Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate

Hydroxypropyltrimonium Hyaluronate

Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer

Dimethylsilanol Hyaluronate

Caprylyl Glycol

Hydrogenated Lecithin

Sodium Phosphate

Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5

Acetyl Hexapeptide-8

Oligopeptide-3

Collagen Extract 73%, Butylene Glycol, Water, 1,2-Hexanediol, Glycerin, Glycereth-26, Niacinamide, PEG-240/Hdi Copolymer Bis-Decyltetradeceth-20 Ether, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Methylpropanediol, Polyglyceryl-3 Methylglucose Distearate, Hydroxyethyl Urea, Cellulose Gum, Dicaprylyl Ether, Caprylyl Methicone, Glyceryl Polymethacrylate, Glyceryl Stearate, Rose Extract, Wine Extract, Sucrose, Adenosine, Disodium EDTA, Mineral Salts, Sodium Hyaluronate, Potassium Laurate, Tocopherol, Potassium Hyaluronate, Ethylhexylglycerin, Hydrolyzed Elastin, Hydrolyzed Keratin, Hydrolyzed Silk, Hyaluronic Acid, Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid, Sodium Acetylated Hyaluronate, Hydroxypropyltrimonium Hyaluronate, Sodium Hyaluronate Crosspolymer, Dimethylsilanol Hyaluronate, Caprylyl Glycol, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Sodium Phosphate, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-5, Acetyl Hexapeptide-8, Oligopeptide-3, Parfum

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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.

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

Adenosine is a purine nucleoside that your body already makes in every cell. In skincare, it acts mainly as a skin conditioning and anti-aging agent.

The way it works is fairly well mapped out:

Your skin has cells called fibroblasts that build collagen (the stuff that keeps skin firm and smooth). Adenosine basically flips a switch on these cells that tells them to get to work making more collagen and other proteins. These cells slow down on their own as skin ages, so Adenosine helps give them a little nudge to keep going.

The clinical backing is pretty solid too.

A blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial of 126 women aged 45-65 tested a 0.1% cream twice daily and found real improvements in crow's feet and frown lines using a precise 3D skin-mapping technique; these changes showed up by week 3 and held at 2 months.

A later study using Adenosine-loaded dissolving microneedle patches reported gains in wrinkle depth, dermal density, elasticity, and hydration.

On concentrations, South Korea's Ministry of Food and Drug Safety has set 0.04% as the approved functional anti-wrinkle level. You'll typically see this ingredient used somewhere in the 0.04-0.1% range since it works at low doses.

This ingredient has been found safe for cosmetics with the data showing no irritation or sensitization.

Overall, this is a great ingredient for any anti-aging routine and has no photosensitizing effect, so it suits both AM and PM use.

Butylene Glycol (or BG) is used within cosmetic products for a few different reasons:

Overall, Butylene Glycol is a safe and well-rounded ingredient that works well with other ingredients.

Though 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.

Collagen extract is derived from parts of animals. It has skin conditioning properties and is mostly comprised of glycine, proline, and hydroxypoline. These are amino acids.

While our skin does have collagen, this ingredient is not used by the skin for anti-aging. Applying collagen topically has not been linked to helping with collagen loss in skin. All the benefits of collagen are related to hydration.

This ingredient will not increase sun sensitivity, but you should always wear sunscreen during the day.

Disodium EDTA is a chelating agent. It grabs onto and deactivates metal ions that sneak into your products from water, packaging, or air.

This ingredient mainly works behind the scenes and helps with:

On top of that, this ingredient can counteract the effects of hard water by binding to the minerals in it.

One thing worth knowing is that Disodium EDTA has been shown to be a mild penetration enhancer. It can help other ingredients absorb into skin more effectively which can be a double-edged sword (great for actives, but can also make the active too strong if you have sensitive skin).

Clinical patch testing showed no significant skin irritation at typical use concentrations and minimal dermal absorption.

You'll most likely see this ingredient near the end of an ingredient list. It's typically found in concentrations less than 1%.

Ethylhexylglycerin is created from glycerin. It is a multitasker ingredient that:

The CIR Expert Panel found minimal skin absorption or sensitization of any kind in a safety assessment. Though this ingredient is considered well-tolerated, a small number of cases of allergic dermatitis have been published since 2002. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure.

Industry-reported use ranges from 8% in rinse-off products and 2% in leave-on formulations.

Glycereth-26 is a synthetic ingredient and polyethylene glycol ether of Glycerin. Glycerin is already naturally found in your skin and helps keep your skin moisturized.

It is a humectant and helps add texture to products. It can make your product thicker.

As a humectant, it helps draw moisture from the air to your skin. This helps your skin stay hydrated.

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.

Hyaluronic acid (HA) is a glycosaminoglycan (basically a long sugar chain) that your skin already makes on its own. In your skin, HA lives in the extracellular matrix and acts as the body's moisture reservoir.

Topically, HA is a humectant that binds water and helps skin look more plump, smooth, and hydrated.

The only catch is that HA isn't a single thing; it actually comes in a wide range of molecular weights (~50 - 2,000+ kDA) and size matters.

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

This is why the best HA serums blend the two sizes together so you get the best of both worlds.

The majority of cosmetic HA is produced by bacterial fermentation, typically using Streptococcus or Bacillus strains. Typical use levels in skincare sit around 0.1-2%.

A clinical study using a 0.2% low-molecular weight HA gel showed improvement in facial seborrheic dermatitis with excellent tolerance.

These are some other common types of Hyaluronic Acid:

Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid is hyaluronic acid (HA) that is broken down into lower molecular weight fragments.

It's a humectant that pulls and holds water in the skin to help with hydration, plumpness, and reduce transepidermal water loss.

Because hydrolyzed hyaluronic acid is smaller in size, it can slip past your outermost layer of skin more easily than full-sized HA.

Most formulations will combine all sizes to get the best of both worlds.

Typical usage levels range from 0.01-1%. Any percentage higher than 2% might become goopy and tacky.

Niacinamide is a multitasking form of vitamin B3 that strengthens the skin barrier, reduces pores and dark spots, regulates oil, and improves signs of aging.

And the best part? It's gentle and well-tolerated by most skin types, including sensitive and reactive skin.

You might have heard of "niacin flush", or the reddening of skin that causes itchiness. Niacinamide has not been found to cause this.

In very rare cases, some individuals may not be able to tolerate niacinamide at all or experience an allergic reaction to it.

If you are experiencing flaking, irritation, and dryness with this ingredient, be sure to double check all your products as this ingredient can be found in all categories of skincare.

When incorporating niacinamide into your routine, look out for concentration amounts. Typically, 5% niacinamide provides benefits such as fading dark spots. However, if you have sensitive skin, it is better to begin with a smaller concentration.

When you apply niacinamide to your skin, your body converts it into nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD). NAD is an essential coenzyme that is already found in your cells as "fuel" and powers countless biological processes.

In your skin, NAD helps repair cell damage, produce new healthy cells, support collagen production, strengthen the skin barrier, and fight environmental stressors (like UV and pollution).

Our natural NAD levels start to decline with age, leading to slower skin repair, visible aging, and a weaker skin barrier. By providing your skin niacinamide, you're recharging your skin's NAD levels. This leads to stronger, healthier, and younger looking skin.

Another name for vitamin B3 is nicotinamide. This vitamin is water-soluble and our bodies don't store it. We obtain Vitamin B3 from either food or skincare. Meat, fish, wheat, yeast, and leafy greens contain vitamin B3.

The type of niacinamide used in skincare is synthetically created.

Parfum is a catch-all term for an ingredient or more that is used to give a scent to products.

Also called "fragrance", this ingredient can be a blend of hundreds of chemicals or plant oils. This means every product with "fragrance" or "parfum" in the ingredients list is a different mixture.

For instance, Habanolide is a proprietary trade name for a specific aroma chemical. When used as a fragrance ingredient in cosmetics, most aroma chemicals fall under the broad labeling category of “FRAGRANCE” or “PARFUM” according to EU and US regulations.

The term 'parfum' or 'fragrance' is not regulated in many countries. In many cases, it is up to the brand to define this term.

For instance, many brands choose to label themselves as "fragrance-free" because they are not using synthetic fragrances. However, their products may still contain ingredients such as essential oils that are considered a fragrance by INCI standards.

One example is Calendula flower extract. Calendula is an essential oil that still imparts a scent or 'fragrance'.

Depending on the blend, the ingredients in the mixture can cause allergies and sensitivities on the skin. Some ingredients that are known EU allergens include linalool and citronellol.

Parfum can also be used to mask or cover an unpleasant scent.

The bottom line is: not all fragrances/parfum/ingredients are created equally. If you are worried about fragrances, we recommend taking a closer look at an ingredient. And of course, we always recommend speaking with a professional.

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:

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.

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