Skin science article
The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser Versus Panoxyl Acne Creamy Wash Benzoyl Peroxide 4% Daily Control
The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser Versus Panoxyl Acne Creamy Wash Benzoyl Peroxide 4% Daily Control This salicylic acid gel cleanser is formulated around Salicylic Acid to clear breakouts and unclog pores. This benzoyl peroxide cream cleanser is formulate
The INKEY List Salicylic Acid Cleanser Versus Panoxyl Acne Creamy Wash Benzoyl Peroxide 4% Daily Control
This salicylic acid gel cleanser is formulated around Salicylic Acid to clear breakouts and unclog pores.
This benzoyl peroxide cream cleanser is formulated around Benzoyl Peroxide to clear breakouts and help reduce acne-causing bacteria.
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Propanediol
Glycerin
Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
PEG-120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate
Salicylic Acid
PEG-150 Pentaerythrityl Tetrastearate
PEG-6 Caprylic/Capric Glycerides
Betaine
Zinc PCA
Phenoxyethanol
Sodium Chloride
Allantoin
Sodium Hydroxide
Coco-Glucoside
Glyceryl Oleate
Benzyl Alcohol
Coconut Acid
Ethylhexylglycerin
Sodium Benzoate
Citric Acid
Dehydroacetic Acid
Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate
Tocopherol
Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides Citrate
Water, Propanediol, Glycerin, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, PEG-120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate, Salicylic Acid, PEG-150 Pentaerythrityl Tetrastearate, PEG-6 Caprylic/Capric Glycerides, Betaine, Zinc PCA, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Chloride, Allantoin, Sodium Hydroxide, Coco-Glucoside, Glyceryl Oleate, Benzyl Alcohol, Coconut Acid, Ethylhexylglycerin, Sodium Benzoate, Citric Acid, Dehydroacetic Acid, Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate, Tocopherol, Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides Citrate
Benzoyl Peroxide 4%
Carbomer
Decyl Glucoside
Dimethicone
Diethylhexyl Sodium Sulfosuccinate
Palmitic Acid
Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6
PEG-40 Stearate
Silica
Sodium Citrate
Sodium Laurylglucosides Hydroxypropylsulfonate
Sorbitan Stearate
Sorbitol
Stearic Acid
T-Butyl Alcohol
Xanthan Gum
Benzoyl Peroxide 4%, Carbomer, Decyl Glucoside, Dimethicone, Diethylhexyl Sodium Sulfosuccinate, Glycerin, Palmitic Acid, Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6, PEG-40 Stearate, Propanediol, Water, Silica, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Citrate, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Laurylglucosides Hydroxypropylsulfonate, Sorbitan Stearate, Sorbitol, Stearic Acid, T-Butyl Alcohol, Xanthan Gum
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.
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.
Propanediol is an all-star ingredient. It softens, hydrates, and smooths the skin.
It’s often used to:
Propanediol is not likely to cause sensitivity and considered safe to use. It is derived from corn or petroleum with a clear color and no scent.
Chances are, you eat sodium chloride every day. Sodium Chloride is also known as table salt. This ingredient has many purposes in skincare: thickener, emulsifier, and exfoliator.
You'll most likely find this ingredient in cleansers where it is used to create a gel-like texture. As an emulsifier, it also prevents ingredients from separating.
You might see people debate whether Sodium Chloride is comedogenic, but there actually haven't been any comedogenic tests done on it. Either way, the overall formulation of a product matters a lot more than any single ingredient.
You might see this ingredient used in scrubs as a primary exfoliating ingredient.
Sodium Hydroxide is also known as lye or caustic soda. It is used to adjust the pH of products; many ingredients require a specific pH to be effective.
In small amounts, sodium hydroxide is considered safe to use. However, large amounts may cause chemical burns due to its high alkaline.
Your skin has a natural pH and acid mantle. This acid mantle helps prevent harmful bacteria from breaking through. The acid mantle also helps keep your skin hydrated.
"Alkaline" refers to a high pH level. A low pH level would be considered acidic.
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!