Paula's Choice Skin Balancing Oil-Reducing Cleanser Versus Beautycounter Countermatch Refresh Foaming Cleanser

Paula's Choice Skin Balancing Oil-Reducing Cleanser Versus Beautycounter Countermatch Refresh Foaming Cleanser Detailed comparison of Paula's Choice Skin Balancing Oil-Reducing Cleanser versus Beautycounter Countermatch Refresh Foaming Cleanser. This mild cream cleanser is made to cleanse without leaving your skin tight or dry. This mild foaming cleanser is made to cleanse without leaving your skin tight or dry. No key ingredients Water Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate Sodium Lauroamphoacetate Stearic Acid Glycerin Glycol Distearate Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil Acrylates Copolymer Cetearyl Alcohol Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract Sodium Chloride Sodium Hydroxide Xanthan Gum Caprylyl Glycol Hexylene Glycol Disodium EDTA Phenoxyethanol Water, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Sodium Lauroamphoacetate, Stearic Acid, Glycerin, Glycol Distearate, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Acrylates Copolymer, Cetearyl Alcohol, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Hydroxide, Xanthan Gum, Caprylyl Glycol, Hexylene Glycol, Disodium EDTA, Phenoxyethanol Prunus Domestica Seed Extract Sodium Methyl Oleoyl Taurate Lauroyl/Myristoyl Methyl Glucamide Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine Squalane Phytic Acid Acacia Senegal Gum Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer Sorbic Acid Ethylhexylglycerin Potassium Sorbate Sodium Carbonate Tocopherol Citric Acid Water, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Prunus Domestica Seed Extract, Sodium Methyl Oleoyl Taurate, Lauroyl/Myristoyl Methyl Glucamide, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Glycol Distearate, Stearic Acid, Glycerin, Sodium Chloride, Squalane, Phytic Acid, Xanthan Gum, Acacia Senegal Gum, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Sorbic Acid, Ethylhexylglycerin, Sodium Hydroxide, Potassium Sorbate, Phenoxyethanol, Sodium Carbonate, Tocopherol, Citric Acid 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. Glycol Distearate is an emulsifier and emollient that adds a "pearly" appearance to formulations. That lustrous look you see in many shampoos is due to this ingredient: when cooled, it crystallizes into small platelets that reflect light to give products that rich, shimmering look. This ingredient is considered safe at present practices of use and concentration and repeated insult patch test with 50% Glycol Distearate on 125 subjects found no evidence of skin irritation, hypersensitivity, or acute toxicity. Typical use concentrations range from 0.1-10%. Because it's an ester of stearic acid, it falls into the range that Malassezia likes to metabolize. This ingredient may not be fungal acne safe. 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 ge