GS AHA BHA Facial Toner [RENEWED since 2021]
Highlights
Key Ingredients
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Ingredient name | what-it-does | irr., com. | ID-Rating |
---|---|---|---|
*Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract | soothing, emollient, moisturizer/humectant | goodie | |
Glycolic Acid | exfoliant, buffering | superstar | |
Propanediol | solvent, moisturizer/humectant | ||
1,2-Hexanediol | solvent | ||
Niacinamide | cell-communicating ingredient, skin brightening, anti-acne, moisturizer/humectant | superstar | |
Betaine Salicylate | exfoliant, antimicrobial/antibacterial | ||
Salicylic Acid | exfoliant, anti-acne, soothing, preservative | superstar | |
Sodium Hydroxide | buffering | ||
*Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract | antioxidant, soothing | goodie | |
*Momordica Charantia Fruit Extract | |||
*Sambucus Nigra Flower Extract | soothing | ||
*Leontopodium Alpinum Extract |
Cos De BAHA GS AHA BHA Facial Toner [RENEWED since 2021]Ingredients explained
The extract coming from the juice containing leaves of the Aloe vera plant. It's usually a hydroglycolic extract (though oil extract for the lipid parts also exists) that has similar moisturizing, emollient and anti-inflammatory properties as the juice itself. We have written some more about aloe here.
- It’s the most researched AHA with the most proven skin benefits
- It gently lifts off dead skin cells to reveal newer, fresher, smoother skin
- It can help skin’s own collagen production that results in firmer, younger skin
- It can fade brown spots caused by sun damage or PIH
- Choose a product where you know the concentration and pH value because these two greatly influence effectiveness
- Don’t forget to use your sunscreen (in any case but especially so next to an AHA product)
- Slight stinging or burning with a stronger AHA product is normal
- If your skin is very sensitive, rosacea prone choose rather a BHA or PHA product
Propanediol is a natural alternative for the often used and often bad-mouthed propylene glycol. It's produced sustainably from corn sugar and it's Ecocert approved.
It's quite a multi-tasker: can be used to improve skin moisturization, as a solvent, to boost preservative efficacy or to influence the sensory properties of the end formula.
A really multi-functional helper ingredient that can do several things in a skincare product: it can bring a soft and pleasant feel to the formula, it can act as a humectant and emollient, it can be a solvent for some other ingredients (for example it can help to stabilize perfumes in watery products) and it can also help to disperse pigments more evenly in makeup products. And that is still not all: it can also boost the antimicrobial activity of preservatives.
- A multi-functional skincare superstar with several proven benefits for the skin
- Great anti-aging, wrinkle smoothing ingredient used at 4-5% concentration
- Fades brown spots alone or in combination with amino sugar, acetyl glucosamine
- Increases ceramide synthesis that results in a stronger, healthier skin barrier and better skin hydration
- Can help to improve several skin conditions including acne, rosacea, and atopic dermatitis
The combination of famous exfoliant, salicylic acid and gentle moisturizer, betaine. It counts as a mild exfoliant and natural moisturizer, skin smoothing agent.
You usually find this guy in K-Beauty products, as due to regulations, pure salicylic acid can be used only in tiny amounts in South-Korean formulations. A generally accepted ballpark number is that betaine salicylate is twice as gentle as salicylic acid, i.e. a 4% betaine salicylate product is similar to a 2% salicylic acid one.
- It's one of the gold standard ingredients for treating problem skin
- It can exfoliate skin both on the surface and in the pores
- It's a potent anti-inflammatory agent
- It's more effective for treating blackheads than acne
- For acne combine it with antibacterial agents like benzoyl peroxide or azelaic acid
The unfancy name for it is lye. It’s a solid white stuff that’s very alkaline and used in small amounts to adjust the pH of the product and make it just right.
For example, in case of AHA or BHA exfoliants, the right pH is super-duper important, and pH adjusters like sodium hydroxide are needed.
BTW, lye is not something new. It was already used by ancient Egyptians to help oil and fat magically turn into something else. Can you guess what? Yes, it’s soap. It still often shows up in the ingredient list of soaps and other cleansers.
Sodium hydroxide in itself is a potent skin irritant, but once it's reacted (as it is usually in skin care products, like exfoliants) it is totally harmless.
- Green tea is one of the most researched natural ingredients
- The active parts are called polyphenols, or more precisely catechins (EGCG being the most abundant and most active catechin)
- There can be huge quality differences between green tea extracts. The good ones contain 50-90% catechins (and often make the product brown and give it a distinctive smell)
- Green tea is proven to be a great antioxidant, UV protectant, anti-inflammatory, anticarcinogenic and antimicrobial
- Because of these awesome properties green tea is a great choice for anti-aging and also for skin diseases including rosacea, acne and atopic dermatitis
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We don't have description for this ingredient yet.
We don't have description for this ingredient yet.
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what‑it‑does | soothing | emollient | moisturizer/humectant |
what‑it‑does | exfoliant | buffering |
what‑it‑does | solvent | moisturizer/humectant |
what‑it‑does | solvent |
what‑it‑does | cell-communicating ingredient | skin brightening | anti-acne | moisturizer/humectant |
what‑it‑does | exfoliant | antimicrobial/antibacterial |
what‑it‑does | exfoliant | anti-acne | soothing | preservative |
what‑it‑does | buffering |
what‑it‑does | antioxidant | soothing |
what‑it‑does | soothing |