Peptide Serum
Ingredients overview
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doa kozmetik Peptide SerumIngredients explained
Good old water, aka H2O. The most common skincare ingredient of all. You can usually find it right in the very first spot of the ingredient list, meaning it’s the biggest thing out of all the stuff that makes up the product.
It’s mainly a solvent for ingredients that do not like to dissolve in oils but rather in water.
Once inside the skin, it hydrates, but not from the outside - putting pure water on the skin (hello long baths!) is drying.
One more thing: the water used in cosmetics is purified and deionized (it means that almost all of the mineral ions inside it is removed). Like this, the products can stay more stable over time.
A multi-functional, silky feeling helper ingredient that can do quite many things. It's used as an emulsion stabilizer, solvent and a broad spectrum antimicrobial. According to manufacturer info, it's also a moisturizer and helps to make the product feel great on the skin. It works synergistically with preservatives and helps to improve water-resistance of sunscreens.
A water-soluble, colorless, odorless humectant liquid that makes your skin nice and smooth (aka emollient) and gives a dry, non-tacky skin feel. It also has great instant and some longer-lasting moisturizing effect and works in synergy with fellow moisturizer, sorbitol.
- 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
A type of sugar that has water-binding properties and helps to keep your skin hydrated.
The sodium salt of lactic acid. It's a great skin moisturizer and also used to regulate the pH value of the cosmetic formula. It's a natural ingredient approved by both ECOCERT and COSMOS.
PCA stands for Pyrrolidone Carboxylic Acid and though it might not sound like it, it is a thing that can be found naturally in our skin. The sodium salt form of PCA is an important skin-identical ingredient and great natural moisturizer that helps the skin to hold onto water and stay nicely hydrated.
We don't have description for this ingredient yet.
A 100% natural and plant-derived moisturizer that mimics the natural carbohydrate fraction found in the upper layer of the skin. Its special magic power is to bind to the skin stronger and longer than other moisturizer ingredients do so it can keep the skin hydrated longer than usual.
If you see a cosmetic product that claims that it has "Botox-like effect" then two things are almost certain: one, the product overpromises and two, it contains Argireline.
So this one is the famous peptide that's marketed by its manufacturer as the "Botox in a jar". The basis for this claim is that it targets the same wrinkle forming mechanism (wrinkles caused by facial muscle movement) as Botox, but the way it works is very different. In addition, the extent to which it can prevent muscles from contracting (and to smooth wrinkles) is very different (otherwise why would anyone use still Botox?).
The manufacturer did several studies to prove that Argireline really works and it does (just not as well as Botox). In-vivo (made on real people) tests showed that using 10% Argireline solution around the eyes for 15 days decreased wrinkles depth by 17%, while a 5% Argireline formula applied for 28 days did almost the same with a decrease in wrinkle depth by 16.26%. A Spanish University also did some research and found that Argireline increased the level of skin moisturization and decreased both the depth and width of wrinkles "significantly".
This means, Acetyl Hexapeptide-8 does have some ability to smooth wrinkles (but not as well as Botox - sorry, if we sound like a broken record). Also, we have to agree with TruthInAging, that it's not a collagen builder and not a preventer of structural aging (think vitamin C, AHAs or retinol); it's just a quick fix. If you are looking for one, this could be your thing. If you are more of a "let's treat this aging thing properly" type, then it's probably not your thing.
This awfully long named ingredient is, in fact, a pretty small molecule. It's a tripeptide (a three amino acid peptide) with molecular weight less than 500 Da, meaning that it's small enough to penetrate nicely and easily into the skin.
It belongs to the "Botox in a jar" type of peptides (similar to Argireline or Leuphasyl) targeting wrinkles caused by facial movements, like laughter lines or crow’s feet. According to the manufacturer's in-vivo (made on real people) studies, 4% Syn-Ake used for 28 days resulted in 21% smoother and 15-20% less wrinkled skin with max values up to 52%. The smoothing effect was measurable on 80% of the volunteers, while the wrinkle reduction effect was evident on 73%.
Copper Palmitoyl Heptapeptide-14 is the payload peptide (a short chain of amino acids) in the encapsulated copper peptide technology trade named X50 Antiaging. The delivery system (called The Cosmetic Drone) is a high-tech capsule where our peptide is wrapped in a biocompatible polymer shell (created from Lactic Acid/Glycolic Acid Copolymer, Polyvinyl Alcohol) and another peptide, which has an affinity to the fibroblast receptors, sits on the outside of the capsule and guides it to the right place in the skin.
The right place in this case is the fibroblast cell (the important collagen-producing cell in the dermis), so once Copper Palmitoyl Heptapeptide-14 is there, it promotes the gene expression of both collagen and elastin. According to the 30-person in-vivo (made on real humans) test of the manufacturer, the participants experienced an average of 33% reduction in wrinkles and 19% increase in elasticity in 28 days.
Thanks to the advanced delivery system, the active works at the tiniest concentration of 0.001%. Fun fact: the unit of sale for the X50 Antiaging powder is not kg as all other actives but it is g, this is how little you need from it.
Heptapeptide-15 Palmitate is the targeting peptide (a short chain of amino acids) that is part of the encapsulated copper peptide technology trade named X50 Antiaging. This smart guy sits at the outer part of the encapsulation shell and seeks out the all-important collagen-producing cells in the middle layer of the skin called fibroblasts.
Once Heptapeptide-15 Palmitate binds to the receptors of the fibroblast, the cell internalizes the capsule, and the payload (in this case Copper Palmitoyl Heptapeptide-14) is released. Continue here to read what the payload peptide is doing once it arrives at its target, the fibroblast cell.
We don't have description for this ingredient yet.
- 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
- It’s the second most researched AHA after glycolic acid
- It gently lifts off dead skin cells to reveal newer, fresher, smoother skin
- It also has amazing skin hydrating properties
- In higher concentration (10% and up) it improves skin firmness, thickness and wrinkles
- 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)
We don't have description for this ingredient yet.
We don't have description for this ingredient yet.
We don't have description for this ingredient yet.
We don't have description for this ingredient yet.
We don't have description for this ingredient yet.
Sunflower does not need a big intro as you probably use it in the kitchen as cooking oil, or you munch on the seeds as a healthy snack or you adore its big, beautiful yellow flower during the summer - or you do all of these and probably even more. And by even more we mean putting it all over your face as sunflower oil is one of the most commonly used plant oils in skincare.
It’s a real oldie: expressed directly from the seeds, the oil is used not for hundreds but thousands of years. According to The National Sunflower Association, there is evidence that both the plant and its oil were used by American Indians in the area of Arizona and New Mexico about 3000 BC. Do the math: it's more than 5000 years – definitely an oldie.
Our intro did get pretty big after all (sorry for that), so let's get to the point finally: sunflower oil - similar to other plant oils - is a great emollient that makes the skin smooth and nice and helps to keep it hydrated. It also protects the surface of the skin and enhances the damaged or irritated skin barrier. Leslie Bauman notes in Cosmetic Dermatology that one application of sunflower oil significantly speeds up the recovery of the skin barrier within an hour and sustains the results 5 hours after using it.
It's also loaded with fatty acids (mostly linoleic (50-74%) and oleic (14-35%)). The unrefined version (be sure to use that on your skin!) is especially high in linoleic acid that is great even for acne-prone skin. Its comedogen index is 0, meaning that it's pretty much an all skin-type oil.
Truth be told, there are many great plant oils and sunflower oil is definitely one of them.
This ingredient name is not according to the INCI-standard. :( What, why?!
This ingredient name is not according to the INCI-standard. :( What, why?!
This ingredient name is not according to the INCI-standard. :( What, why?!
A creamy solid that helps water and oil to mix, aka emulsifier. Its solid, wax-like nature is useful for oil-based formulas where some rigidity is needed.
We don't have description for this ingredient yet.
It’s pretty much the current IT-preservative. It’s safe and gentle, but even more importantly, it’s not a feared-by-everyone-mostly-without-scientific-reason paraben.
It’s not something new: it was introduced around 1950 and today it can be used up to 1% worldwide. It can be found in nature - in green tea - but the version used in cosmetics is synthetic.
Other than having a good safety profile and being quite gentle to the skin it has some other advantages too. It can be used in many types of formulations as it has great thermal stability (can be heated up to 85°C) and works on a wide range of pH levels (ph 3-10).
It’s often used together with ethylhexylglycerin as it nicely improves the preservative activity of phenoxyethanol.
It’s a handy multi-tasking ingredient that gives the skin a nice, soft feel. At the same time, it also boosts the effectiveness of other preservatives, such as the nowadays super commonly used phenoxyethanol.
The blend of these two (caprylyl glycol + phenoxyethanol) is called Optiphen, which not only helps to keep your cosmetics free from nasty things for a long time but also gives a good feel to the finished product. It's a popular duo.
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what‑it‑does | solvent |
what‑it‑does | solvent | moisturizer/humectant |
what‑it‑does | solvent | moisturizer/humectant | emollient |
what‑it‑does | cell-communicating ingredient | skin brightening | anti-acne | moisturizer/humectant |
what‑it‑does | moisturizer/humectant |
what‑it‑does | buffering | moisturizer/humectant |
what‑it‑does | skin-identical ingredient | moisturizer/humectant |
irritancy, com. | 0, 0 |
what‑it‑does | moisturizer/humectant |
what‑it‑does | cell-communicating ingredient | moisturizer/humectant |
what‑it‑does | cell-communicating ingredient |
what‑it‑does | cell-communicating ingredient |
what‑it‑does | cell-communicating ingredient |
what‑it‑does | viscosity controlling |
what‑it‑does | exfoliant | buffering |
what‑it‑does | exfoliant | moisturizer/humectant | buffering |
what‑it‑does | antioxidant | skin brightening |
what‑it‑does | antioxidant | skin brightening |
what‑it‑does | emollient |
irritancy, com. | 0, 0 |
what‑it‑does | emulsifying |
what‑it‑does | emulsifying | surfactant/cleansing |
what‑it‑does | preservative |
what‑it‑does | moisturizer/humectant | emollient |