Oil Based Vitamin A ( 0.3% Retinol)
Highlights
Key Ingredients
Other Ingredients
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| Ingredient name | what-it-does | irr., com. | ID-Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| Squalane | skin-identical ingredient, emollient | 0, 1 | goodie |
| Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Oil | antioxidant, emollient | goodie | |
| Coco-Caprylate/Caprate | emollient | ||
| Sclerocarya Birrea (Marula) Oil | emollient | goodie | |
| Retinol | cell-communicating ingredient | superstar | |
| Hydroxymethoxyphenyl Decanone | antioxidant, soothing | goodie | |
| Tocopherol | antioxidant | 0-3, 0-3 | goodie |
Skin Functional Oil Based Vitamin A ( 0.3% Retinol)Ingredients explained
It seems to us that squalane is in fashion and there is a reason for it. Chemically speaking, it is a saturated (no double bonds) hydrocarbon (a molecule consisting only of carbon and hydrogen), meaning that it's a nice and stable oily liquid with a long shelf life.
It occurs naturally in certain fish and plant oils (e.g. olive), and in the sebum (the oily stuff our skin produces) of the human skin. As f.c. puts it in his awesome blog post, squalane's main things are "emolliency, surface occlusion, and TEWL prevention all with extreme cosmetic elegance". In other words, it's a superb moisturizer that makes your skin nice and smooth, without being heavy or greasy.
Another advantage of squalane is that it is pretty much compatible with all skin types and skin conditions. It is excellent for acne-prone skin and safe to use even if you have fungi-related skin issues, like seborrhea or fungal acne.
The unsaturated (with double bonds) and hence less stable version of Squalane is Squalene, you can read about it here >>
A goodie plant oil coming from the polyphenol-rich seeds of the grape. It's a light emollient oil that makes your skin feel smooth and nice and also contains a bunch of good-for-the-skin stuff. It's a great source of antioxidant polyphenols, barrier repair fatty acid linoleic acid (about 55-77%, while oleic acid is about 12-27%) and antioxidant, skin-protectant vitamin E.
A light emollient ester (C8-10 fatty acids connected to C12-18 fatty alcohols) that absorbs quickly and leaves a dry but silky finish on the skin. In terms of skin feel, it is similar to Dicaprylyl Carbonate, another commonly used light emollient.
If you have an interest in elephants and Africa, you have probably heard of elephants getting drunk from the fruit of the Marula tree. Though this seems to be only a legend, what is true is that the Marula fruit is really nice (and elephants do love to eat it) and there is a stone in it with several oil-rich kernels inside.
So the Marula oil - similar to many other plant oils - is a really nice nourishing and moisturizing oil that can improve skin hydration and smoothness and it can even reduce skin redness. It's traditionally used in South Africa to massage babies with and as a body lotion for face, feet, and hands.
As for its composition, it's loaded with skin goodies: it's very rich in fatty acids, including oleic (73%), palmitic (15%), and linoleic (9%) acids. It also contains some natural antioxidants, including Vitamin E and the oil shows an outstanding oxidative stability.
If you have dry skin that needs some pampering, Marula oil is a good choice.
- Retinol (pure Vitamin A) is probably the most proven anti-aging ingredient available OTC
- It has to be converted in the skin to retinoic acid to work its magic
- Once converted, it has the same effect as all-trans-retinoic acid, aka tretinoin
- A generally accepted ballpark number is that retinol is 10-to-20 times less potent than retinoic acid
- It makes skin less wrinkled, smoother, firmer and tighter
- It might also be helpful for acne prone skin as it normalizes keratinization and makes the pores produce less sebum
- Possible side effects and irritation are also much less than with retinoic acid
- Do not use whilst pregnant
A nature-identical (but synthetic) molecule that copies a phyto-active found in grains of paradise, a spice from the ginger family. It is claimed to be a 4-in-1 active with potent topical & cellular antioxidant, anti-irritant, and hyaluronic acid booster activity, however, the manufacturer did only some in-vitro and ex-vivo (as in nothing done on real people... ) tests to back up these claims.
- Primary fat-soluble antioxidant in our skin
- Significant photoprotection against UVB rays
- Vit C + Vit E work in synergy and provide great photoprotection
- Has emollient properties
- Easy to formulate, stable and relatively inexpensive
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| what‑it‑does | skin-identical ingredient | emollient |
| irritancy, com. | 0, 1 |
| what‑it‑does | antioxidant | emollient |
| what‑it‑does | emollient |
| what‑it‑does | emollient |
| what‑it‑does | cell-communicating ingredient |
| what‑it‑does | antioxidant | soothing |
| what‑it‑does | antioxidant |
| irritancy, com. | 0-3, 0-3 |