Pacifica Vegan Collagen Overnight Recovery Cream Versus Clinique Superdefense Broad Spectrum SPF 25 Fatigue + 1st Signs Of Age Multi-Correcting Cream
Pacifica Vegan Collagen Overnight Recovery Cream Versus Clinique Superdefense Broad Spectrum SPF 25 Fatigue + 1st Signs Of Age Multi-Correcting Cream This night moisturizer is formulated around Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil to hydrate skin. This anti-aging day mo
Pacifica Vegan Collagen Overnight Recovery Cream Versus Clinique Superdefense Broad Spectrum SPF 25 Fatigue + 1st Signs Of Age Multi-Correcting Cream
This night moisturizer is formulated around Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil to hydrate skin.
This anti-aging day moisturizer is formulated around Niacinamide and Resveratrol to soften the look of wrinkles and brighten dull-looking skin.
What's inside
Key Ingredients
Benefits
Concerns
Ingredients Side-by-side
Water
Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil
Glycerin
Sr-Hydrozoan Polypeptide-1
Cetyl Esters
Glyceryl Stearate
Cetyl Alcohol
Stearyl Alcohol
Stearic Acid
Tocopheryl Acetate
Diheptyl Succinate
Capryloyl Glycerin/Sebacic Acid Copolymer
Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate
Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Flower Extract
Jasminum Officinale Extract
Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract
Arnica Montana Extract
Allantoin
Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate
Xanthan Gum
Phenoxyethanol
Ethylhexylglycerin
Parfum
Water, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Glycerin, Sr-Hydrozoan Polypeptide-1, Cetyl Esters, Glyceryl Stearate, Cetyl Alcohol, Stearyl Alcohol, Stearic Acid, Tocopheryl Acetate, Diheptyl Succinate, Capryloyl Glycerin/Sebacic Acid Copolymer, Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Flower Extract, Jasminum Officinale Extract, Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract, Arnica Montana Extract, Allantoin, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Xanthan Gum, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Parfum
Ethylhexyl Salicylate
Homosalate
Butyloctyl Salicylate
Dimethicone
Polyester-8
Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane
Cetearyl Alcohol
PEG-100 Stearate
Shea Butter Ethyl Esters
Butylene Glycol
Petrolatum
Styrene/Acrylates Copolymer
Niacinamide
Trehalose
Vp/Eicosene Copolymer
Daucus Carota Sativa Root Extract
Brassica Oleracea Gemmifera Extract
Vaccinium Macrocarpon Fruit Extract
Resveratrol
Brassica Oleracea Italica Extract
Acetyl Carnitine Hcl
Vaccinium Angustifolium Fruit Extract
Salicylic Acid
Brassica Oleracea Acephala Leaf Extract
Creatine
Spinacia Oleracea Leaf Extract
Cucumis Sativus Fruit Extract
Lactobacillus Ferment
Adenosine Phosphate
Hordeum Vulgare Extract
Sigesbeckia Orientalis Extract
Albizia Julibrissin Bark Extract
Arabidopsis Thaliana Extract
Plankton Extract
Isohexadecane
Oryza Sativa Bran Extract
Potassium Cetyl Phosphate
Caffeine
Algae Extract
Micrococcus Lysate
Ergothioneine
Sodium Hyaluronate
7-Dehydrocholesterol
Caprylyl Glycol
Biosaccharide Gum-4
Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides
Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer
Propylene Glycol Dicaprate
PEG-8 Laurate
Helianthus Annuus Seedcake
Polyethylene
Faex Extract
Tromethamine
Dimethiconol
Sodium Rna
Polysorbate 80
Lecithin
Sea Whip Extract
Acrylamide/Sodium Acryloyldimethyltaurate Copolymer
Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate
Propylene Glycol Caprylate
Phytic Acid
Disodium EDTA
BHT
Mica
CI 77891
Water, Ethylhexyl Salicylate, Homosalate, Butyloctyl Salicylate, Dimethicone, Polyester-8, Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Shea Butter Ethyl Esters, Butylene Glycol, Petrolatum, Styrene/Acrylates Copolymer, Glycerin, Niacinamide, Trehalose, Vp/Eicosene Copolymer, Daucus Carota Sativa Root Extract, Brassica Oleracea Gemmifera Extract, Vaccinium Macrocarpon Fruit Extract, Resveratrol, Brassica Oleracea Italica Extract, Acetyl Carnitine Hcl, Vaccinium Angustifolium Fruit Extract, Salicylic Acid, Brassica Oleracea Acephala Leaf Extract, Creatine, Spinacia Oleracea Leaf Extract, Cucumis Sativus Fruit Extract, Lactobacillus Ferment, Adenosine Phosphate, Hordeum Vulgare Extract, Sigesbeckia Orientalis Extract, Albizia Julibrissin Bark Extract, Arabidopsis Thaliana Extract, Plankton Extract, Isohexadecane, Oryza Sativa Bran Extract, Potassium Cetyl Phosphate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Caffeine, Ethylhexylglycerin, Algae Extract, Micrococcus Lysate, Ergothioneine, Sodium Hyaluronate, 7-Dehydrocholesterol, Caprylyl Glycol, Biosaccharide Gum-4, Hydrogenated Palm Glycerides, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Propylene Glycol Dicaprate, PEG-8 Laurate, Helianthus Annuus Seedcake, Polyethylene, Faex Extract, Tromethamine, Dimethiconol, Sodium Rna, Polysorbate 80, Lecithin, Sea Whip Extract, Xanthan Gum, Acrylamide/Sodium Acryloyldimethyltaurate Copolymer, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate, Propylene Glycol Caprylate, Phytic Acid, Disodium EDTA, BHT, Phenoxyethanol, Mica, CI 77891
Alternatives
Ingredients Explained
These ingredients are found in both products.
Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.
Ethylhexylglycerin is created from glycerin. It is a multitasker ingredient that:
The CIR Expert Panel found minimal skin absorption or sensitization of any kind in a safety assessment. Though this ingredient is considered well-tolerated, a small number of cases of allergic dermatitis have been published since 2002. Just be sure to patch test if you are unsure.
Industry-reported use ranges from 8% in rinse-off products and 2% in leave-on formulations.
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.
Glyceryl Stearate is made by reacting glycerin with stearic acid (typically sourced from plant oils like palm or coconut). It's an emulsifier, emollient, and mild occlusive.
Emulsifiers help ingredients like oil and water stay mixed so your formula stays nicely blended and uniform in texture.
This ingredient is typically used in concentrations between 1-10%. Studies have found it to be non-sensitizing, non-phototoxic, and non-photoallergenic.
A close cousin of this ingredient is Glyceryl Stearate SE ("self-emulsifying"). This just has a small amount of sodium or potassium stearate added so it can emulsify without a co-emulsifier.
Since this ingredient is an ester of a C18 fatty acid, it may not be fungal acne safe. The Malassezia yeast can potentially metabolize within the C11-C24 range.
Fun fact: The human body also creates Glyceryl Stearate naturally.
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 get from cosmetics. And despite its very widespread use, this ingredient is a rare sensitizer and allergic reactions are uncommon.
Tocopheryl Acetate is a stable, shelf-friendly form of vitamin E.
Formulators love it because plain vitamin E oxidizes quickly once it hits air. This acetate version stays stable and resists going off, helping to extend a product's shelf life.
It's actually inactive on its own and works like a slow-release "storage" form; the enzymes in your skin called esterases gradually convert it into active vitamin E over time.
One in vivo study showed 5% of the acetate in the living layer of the epidermis converted to vitamin E after 5 days of application. This study also found the skin gained protection against UV damage even though the conversion was slow and small.
Once converted, vitamin E acts as a skin's main fat-soluble antioxidant that fights free radicals to protect skin from damage.
Topical vitamin E generally boosts the skin's photoprotection, and it reduced UV-damage in animal models.
This ingredient has some brightening potential but it's more of a prevention ingredient than spot-fader. Cell studies show it can slow down melanin production but it's worth noting that it's not the most powerful brightener out there.
Overall, it has a pretty solid safety profile and has been found to be non-irritating and non-comedogenic. Allergic reactions may happen but stay rare due to how widely the ingredient gets used.
The concentration will vary depending on the formula; industry data shows 0.1% in baby lotions, 3% in lipsticks, and 5% in foot powders. You can also find this ingredient at 100% in a pure vitamin E oil.
Most leave-on skincare keeps it at the lower end, often between 0.5-1%.
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!
Xanthan gum is used as a stabilizer and thickener within cosmetic products. It helps give products a sticky, thick feeling - preventing them from being too runny.
On the technical side of things, xanthan gum is a polysaccharide - a combination consisting of multiple sugar molecules bonded together.
Xanthan gum is a pretty common and great ingredient. It is a natural, non-toxic, non-irritating ingredient that is also commonly used in food products.