Skincare Encyclopedia

AZ is an engineered version of Zingerone, another phenolic antioxidant derived from Ginger. It is an potent antioxidant, physical quencher, and scavenger of free radicals in the skin. It boosts expression of matrisome genes that promote basement membrane protection and repair and is able to prevent the formation of Dark CPDs which lead to DNA damage and pigmentation. Another key feature of AZ is that it can reduce Blue Light and Urban-dust induced ROS production. A clinical study shows that it is able to decrease wrinkle volume, redness, and pigmentation.

Alpha-Arbutin is a glycosylated hydroquinone that was first discovered in bearberries. It helps brighten pigmentation by inhibiting tyrosinase. Structurally, it is similar to Hydroquinone which possesses high tyrosinase inhibitory property. It can also help with anti-aging as it can inhibit catalase and MMPs leading to reduced fine lines and wrinkles. Because of its mildness, it works best in combination with other brightening actives.

Betaine is a naturally-derived osmolyte from Rice bran and sugarcane and is a byproduct of beet processing. It is also found in our body as it serves multiple important functions in the liver, kidney and skin. It is capable of holding more water compared to glycerin. It is mostly used as a humectant and anti-irritant in skincare, but its skin benefits go beyond just these two. It is found to have various effects such as anti-inflammatory, anti-irritant, indirect antioxidant, barrier repair, anti-hyperpigmentation, hydration, and anti-aging.

Ceramides are the main component of your natural lipid barrier in the skin. They form an organized structure to prevent moisture loss and entry of unwanted pathogens. Applying them topically together with Cholesterol, and Fatty Acids in a proper ratio leads to barrier repair.

Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine is an amphoteric surfactant that adds mildness to a cleansing product. It has synergistic effect with anionic amino acid-based surfactants. It has cleansing capabilities and is one of the mildest surfactants.

N-Acetylglucosamine is a precursor molecule for Hyaluronic acid. It helps prevent hyperpigmentation, skin aging and inflammation, while increasing skin moisturization. This is a perfect additive to acne products as it targets multiple ways in treating acne and acne marks.

Niacinamide is a multi-functional active that targets acne, improves moisture barrier repair, fights skin aging, brightens skin and so much more. It serves a precursor for various molecules to maintain healthy skin. It can be found in fish, nuts, mushrooms and root vegetables.

Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate is an amino acid-based surfactant that belongs to the acylglutamate group which is known to be one of the mildest and moisturizing groups of surfactants. It breaks down into an amino acid and a fatty acid in the skin, adding more moisture to it.

Sodium Cocoyl Glycinate is an acid-based surfactant that is composed of Glycine and a fatty acid. Since Glycine is the smallest amino acid, it allows for the surfactant to have a considerably smaller charged head compared to other anionic surfactants. Because of this, it is less damaging to the Stratum Corneum (SC) compared to other anionics.

Tranexamic acid is an excellent brightening agent that targets melanogenesis by inhibiting plasminogen. It has shown really good clinical results with melasma especially when combined with other actives. It can also improve barrier repair by inhibiting serine proteases.