Biologique Recherche Crème VIP O2 Oxygenating and Anti-Pollution Cream Versus Biologique Recherche Crème PIGM 400 Brightening and Pigment Spot-Correcting Face Cream

Biologique Recherche Crème VIP O2 Oxygenating and Anti-Pollution Cream Versus Biologique Recherche Crème PIGM 400 Brightening and Pigment Spot-Correcting Face Cream

This moisturizer is formulated around Saccharide Isomerate to hydrate skin.

What's inside

Key Ingredients

Benefits

Concerns

Ingredients Side-by-side

Water

Stearic Acid

Propylene Glycol

Glycerin

Palmitic Acid

Cetyl Alcohol

Pentylene Glycol

Polysorbate 40

PEG-2 Stearate

Tea-Stearate

Perfluorodecalin

Saccharide Isomerate

Taraxacum Officinale Rhizome/Root Extract

Hydrolyzed Candida Saitoana Extract

Yeast Extract

Sodium Hyaluronate

Citric Acid

Polyperfluoromethylisopropyl Ether

Poloxamer 188

Caprylyl Glycol

P-Anisic Acid

Phenoxyethanol

Ethylhexylglycerin

Sodium Citrate

Sodium Benzoate

Water, Stearic Acid, Propylene Glycol, Glycerin, Palmitic Acid, Cetyl Alcohol, Pentylene Glycol, Polysorbate 40, PEG-2 Stearate, Tea-Stearate, Perfluorodecalin, Saccharide Isomerate, Taraxacum Officinale Rhizome/Root Extract, Hydrolyzed Candida Saitoana Extract, Yeast Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Citric Acid, Polyperfluoromethylisopropyl Ether, Poloxamer 188, Caprylyl Glycol, P-Anisic Acid, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Sodium Citrate, Sodium Benzoate

Coco-Caprylate

Butylene Glycol

Sodium Acrylates Copolymer

Lactobacillus/Wasabia Japonica Root Ferment Extract

Mica

Hydrolyzed Prunus Domestica

Soy Isoflavones

Lepidium Sativum Sprout Extract

Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil

Biosaccharide Gum-4

Alteromonas Ferment Filtrate

Vibrio Alginolyticus Ferment Filtrate

Dimethylmethoxy Chromanyl Palmitate

Dimethylmethoxy Chromanol

Lecithin

Tocopherol

Titanium Dioxide

Magnesium Aluminum Silicate

Polysorbate 80

Alcohol Denat.

Water, Coco-Caprylate, Butylene Glycol, Sodium Acrylates Copolymer, Pentylene Glycol, Lactobacillus/Wasabia Japonica Root Ferment Extract, Mica, Hydrolyzed Prunus Domestica, Soy Isoflavones, Lepidium Sativum Sprout Extract, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Biosaccharide Gum-4, Alteromonas Ferment Filtrate, Vibrio Alginolyticus Ferment Filtrate, Dimethylmethoxy Chromanyl Palmitate, Dimethylmethoxy Chromanol, Lecithin, Glycerin, Tocopherol, Titanium Dioxide, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Polysorbate 80, Alcohol Denat., Phenoxyethanol

Alternatives

Ingredients Explained

These ingredients are found in both products.

Ingredients higher up in an ingredient list are typically present in a larger amount.

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.

Pentylene Glycol (1,2-pentanediol) is a multitasking little diol with three main roles in a formula:

Research on alkanediols (the family pentylene glycol belongs to) show they work by disrupting microbial cell membranes. This disruption helps the primary preservative system in a product work more effectively at lower doses.

On the safety side, the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel has concluded this ingredient to be safe as used in current cosmetic practices + concentrations.

Typical use levels in a formula run about 1-5%.

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.

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!

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