Easily read through skincare ingredients that we use in our skincare products and how they can help you achieve your skin goals.
Your Ultimate Skin Care Glossary: Decoding the Ingredients for You
Skincare can sometimes feel like a foreign language. With terms and ingredients popping up everywhere, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. But with the SKIN Functional Skin Care Glossary, you’ll have a handy guide to help you decode the science behind your skincare products.
Our Skin Care Glossary covers everything you need to know about the most common skincare ingredients. From acids to oils, vitamins to peptides, we break down each term to make it easy to understand how they work and what they can do for your skin. Whether you're new to skincare or a seasoned pro, understanding your products is the first step toward making informed decisions.
Skincare Ingredient Directory
| Skincare Ingredient | Description | Image |
|---|---|---|
| 4-Butylresorcinol | Visibly reduces the appearance of blemishes and dark marks. |  |
| Adapalene | Adapalene is a third-generation topical retinoid. It is known for having a favorable tolerability profile and is more stable than older retinoids like tretinoin. | |
| Allantoin | A multi-talented ingredient known for soothing, healing, moisturizing, and gently exfoliating skin by promoting cell turnover, making it ideal for sensitive or irritated skin by calming inflammation and improving texture for a softer, smoother, and more resilient complexion. |  |
| Almond Oil | Sweet almond oil contains many nutrients that are good for the skin. Loaded with nourishing fatty acids, this antioxidant is ideal for smoothing, softening and moisturising the skin. |  |
| Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice | A popular skincare ingredient known for its powerful soothing, hydrating (humectant), and calming properties. |  |
| Alpha Arbutin | Is a highly effective skin-brightening agent and visibly improves dark marks and uneven skin tone. |  |
| Amino Acids | A crucial skincare ingredient, acting as skin's building blocks to strengthen its barrier, boost hydration (with hyaluronic acid), boosts collagen/elastin, restore damage, and provide antioxidant protection, visibly reducing signs of aging like fine lines and improving overall smoothness and resilience. It helps support the skin's balanced microbiome and restore damaged skin. |  |
| Azelaic Acid | Has powerful skin calming properties to soothe skin. It helps to unclog congested pores and to manage active breakouts. |  |
| Bakuchiol | Is clinically proven to have similar results to Retinol, is a plant-based ingredient that comes from the seeds and leaves of the babchi tree. It improves skin firmness and elasticity, visibly reduces fine lines and wrinkles. |  |
| Benzoyl Peroxide | Benzoyl peroxide is a common, effective ingredient for mild-to-moderate acne that kills bacteria, reduces inflammation, and unclogs pores, but it can cause dryness, peeling, and sun sensitivity, requiring sunscreen and careful use, especially avoiding other irritants like alcohol or certain retinoids. | |
| Beta Glucan | Helps protect the skin from environmental stressors. It is a great skin soother while moisturising the skin. |  |
| Betaine | Maintains cell water balance, provides skin protection and moisture. |  |
| Bisabolol | A powerful, natural compound from chamomile known for its exceptional soothing, calming, and antioxidant benefits, making it ideal for sensitive, irritated, or post-procedure skin to reduce redness, calm irritation (like sunburn/razor burn), restore suppleness, and protect against damage. | |
| Black Ginseng | A strong antioxidant with comparable efficacy to L-Ascorbic Acid. Collagen boosting, offering comparable power to TGF-1 (Transforming Growth Factor 1) and visibly restores the skin. |  |
| Briteodant Complex | A trademarked ingredient, boosts skin brightening and provides antioxidant protection. | |
| Caffeine | Is often used in skincare for brightening and tightening. It has powerful antioxidant properties and reduces excess fluid build-up around the eye area, reducing puffiness. |  |
| Centella Asiatica | Also known as gotu kola, is regarded as a highly effective soothing ingredient. |  |
| Ceramide | Play an essential role in managing dryness, dehydration and premature signs of ageing. |  |
| Co-enzyme Q10 | Is a powerful, naturally occurring antioxidant that protects against environmental skin stressors. |  |
| Copper Peptide | Provides powerful antioxidant benefits. |  |
| Epidermal Growth Factors (EGF) | A protein that stimulates cell growth and repair by binding to its receptor, EGFR, triggering cell division and differentiation. |  |
| Exosomes | Exosomes are tiny, lipid-wrapped vesicles naturally released by cells, acting as crucial messengers for cell-to-cell communication, carrying proteins, DNA, and RNA to influence recipient cell behavior, vital for healing and normal function. | |
| Ferulic Acid | Visibly reduces uneven skin tone. |  |
| Gamma-linolenic Acid | A beneficial omega-6 fatty acid in skincare, acting as an emollient and anti-inflammatory found in oils like evening primrose and borage, helping to soothe dryness, reduce redness, strengthen the skin barrier, retain moisture, and support collagen, making it great for acne, eczema, and aging skin by calming irritation and improving texture. | |
| Gluconolactone | Gluconolactone is a gentle Polyhydroxy Acid (PHA) in skincare that offers exfoliation, hydration, and antioxidant protection, making it ideal for sensitive or rosacea-prone skin, unlike harsher AHAs, as it's a larger molecule that exfoliates slowly, improves texture, strengthens the skin barrier, and reduces fine lines without significant irritation or sun sensitivity. |  |
| Glycerin | Is a superstar skincare ingredient, acting as a humectant that draws moisture into the skin, keeping it hydrated, soft, and supple while strengthening its protective barrier. It's gentle, non-comedogenic (won't clog pores), suitable for all skin types, and enhances other ingredients' penetration, making skin smoother, more resilient, and improving overall complexion and brightness. | |
| Glycolic Acid | Naturally found in sugar cane, is an Alpha Hydroxy Acid (AHA) known for its exfoliation benefits. It has a small molecular structure for deeper penetration into the skin to target a variety of skin concerns. It assists in unclogging congested pores and improves the appearance of enlarged pores. |  |
| Glycyrrhetinic Acid | Has powerful soothing and calming properties and reduces the appearance of post breakout marks. | |
| Hexylresorcinol | Has significant skin-brightening abilities. |  |
| Honey Acids | Is a restoring agent that has excellent soothing and calming properties. |  |
| Hyaluronic Acid | Promotes healthier looking, more supple skin, while reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. |  |
| Hydroxypinacolone Retinoate | A retinoic acid ester which binds directly to retinoid receptors in the skin. Manages active breakouts, visibly reduces the appearance of wrinkles and dark marks. |  |
| Hyperbrite Complex | A trademarked peptide, is a powerful brightening complex and visibly improves dark marks and uneven skin tone. | |
| Jojoba Oil | Is a highly beneficial, non-comedogenic skincare ingredient that helps to control excess shine and oil, making it ideal for deep hydration, balancing oil production, and soothing irritations without clogging pores. |  |
| Kojic Acid | Visibly improves the appearance of dark spots. |  |
| L-Arginine | L-arginine is a semi-essential amino acid that serves as a fundamental building block for proteins. |  |
| L-Ascorbic Acid | Is a powerful antioxidant with the ability to boost collagen and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. |  |
| Lactic Acid | Is an Alpha Hydroxy Acid (AHA). This gentle exfoliant works by breaking down the structure of dead skin cells without causing sensitivity. |  |
| Lactobionic Acid | Is a gentle, hydrating, and antioxidant-rich Polyhydroxy Acid (PHA) derived from milk sugars, perfect for sensitive skin, offering benefits like mild exfoliation, moisture retention (humectant), barrier strengthening, improving texture, and boosting firmness without irritation. | |
| Licorice Extract | Has soothing benefits while reducing redness. Protect the skin from effects from environmental stressors and visibly reduces the appearance of dark marks. |  |
| Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate | Magnesium Ascorbyl Phosphate (MAP) is a stable, gentle, water-soluble derivative of Vitamin C used in skincare for its antioxidant, brightening, and collagen-boosting effects, making it great for sensitive skin to even tone, reduce dark spots, fight aging, and hydrate without irritation, unlike harsher Vitamin C forms. It converts to active Vitamin C in the skin, offering UV protection, anti-inflammatory benefits, and improving elasticity. |  |
| Mandelic Acid | An Alpha Hydroxy Acid (AHA), is the largest molecular size to deliver gentle, yet effective exfoliation to manage active breakouts, while visibly improving post breakout marks and uneven skin tone. |  |
| Matrixyl | Matrixyl repairs skin damage while improving skin firmness and elasticity. |  |
| N-Acetyl Glucosamine (NAG) | Visibly improves skin hydration, increases activity of hyaluronic acid and visibly reduces dark spots. |  |
| Natural Moisturising Factors (NMF) | Optimises the Stratum Corneum (top layer of the skin) hydration. | |
| Niacinamide | Is also known as Vitamin B3, works with the natural substances in skin to visibly fade dark marks and improves the appearance of enlarged pores. It visibly reduces uneven skin tone. |  |
| Optisorb Complex™ | A trademarked blend of plant extracts that helps control excessive oil and shine without drying the skin. | |
| Peptides | Help support a firmer, smoother-looking complexion. |  |
| Polydeoxyribonucleotide (PDRN) | Typically derived from salmon or trout DNA, acting as a natural cell repair booster that stimulates collagen, promotes tissue regeneration, reduces inflammation, and improves hydration. | |
| Polyglutamic Acid | Is a naturally occurring biopolymer that supports natural moisturising factors in skin. B5, has soothing and calming properties to assist in restoring the skin. |  |
| Potassium Azeloyl Diglycinate | A gentle, water-soluble skincare ingredient that calms sensitive skin, visibly reduces redness, helps restore the skin's barrier function and visibly evens skin tone. |  |
| Propanediol | Propanediol is a popular, gentle skincare ingredient used as a humectant (hydrator), solvent, and penetration enhancer, often derived from corn, that boosts product texture and absorption, soothes skin, strengthens the barrier, and improves product preservation, making it great for sensitive skin. |  |
| Resveratrol | Is a natural antioxidant found in plant sources like red grapes, blueberries, peanuts, and mulberries. It is a strong antioxidant and has skin calming properties and protects against environmental stressors. | |
| Retinaldehyde | A potent Vitamin A derivative, that helps reduce the appearance of fine lines, post-breakout marks and uneven skin tone and visibly improves skin texture. |  |
| Retinol | Is a Vitamin A derivative that visibly reduces the appearance of fine lines, post-breakout marks and uneven skin tone, and visibly improves skin texture. |  |
| Retinyl Palmitate | A gentle form of Vitamin A (a retinoid), formed from retinol and palmitic acid. Predominantly used for its antioxidant properties, suitable for sensitive skin types. |  |
| Salicylic Acid | A Beta-Hydroxy Acid (BHA) exfoliates the outer Stratum Corneum, (the top layer of the skin), encouraging cell turnover which brightens overall complexion and helps unclog congested pores. |  |
| Salvia Officinalis Leaf Extract | A versatile natural skincare ingredient with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial properties. It is widely used in various cosmetic products for its ability to soothe the skin, control oil production, and protect against environmental stressors. | |
| Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate | A stable, water-soluble vitamin C derivative, that is a powerful antioxidant to help protect the skin from environmental damage while supporting a clear, more even-looking complexion. |  |
| Squalane | Is a plant-derived substance that helps to lock in moisture for a soft, smooth skin. |  |
| Succinic Acid | Visibly reduces blemish size and helps control excess shine and oil. |  |
| Synovea HR (Hexylresorcinol) | Is a patented, high-purity hexylresorcinol ingredient used in skincare for skin lightening, even toning, and anti-aging; it works by inhibiting melanin production, proving safer and more effective than traditional agents like hydroquinone. |  |
| Tea Tree Oil | Tea Tree Oil is a powerful essential oil known for its natural antiseptic, antifungal, and antibacterial properties, used for skin issues. | |
| Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate | A powerful antioxidant that brightens overall complexion. |  |
| Tranexamic Acid | Visibly reduces the appearance of post-breakout marks, fades discolouration and brightens the skin. |  |
| Vitamin A (Retinol) | Vitamin A treats various skin concerns, with derivatives ranging in strength. It visibly reduces the appearance of fine lines, post-breakout marks and uneven skin tone. It visibly improves skin texture. | |
| Vitamin E | A powerful antioxidant that protects skin from environmental stressors, boosts hydration, strengthens the skin barrier, reduces irritation, and helps fade dark spots for brighter, smoother skin. |  |
| Zingiber Officinale Extract | A potent antioxidant and soothing ingredient. Combined with Bisabalol it works synergistically to soothe the skin and reduce redness. It helps to brighten skin, improve circulation and even skin tone for a revitalized glow. |
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Looking for natural skin care ingredients? We've got you covered there too. Our glossary includes an in-depth look at plant-based ingredients, oils, and other natural elements that can help nourish and protect your skin, offering alternatives to synthetic options.
Knowing the science behind your skincare routine empowers you to make choices that are best suited for your skin type and concerns. So, dive into the skincare ingredient glossary at SKIN Functional and get equipped with all the information you need to create the perfect skincare regimen for yourself. Let's take the guesswork out of skincare together!
