Skin Care ingredients

I love understanding skin care ingredients and I’m sure you do too. Good skin care involves using the right skin care ingredients that suit your skin and skin condition. Keep returning to this page as I will update it to include ingredients that are new or that patients ask me about.

Skin ingredients in general

We have a unique environment here in Australia and we love our outdoor lifestyle so its no wonder that we need to be very vigilant about our skin care. We suffer signs of sun damage much younger, such as uneven tone, sallowness, fine lines and dark spots. the correct skin care ingredients are vital if you want to improve your skin’s appearance. The ingredient list will be added to over time. For information specifically about sensitive skin click on my blog post here.

A list of skin care ingredients mentioned below

  • AHA’s

  • Aloe Vera

  • Chamomile Extract

  • Geranium Oil

  • Licorice Root Extract

  • Mulberry Extract

  • Niacinamide

  • Peony Extract

  • Proxylane

  • Retinol

  • Retinoic Acid

  • Tea Tree Oil

  • Tretinoin (classed as a medicine in Australia)

  • Vitamin C

  • White Birch Extract

Skin Care ingredients in more detail

AHA’s

AHA stands for alpha-hydoxyacid and represents a group of acids commonly known as the ‘fruit acids’. They include glycolic and lactic acids and they help with the skin’s natural exfoliation process by removing older skin cells that tend to give the skin a dull appearance.

Aloe Vera

It seems like everyone knows about aloe vera which is derived from the sap of the aloe vera plant. It is great for sensitive skin and also those with a tendency to dryness as it has a natural moisturising property. You often see this ingredient in after sun products due to its cooling and soothing properties.

Chamomile Extract

This has clinically proven anti-inflammatory properties, and so is great for those with sensitive skin. There are lots of different forms of chamomile and they are all great for soothing irritated skin.

Geranium Oil

This is another botanical, along with aloe vera and chamomile extract, that is great for sensitive skin. It has an anti-irritant property and can be used on both oily and dry skin types.

Licorice Root Extract

Studies have shown that licorice extract can help with reducing brown discolourations of the skin. It does this by acting as a tyrosinase inhibitor which plays a role in melanin synthesis.

Mulberry Extract

Similar to licorice root extract, mulberry extract also has an effect on tyrosinase and so has skin lightening properties and to give a brighter appearance to the skin.

Niacinamide

This is Vitamin B. It is a powerful ingredient in skin care helping with antiageing in a non-irritating way.

Peony Extract

Peonies are my favourite flowers and I have even made this flower out of sugar icing for cake decorating - very majestic looking. Anyway, this ingredient has antibiotic and anti-inflammatory properties. It is believed to be a circulation stimulant and to help to protect against environmental oxidative damage of the skin. A great ingredient for acne and again this works well with other ingredients including Vitamin C.

Proxylane

This is a sugar molecule derived from a natural source, the beech wood tree. It appears in L’Oreal skin care ranges and also in SkinCeuticals Custom DOSE range. This ingredient helps with the appearance of fine lines and ageing by helping to improve the skin’s matrix. It is an ingredient in the Dr Liz formulation of Custom DOSE that you can purchase from Northern Sydney Dermatology & Laser.

Retinol

One of my favourites that I like to apply at night. Retinol helps to improve uneven skin tone, promote skin cell turnover and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. There are a few different strengths that you can purchase and its best to start with the lowest strength and work up from there. Retinol is a weaker retinoid than retinoic acid and tends to be less irritating.

Retinoic Acid

Retinoic acid is an effective treatment for acne and photoageing and requires a script to use in Australia. Whilst effective, it has the problem of being irritating to the skin so retinol is an alternative to retinoic acid.

Tea Tree Oil

This is an Aussie ingredient! Yay!! It has antimicrobial activity against a number of different bacteria so is very helpful in skin infections.This oil is often used in acne and and toe nail fungal infections as well.

Tretinoin

This is classed as a medicine in Australia. Here is a link to patient information from the ARTG website.

Vitamin C

This is a well known ingredient in topical skin care products. It is an antioxidant with photoprotective properties and works on the skin to brighten and help with brown spots.

White Birch Extract

This is an ingredient in some of the Kiehl’s products. It is a natural sugar molecule that works well when combined with other skincare ingredients. This helps to improve skin tone.

 

Want to know what is in the Dr Liz Custom DOSE compounded serum?

No one formulation of skin care fits all. In combination with SkinCeuticals, I have developed a CUSTOM D.O.S.E specifically with post-menopausal women in mind, like myself. This has exfoliating, brightening and enhancing ingredients. I have deliberately left out a Vitamin A (eg retinol) as most women of our age already have a retinol in their skin care and so can apply this separately. The serum has a blend of AHA’s including glycolic and lactic acid which are to help with gentle exfoliation, allowing newer younger skin cells to be more visible. It contains licorice root and mulberry extract which both combined help to even skin tone and smooth brown spots. Lastly there’s proxylane which is a natural molecule to help with skin firmness. This is all wrapped up in a nice hydrating serum base fluid with a lovely viscous texture (a hydroalcoholic base). You can get this directly from Northern Sydney Dermatology & Laser and it is made freshly at the time of purchase.

want to know about a particular ingredient?

Send me a DM or comment on a post on Instagram (@Dermatologist.au) or Facebook (Dr Liz Dawes-Higgs).