Chemist Confessions

After a nice break from sunscreens, we had some time to dabble in lip SPF products. It turns out our lip skin actually has a lot less natural protection from both sun and dryness than the rest of our body. Thus, it only makes sense that having a good lip SPF (or two) is important to have handy. We tried 12 lip SPFS of various types and various price points and share all of our findings! The taste of some of these left quite a lasting impression.

Today we’re going to attempt to tackle the vast landscape of peptides! It’s a big topic but sadly without a lot of clarity. So let’s nerd out with us on just what peptides are, how they work on skin, what skin concerns they’re good for, and decode a few top peptide products. 

After listening to this podcast long enough, you’ll probably get a sense that good testing data is sparse so we inevitably have to work with what we have! With the recent US ban of OTC hydroquinone products, it's worth noting that a notable few actives have done testing in direct comparison to hydroquinone. Though more testing is always needed, direct comparison studies are considered rare and top-tier in our books. In this episode, let’s review why hydroquinone is so prolific and discuss actives that have actually been tested in direct comparison to hydroquinone.

This is a bit overdue! Arbutin is a hyperpigmentation active with a reputation as a hydroquinone alternative. So today we’re tackling all the major questions around arbutin: Does it convert to hydroquinone on skin? Is it even a good hyperpigmentation active?

It’s time for another wet blanket type episode - dark circles Just why are dark circles so hard to deal with? Do eye creams even work? We go through the data and discuss what you can actually do to treat this stubborn and complex skin concern.

We’ve put it off for long enough, today we’re jumping into the very new, very hot realm of exosomes. These vesicle structures are getting a lot of attention because they’ve been tied to: stem cells, growth factors, fibroblasts…essentially all the juicy anti-aging good stuff. In this episode, the chemists attempt to make sense of exosomes’ true purpose in skincare, share what benefits they can bring, and explain the current exosome landscape. Strap in because we get pretty nerdy here, but hopefully this episode gives you a good idea of “hot tech” and how it evolves in the skincare world.

We're wrapping up our acne series with a deep dive on acne patches. These face stickers often get tied to some pretty enticing claims like absorbing excess sebum and rapidly healing pimples. We discuss the science behind these mystical patches, what they actually do to acne lesions, and what are their real benefits. Finally, we end on our experiences trying 5 different acne patches on the market. Enjoy!

Continuing our acne series, we’ve been able to delve into some solid actives with pretty juicy data behind it, but there are quite a few less validated ingredients that are pretty popular and worth a look. In this episode, we look at succinic acid, mugwort, witch hazel, and tea tree oil. Four popular plant-ish actives that have gained some traction as magical home remedies for acne breakouts. Let’s see if the data holds up shall we?

When it comes to fighting acne, benzoyl peroxide has been around for so long it almost seems like it’s old-fashioned. However, because of its long history, BPO has a lot of great data and of the ingredients out there we actually have a very good understanding how it works to reduce breakouts. But are we actually using the right concentration? We dive into the research and discuss what concentrations we should all be trying to target and why.

Salicylic acid is probably the most common active ingredient you’ll run into when putting together your acne routine. But is it actually a must have? What kind of acne can it actually treat? In this episode, we dive into a few key clinical studies that look at just what 2% salicylic acid really bring to your routine.