#91: If There's Glycolic & Lactic Acid, Why Should We Use Mandelic Acid?

#98: Does Petrolatum Clog Pores: Journeying into the more controversial ingredients, we first have to talk about petrolatum. One common question that we haven’t answered yet is, “Will petrolatum clog my pores?” There’s a surprising amount of data to discuss on this subject and after... by Chemist Confessions

29 min listen

#97: How Does Gluconolactone Compare to AHAs?: Taking a break from plant stuff and antioxidants, let’s talk about the newer exfoliator on the block, gluconolactone. Uniquely, gluconolactone has been tied to many skin benefits, being called hydrating, brightening, exfoliating, to maybe even…acne f... by Chemist Confessions

32 min listen

#96: What Actives Can You Layer With Vitamin C?: In this episode, we’re continuing our Vitamin C series and are focusing on actives layering. Most of the questions we get are on whether or not you can layer certain actives with the very fussy ascorbic acid. We first review guidelines on the concept... by Chemist Confessions

33 min listen

#95: How Good is Vitamin C For Hyperpigmentation Really?: We’ve dedicated many episodes to Vitamin C, but there’s still more to cover! Recently, there have been a lot of Vitamin C launches and they are specifically for tackling hyperpigmentation. What makes this arena slightly confusing is that many of thes... by Chemist Confessions

33 min listen

#94: Is Resveratrol Better Than Vitamin C?: We’ve encountered many skincare users who have discovered that the Vitamin C realm is just not their cup of tea and neither is it for their skin. Enter resveratrol! We discuss what resveratrol is, its antioxidant capabilities, and why despite the amo... by Chemist Confessions

41 min listen

#93: What Benefits Does Kojic Acid Have For Skin?: There’s a lot of rice-based ingredients and rice-adjacent ingredients in skincare. They can span from functional ingredients such as waxes and thickeners to exotic actives like the very famous Pitera. Amongst all of these ingredients, there’s one iso... by Chemist Confessions

32 min listen

#92: What Does Centella Asiatica Actually Do For Skin?: Centella Asiatica (aka cica) has continued to reign as a trendy plant-based active. For good reason! With origins as a wound healing ingredient, the research behind centella asiatica as a skincare ingredient has really grown. We go through the resear... by Chemist Confessions

29 min listen

#90: Why is Ginseng in Skincare?: Ginseng is definitely one of those alluring, almost magical ingredients that not only gets touted as a cure-all but almost as a skin cure-all as well. This root has been linked to a wide array of skincare benefits such as being an antioxidant, anti-i... by Chemist Confessions

37 min listen

#89: Can You Have Too Much Niacinamide?: Niacinamide is EVERYWHERE in the skincare world, but for good reasons. It’s a jack-of-all-trades type of molecule that has actual clinical evidence that ranges from improving skin barrier function, reducing sebum production, to brightening hyperpigme... by Chemist Confessions

38 min listen

#88: Can Urea Replace Your AHAs?: Urea has surprisingly been creeping up the ranks in skincare ingredient awareness. This oldie but a goodie has actually been looked at for some time and been compared to some of the greats like glycerin. Uniquely, urea at lower percentages serves as ... by Chemist Confessions

25 min listen

#87: Is Glycerin the BEST humectant hydrator out there?: Glycerin is probably one of the first ingredients that chemists learn to work with in formulation. In fact, we happen to call this the Frank’s Red Hot of skincare because the industry really puts that sh** in everything! But despite its economical, f... by Chemist Confessions

34 min listen

#86: Are Ceramides Only For Compromised Skin Barriers?: It’s great to see awareness grow around maintaining skin barrier health. In caring for your skin barrier, ceramides would probably be the first ingredient that would be suggested. However, there are a lot of questions on who and what skin types shoul... by Chemist Confessions

31 min listen

#85: Is Hyaluronic Acid a MUST in Your Skincare Routine?: Hyaluronic Acid has consistently been a trendy ingredient in skincare for better or worse. There’s so much confusion with this ingredient because it’s been touted as a miracle anti-aging ingredient but also gets flagged as a potential irritant that m... by Chemist Confessions

30 min listen

#84: Is Bakuchiol Better Than Retinol?: Bakuchiol was put on the map as soon as results came out that bakuchiol seemingly performed on par with retinol in treating anti-aging concerns. But does this hold true? The chemists’ review what bakuchiol even is, the actual study that made this ing... by Chemist Confessions

25 min listen

#83:Is Retinal Better Than Retinol?: Retinal (aka retinaldehyde) is definitely a hot ingredient in skincare right now! You might have heard that retinal is more potent than retinol because it only needs one step to convert into retinoic acid vs. retinol’s two. But is retinal truly bette... by Chemist Confessions

33 min listen

#82: Can You Use Retinol During the Daytime?: We talk about retinol a lot. That’s because it’s the most popular retinoid that can be used in cosmetics. Most are well aware of the anti-aging and hyperpigmentation benefits but there are still a lot of questions on how to properly use retinol. In f... by Chemist Confessions

26 min listen

#81: Can Adapalene be Used for Anti-Aging?: Adapalene is the one retinoid that’s available to us as an over the counter topical for acne. This third generation retinoid has become a popular alternative to tretinoin and for good reason! It’s found to be more stable and has less irritation. So n... by Chemist Confessions

28 min listen

#80: Using Tretinoin Long-Term Bad for Skin?: A New Year! A New Theme! 2024 is all about skincare ingredients and in this episode, we’re focusing on the OG of retinoids, tretinoin. We review what it is, why it’s so prevalent, and answer one of the most common questions we get on this ingredient:... by Chemist Confessions

26 min listen

The 2023 Wrap-Up | CC Podcast S4E36: It’s the last episode of the 2023! It’s time to lookback on all the skincare science we discussed, all the animals we shared, all the skincare goodness (and craziness) that happened this year. It’s been a great year and we can’t wait for what’s in st... by Chemist Confessions

35 min listen

Gifting Skincare | CC Podcast S4E35: How is it already end of year?! Well it’s gifting season again, so let’s go through skincare gifting! We decode gift sets, what might be worth it and what we would pass on. We also discuss skincare we would gift as well as skincare we would want gift... by Chemist Confessions

39 min listen

Acne Scars - What works and What to Expect | CC Podcast E4 S34: We’ve talked a lot about tackling your active breakouts, but what about post acne marks & scars? They can seem so frustratingly persistent. But the good news is, things that tackle your breakouts like tretinoin and adapalene can also help tackle ... by Chemist Confessions

37 min listen

Decode that Trendy Acne Product | CC Podcast S4E33: With acne breakouts being the stubborn, complicated creature that it is, it’s no wonder the world of acne treatment options is a billion-dollar industry. Today we’re walking through some of the recently trendy acne favorites. Are they worth the hype?... by Chemist Confessions

35 min listen

What actives can you use with retinol? | CC Podcast S4E32: We can’t believe we haven’t done a dedicated podcast episode to anti-aging superstar retinol. This skincare active has been clinically tested (again and again) to effectively improve fine lines, wrinkles, hyperpigmentation… you name it! But with thou... by Chemist Confessions

40 min listen

Decode that Retinol | CC Podcast S4E31: Retinol's popularity is ever-growing as THE anti-aging ingredient to dabble into - and for good reason! Butttt with so many retinol serums on the market to choose from, it's bound to lead to some confusing products + claims. So let's take a look at s... by Chemist Confessions

34 min listen

Skincare for Redness & Sensitive Skin | CC Podcast S4E30: Skincare for sensitive skin sometimes feels like an open-ended category. It can feel like there are too many random products out there and yet too few that really answer sensitive skin needs. In this very dense episode, we talk about what defines se... by Chemist Confessions

49 min listen

Decode that ”Soothing” Product | CC Podcast Episode S4E29: If you have sensitive skin you may find that this realm of skincare just doesn’t speak to your skin needs that well. What’s worse is that if you try shopping for your sensitive skin, you’ll be bombarded with the widest array of skincare products and ... by Chemist Confessions

39 min listen

Are Luxury Hyperpigmentation Products Worth It? | CC Podcast Episode S4E28: Tackling hyperpigmentation already feels like you need a whole team of products to get any meaningful improvement. But, some of the most popular hyperpigmentation treatments seem to come with the biggest price tags. The chemists give their analysis o... by Chemist Confessions

47 min listen

Decoding Hyperpigmentation Products | CC Podcast Episode S4E27: Hyperpigmentation is probably one of the most stubborn skin concerns to tackle. It takes a lot more patience, diligence, and what feels like an army of actives to see meaningful improvement. Because of this, there are quite a few products in this rea... by Chemist Confessions

33 min listen

Slugging with Occlusives? | CC Podcast Episode S4E26: If you’re a skincare junkie, you’ve probably come across the term “slugging”. This trend of sealing in your moisturizing routine with a balm really highlights the benefits of occlusives. These waxy, oily, balmy substances are pretty helpful to your m... by Chemist Confessions

53 min listen

Decode that Occlusive | CC Podcast Episode S4E25: The slugging trend is here to stay and if you've ventured into this realm, you might have realized that the products suggested can vary a lot! Here we decode two popular "slugging" products and go through which one to choose for your skin type. by Chemist Confessions

36 min listen

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#91: If There's Glycolic & Lactic Acid, Why Should We Use Mandelic Acid?

#91: If There's Glycolic & Lactic Acid, Why Should We Use Mandelic Acid?

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