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Dermalogica Intensive Moisture Cleanser ingredients: is it worth it?
A beautifully structured, barrier-friendly surfactant system ruined by an overstuffed essential-oil fragrance cocktail in what should be a gentle cleanser.
A beautifully structured, barrier-friendly surfactant system ruined by an overstuffed essential-oil fragrance cocktail in what should be a gentle cleanser.
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Efficacy-wise this cleanser scores solidly because it uses mild surfactants (amino-acid and glucoside-based) alongside glycerin, ceramide NP, phytosterols and multiple fatty acids to cleanse while supporting the barrier in brief contact, but the heavy load of citrus, floral, and spice essential oils makes it far less universally usable than the base formulation deserves.
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DemythSkin rates Dermalogica Intensive Moisture Cleanser 3.9/5 for efficacy and 3.5/5 for safety.
CONTAINS COMMON SENSITISERS⌄
Fragrance components and essential oils that more often cause reactions in sensitive skin: Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Oil, Citrus Paradisi (Grapefruit) Peel Oil, Citrus Reticulata (Tangerine) Leaf Oil, Amyris Balsamifera Bark Oil, Cananga Odorata Flower Oil, Citrus Limon (Lemon) Peel Oil, Eugenia Caryophyllus (Clove) Leaf Oil, Pelargonium Graveolens Flower Oil, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Flower Oil, Rosa Damascena Flower Oil, Limonene. Most people tolerate them; patch test if your skin reacts easily.
ACTIVE INGREDIENTS BY TIER
Gold Standards
High clinical proof | Skin-transformativeReliable
Proven resultsPotent
Developing evidenceOverhyped | Marketing
Hype | Limited dataDocumented Irritants
Evidence-backed flagFORMULATION BASE (22)⌄
FULL INGREDIENT LIST⌄
Water/Aqua/Eau, Glycerin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate, Divinyldimethicone/Dimethicone Copolymer, Sodium Astrocaryum Murumuruate, Ceramide NP, Phytosterols, Palmitic Acid, Stearic Acid, Hydrogenated Coconut Acid, Hydrolyzed Cottonseed Protein, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Oil, Tocopherol, Xanthan Gum, Dimethicone, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Carthamus Tinctorius (Safflower) Seed Oil, C12-13 Pareth-3, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate, Caprylyl Glycol, Citrus Paradisi (Grapefruit) Peel Oil, Citrus Reticulata (Tangerine) Leaf Oil, Myristic Acid, Trideceth-12, Jasminum Officinale (Jasmine) Oil, Linoleic Acid, Amyris Balsamifera Bark Oil, Cananga Odorata Flower Oil, Citrus Limon (Lemon) Peel Oil, Cymbopogon Martini Oil, Eugenia Caryophyllus (Clove) Leaf Oil, Pelargonium Graveolens Flower Oil, Salvia Sclarea (Clary) Oil, Citrus Limon (Lemon) Fruit Extract, Decyl Glucoside, Canarium Luzonicum Gum Nonvolatiles, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Flower Oil, Guaiacum Officinale Wood Oil, Rosa Damascena Flower Oil, Zingiber Officinale (Ginger) Root Oil, Disodium EDTA, Equisetum Arvense Extract, Humulus Lupulus (Hops) Extract, Pinus Sylvestris Cone Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Hexylene Glycol, Linolenic Acid, Pentylene Glycol, Aminomethyl Propanol, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Isethionate, Propanediol, Butylene Glycol, Polysilicone-11, Sodium Hydroxide, Ethylhexylglycerin, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, PEG-12 Dimethicone, Limonene, Phenoxyethanol.
WHAT EACH INGREDIENT DOES (24)⌄
- Water/Aqua/Eau
- Solvent base
- Glycerin
- Humectant for hydration
- Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
- Emollient and texture enhancer
- Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate
- Primary gentle surfactant
- Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate
- Gentle amino-acid surfactant
- Divinyldimethicone/Dimethicone Copolymer
- Texture and slip agent
- Sodium Astrocaryum Murumuruate
- Murumuru-derived surfactant/emulsifier
- Ceramide NP
- Skin barrier lipid
- Phytosterols
- Barrier-supporting emollients
- Palmitic Acid
- Fatty acid emollient
- Stearic Acid
- Fatty acid, emulsifier
- Hydrogenated Coconut Acid
- Emollient and surfactant
- Hydrolyzed Cottonseed Protein
- Conditioning protein derivative
- Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Oil
- Fragrant essential oil
- Tocopherol
- Antioxidant, formula protection
- Xanthan Gum
- Thickener and stabilizer
- Dimethicone
- Silicone emollient and slip
- Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter
- Rich emollient and occlusive
- Carthamus Tinctorius (Safflower) Seed Oil
- Emollient plant oil
- C12-13 Pareth-3
- Nonionic surfactant/emulsifier
- Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil
- Emollient plant oil
- Tetrasodium Glutamate Diacetate
- Chelator for stability
- Caprylyl Glycol
- Humectant and preservative booster
- Citrus Paradisi (Grapefruit) Peel Oil
- Fragrant essential oil
EXTERNAL CITATIONS
Ceramide NP: Ceramide-containing cleansers have been shown to improve skin barrier function and reduce transepidermal water loss compared to non-ceramide formulas in mild cleansing products.
Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate: Syndet bars and liquid cleansers based on sodium cocoyl isethionate demonstrate significantly less barrier disruption and irritation than traditional soap-based or SLS-based cleansers in comparative studies.
Glycerin: Glycerin is a well-documented humectant that improves stratum corneum hydration and supports barrier recovery when included in cleansing formulations.
DISCLAIMER: THIS ANALYSIS IS FOR INFORMATION ONLY. NOT MEDICAL ADVICE. AI-GENERATED DATA BASED ON PUBLICLY AVAILABLE INGREDIENT LISTS. VERIFY WITH A MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL.
A cheaper cleanser that scores as high or higher
A different formula for the same concern (cleansing) that scores at least as high on both efficacy and safety.
Dermalogica Intensive Moisture Cleanser: common questions
Is Dermalogica Intensive Moisture Cleanser worth it?
Dermalogica Intensive Moisture Cleanser scores 3.9 out of 5.0 for efficacy (Effective) and 3.5 out of 5.0 for safety (Mostly Gentle) on DemythSkin's independent ingredient analysis. A beautifully structured, barrier-friendly surfactant system ruined by an overstuffed essential-oil fragrance cocktail in what should be a gentle cleanser.
What are the key active ingredients in Dermalogica Intensive Moisture Cleanser?
Dermalogica Intensive Moisture Cleanser contains no gold-standard actives. Its formula is built on supporting and base ingredients rather than clinically transformative actives.
Does Dermalogica Intensive Moisture Cleanser contain fragrance or known irritants?
DemythSkin flags these ingredients in Dermalogica Intensive Moisture Cleanser as documented irritants: Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Oil, Citrus Paradisi (Grapefruit) Peel Oil, Citrus Reticulata (Tangerine) Leaf Oil, Jasminum Officinale (Jasmine) Oil, Amyris Balsamifera Bark Oil, Cananga Odorata Flower Oil, Citrus Limon (Lemon) Peel Oil, Cymbopogon Martini Oil, Eugenia Caryophyllus (Clove) Leaf Oil, Pelargonium Graveolens Flower Oil, Salvia Sclarea (Clary) Oil, Citrus Limon (Lemon) Fruit Extract, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Flower Oil, Guaiacum Officinale Wood Oil, Rosa Damascena Flower Oil, Zingiber Officinale (Ginger) Root Oil, Limonene.
How is Dermalogica Intensive Moisture Cleanser scored?
DemythSkin grades every product on two independent scores: efficacy (whether the ingredients have clinical evidence of working) and safety (irritation and sensitisation risk). Ingredients are graded S through D against a database of over 3,000 compounds. Brand and price are not part of the score, and no brand pays for one.
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