All scans / Cleansers / Dr. Barbara Sturm Cleanser
Dr. Barbara Sturm Cleanser ingredients: is it worth it?
A polished luxury cleanser, not a miracle treatment—and nowhere near worth its prestige price.
A polished luxury cleanser, not a miracle treatment—and nowhere near worth its prestige price.
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The efficacy score of 4.2/5 reflects an excellent mild surfactant system, several genuinely supportive humectants, and salicylic acid that can receive contact-time credit for cleansing and oil control; however, the formula does not disclose salicylic-acid concentration or pH, so its exfoliating effect cannot be assumed to be clinically meaningful. The cleanser should be judged primarily on gentle cleansing, not on the aloe, ferment, or antioxidant marketing, which rinse away quickly.
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DemythSkin rates Dr. Barbara Sturm Cleanser 4.2/5 for efficacy and 4.6/5 for safety.
CONTAINS COMMON SENSITISERS⌄
Fragrance components and essential oils that more often cause reactions in sensitive skin: Benzyl Alcohol. 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 (8)⌄
FULL INGREDIENT LIST⌄
Water, Sodium Cocoamphoacetate, Lauryl Glucoside, Glycerin, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate, Sodium Lauryl Glucose Carboxylate, Panthenol, Urea, Lactobacillus/Portulaca Oleracea Ferment Extract, Citric Acid, Benzyl Alcohol, Phenoxyethanol, Potassium Sorbate, Salicylic Acid, Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Tocopherol, Pantolactone, Sodium Benzoate
WHAT EACH INGREDIENT DOES (19)⌄
- Water
- Solvent and formula base
- Sodium Cocoamphoacetate
- Mild amphoteric surfactant
- Lauryl Glucoside
- Gentle nonionic surfactant
- Glycerin
- Humectant water binder
- Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
- Soothing botanical humectant
- Sodium Cocoyl Glutamate
- Mild amino-acid surfactant
- Sodium Lauryl Glucose Carboxylate
- Mild cleansing surfactant
- Panthenol
- Humectant and skin conditioner
- Urea
- Humectant and skin conditioner
- Lactobacillus/Portulaca Oleracea Ferment Extract
- Botanical ferment conditioning agent
- Citric Acid
- pH adjuster and chelator
- Benzyl Alcohol
- Preservative and fragrance component
- Phenoxyethanol
- Preservative
- Potassium Sorbate
- Preservative
- Salicylic Acid
- Oil-soluble exfoliating active
- Leuconostoc/Radish Root Ferment Filtrate
- Preservative-supporting ferment
- Tocopherol
- Antioxidant skin conditioner
- Pantolactone
- Humectant and conditioning agent
- Sodium Benzoate
- Preservative
EXTERNAL CITATIONS
Salicylic Acid: Evidence-supported oil-soluble keratolytic used for comedonal acne and sebum-related congestion
Glycerin: Well-established humectant supporting stratum-corneum hydration
Panthenol: Evidence-supported humectant and skin-conditioning ingredient
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.
Dr. Barbara Sturm Cleanser: common questions
Is Dr. Barbara Sturm Cleanser worth it?
Dr. Barbara Sturm Cleanser scores 4.2 out of 5.0 for efficacy (Effective) and 4.6 out of 5.0 for safety (Very Gentle) on DemythSkin's independent ingredient analysis. A polished luxury cleanser, not a miracle treatment—and nowhere near worth its prestige price.
What are the key active ingredients in Dr. Barbara Sturm Cleanser?
Dr. Barbara Sturm Cleanser contains these gold-standard actives with strong clinical evidence: Salicylic Acid.
Does Dr. Barbara Sturm Cleanser contain fragrance or known irritants?
DemythSkin's analysis found no flagged irritants in Dr. Barbara Sturm Cleanser. It scores 4.6 out of 5.0 for safety.
How is Dr. Barbara Sturm 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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