All scans / Moisturizers / La Mer Crème de la Mer
La Mer Crème de la Mer ingredients: is it worth it?
This is a lavish occlusive cream with decent barrier support, but most of the legend is marketing and fragrance.
This is a lavish occlusive cream with decent barrier support, but most of the legend is marketing and fragrance.
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The efficacy score is driven by a strong moisture-sealing base of mineral oil, petrolatum, waxes, lanolin alcohol, and glycerin, plus some panthenol for extra humectant support; however, the formula places its more “heroic” botanicals and minerals low in the INCI, so they are unlikely to be major drivers of performance. I deduct for prominent fragrance, multiple fragrance allergens, and alcohol denat., which reduce the formula’s elegance for sensitive skin; the overall result is a competent heavy moisturizer, not a clinically standout treatment.
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DemythSkin rates La Mer Crème de la Mer 3.7/5 for efficacy and 3.3/5 for safety.
CONTAINS COMMON SENSITISERS⌄
Fragrance components and essential oils that more often cause reactions in sensitive skin: Eucalyptus Globulus (Eucalyptus) Leaf Oil, Limonene, Geraniol, Linalool, Hydroxycitronellal, Citronellol, Benzyl Salicylate, Benzyl Benzoate, Citral, Fragrance (Parfum). 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 (5)⌄
FULL INGREDIENT LIST⌄
Algae (Seaweed) Extract, Mineral Oil/Paraffinum Liquidum/Huile Minerale, Petrolatum, Glycerin, Isohexadecane, Microcrystalline Wax/Cera Microcristallina/Cire Microcristalline, Lanolin Alcohol, Citrus Aurantifolia (Lime) Peel Extract, Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Oil, Eucalyptus Globulus (Eucalyptus) Leaf Oil, Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Powder, Medicago Sativa (Alfalfa) Seed Powder, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seedcake, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Seed Meal, Sodium Gluconate, Potassium Gluconate, Copper Gluconate, Calcium Gluconate, Magnesium Gluconate, Zinc Gluconate, Magnesium Sulfate, Paraffin, Tocopheryl Succinate, Niacin, Water/Aqua/Eau, Beta-Carotene, Decyl Oleate, Aluminum Distearate, Octyldodecanol, Citric Acid, Cyanocobalamin, Magnesium Stearate, Panthenol, Zea Mays (Corn) Oil, Limonene, Geraniol, Linalool, Hydroxycitronellal, Citronellol, Benzyl Salicylate, Benzyl Benzoate, Citral, Sodium Benzoate, Alcohol Denat., Fragrance (Parfum)
WHAT EACH INGREDIENT DOES (24)⌄
- Algae (Seaweed) Extract
- Botanical extract marketing
- Mineral Oil/Paraffinum Liquidum/Huile Minerale
- Occlusive emollient base
- Petrolatum
- Strong occlusive barrier seal
- Glycerin
- Humectant moisture binder
- Isohexadecane
- Light emollient solvent
- Microcrystalline Wax/Cera Microcristallina/Cire Microcristalline
- Texture thickener and stabilizer
- Lanolin Alcohol
- Emollient and consistency agent
- Citrus Aurantifolia (Lime) Peel Extract
- Botanical fragrance component
- Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Oil
- Emollient plant oil
- Eucalyptus Globulus (Eucalyptus) Leaf Oil
- Fragrance and scenting oil
- Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Powder
- Texturizing botanical powder
- Medicago Sativa (Alfalfa) Seed Powder
- Botanical filler ingredient
- Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seedcake
- Botanical texture ingredient
- Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Seed Meal
- Botanical texture ingredient
- Sodium Gluconate
- Chelator and stabilizer
- Potassium Gluconate
- Mineral salt additive
- Copper Gluconate
- Mineral salt additive
- Calcium Gluconate
- Mineral salt additive
- Magnesium Gluconate
- Mineral salt additive
- Zinc Gluconate
- Mineral salt additive
- Magnesium Sulfate
- Mineral salt additive
- Paraffin
- Occlusive texture agent
- Tocopheryl Succinate
- Vitamin E derivative antioxidant
- Niacin
- Niacin precursor
EXTERNAL CITATIONS
Glycerin: Well-established humectant that increases stratum corneum water content.
Petrolatum: Strong occlusive with strong evidence for reducing transepidermal water loss.
Panthenol: Humectant/soothing ingredient with supportive evidence for barrier comfort.
DISCLAIMER: THIS ANALYSIS IS FOR INFORMATION ONLY. NOT MEDICAL ADVICE. AI-GENERATED DATA BASED ON PUBLICLY AVAILABLE INGREDIENT LISTS. VERIFY WITH A MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL.
La Mer Crème de la Mer: common questions
Is La Mer Crème de la Mer worth it?
La Mer Crème de la Mer scores 3.7 out of 5.0 for efficacy (Modest) and 3.3 out of 5.0 for safety (Some Risk) on DemythSkin's independent ingredient analysis. This is a lavish occlusive cream with decent barrier support, but most of the legend is marketing and fragrance.
What are the key active ingredients in La Mer Crème de la Mer?
La Mer Crème de la Mer contains no gold-standard actives. Its formula is built on supporting and base ingredients rather than clinically transformative actives.
Does La Mer Crème de la Mer contain fragrance or known irritants?
DemythSkin flags these ingredients in La Mer Crème de la Mer as documented irritants: Lanolin Alcohol, Eucalyptus Globulus (Eucalyptus) Leaf Oil, Zea Mays (Corn) Oil, Limonene, Geraniol, Linalool, Hydroxycitronellal, Citronellol, Benzyl Salicylate, Benzyl Benzoate, Citral, Alcohol Denat., Fragrance (Parfum). This product does contain fragrance.
How is La Mer Crème de la Mer 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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