Having a sensitive skin can be hard because we are not suitable with many products in the market even though we like them for the benefit, scent or how they feels like in our skin. For those with sensitive skin, Cetaphil vs Sebamed are two great brands to pick because they are formulated to be friendly without many triggering ingredients. If you are also eyeing these brands to treat your skin, go check our article below to see how they differ and pick which the better of them.
In this article, we are going to give you information about:
– Why Soap is Drying
– What are Cetaphil and SebaMed
– What Cetaphil and SebaMed are made of
– What Cetaphil and SebaMed can offer to you
– How are the Consistency of Cetaphil and SebaMed
– Are Cetaphil and SebaMed able to cleanse your skin
– Cetaphil vs SebaMed
Soap and Dry Skin
There is no more relaxing thing than getting into a fresh bath after a long day at works because cleansing our body will help remove some of the tiredness and those build up during the day as well so we can sleep more peacefully, free from any unpleasant smell or any itchiness. While most people in the world wash their body everyday, there is no actual guidance on how often you need to wash for it is all depend on our preference.
Beside personal preference, bathing is also closely affected by the region we currently living in because the weather does play an important role on making our body sweat more or generate build up more. For example, those who work outside in a field or open construction will have to take a bath to remove the dirt and sweat from their daily activity while those living in very cold places will probably have no chance to sweat and feel like it is fine to go several days without bathing.
Another reason why people are debating whether to bath once a day or more is because bathing can strip our natural moisture both from skin and scalp so it can cause those with very dry skin to experience extreme dryness the more they bath, moreover, if they use a harsh soap. Soap is necessary to remove dirt and oil from a surface such as skin and clothes due to the combination of fat or oil and alkaline substance that dissolve in water like salt and baking soda.
While they can remove dirt that can cause some problem in our skin, they will also remove the natural oil and this is why our skin feels dryer when getting out of tub from a long hot shower with soap. It also the reason many experts especially hair experts are agreeing that shampooing once a day is not recommended due to the essential oils being removed. However, if you still need soap or shampoo to cleanse your body, there are several good brands out there offering gentle cleanser to keep your skin moisturized.
About Cetaphil
When you are looking for sensitive skin product, the first name comes to mind is probably Cetaphil because this name is widely-known for providing gentle, safe products for those who are not suitable with the most common skin products in the market. If you are also one of us, trying their gentle skin cleanser may help because this cleanser is design to remove those impurities from skin without causing them to dry, especially for those with extremely dry skin type.
While it is made to be non-drying, those with oily skin don’t have to worry because this Cetaphil cleanser is non-comedogenic and can be used as a face wash as well with or without water, made with balanced-pH with no fragrance to provide a pure cleanser without the triggering substance. Read also: Cetaphil vs CerAve here.
Cetaphil Ingredients and Benefit
Since we are dealing with non-drying, sensitive-friendly skin products, we have to check the ingredient part as well and the first we see here are water and cetyl alcohol. Cetyl alcohol is not the bad alcohol like denatured alcohol, it is also called fatty alcohol and used as emollients of thickeners on skin-care products. It is not irritating but can benefit those with dry skin since it can moisturize them. The next is Isopropyl Alcohol and this is the one working as the cleanser because besides removing the impurities, it also killed microorganism.
To make sure your skin is clean, lauryl sulfate or SLS is also used here and this one is probably not preferred by many since it can cause irritations, moreover, if you scrub the skin too much while washing. The next Stearyl alcohol is used here as moisturizer and can be derived both from stearic acid and coconut or vegetable oil, so it will soothe your skin or conditioning them. The last concerning ingredient is paraben because it is known to penetrate the skin and may cause cancer which is why many people are avoiding it today.
Cetaphil Consistency
In the consistency part, Cetaphil gentle cleanser is more into watery-type because its formulation is slightly clear and in between cream and gel which is actually very nice when applied on skin. There is no strong smell here as well so don’t expect any relaxing scent coming out of the cleanser. It is also used both with and without water so you can pick which suit your skin better so in case there is no water nearby, we can still wash our face.
Cetaphil Performance
In performance, when tested, Cetaphil is working well because it leaves your skin smooth and clean after washing without any dry or stiffness like when we used regular face or body wash. However, it won’t be able to act like those foamy wash if you are wearing full make up for it won’t remove all of them compared like when using micellar water or cleansing cream. If you are only wearing powder or light BB cream, in our opinion this wash can still handle them good both with and without water.
About SebaMed
To make sure we are already picking the correct option, it is wise to look around first before committing to one of them and if you are still not satisfy with what Cetaphil can offer to you, SebaMed probably has the perfect cleanser for your skin. The one we are talking about is their Liquid Face and Body Wash which is boasting an acidic formulation as opposed to the previous cleanser with a neutral pH. The real benefit itself is said to promote the natural skin protection.
The reason why SebaMed is using an acidic formulation is because healthy skin is acidic as well and has an average pH value of 5.5 which is why they can work optimal as your skin barrier, supporting them and making them healthier. As opposed, those with pH more than 7 or called Alkaline that is not suitable for skin since they will cause them to dry and even irritation.
SebaMed Ingredients and Benefit
The first ingredient we see here is water followed by Olefin Sulfonate and this is actually a cleansing agent so we often see it as well on other similar cleanser. This ingredient work by dissolving oil molecules and compounds in water. Next is SLES and this is detergent just like SLS but is thought to be safer than its contraction but in the end, it is just like a foaming agent to cleanse your skin. To make sure your skin stay moisturized, Panthenol is also used here and it will act by binding water to your skin.
Glycol distearate is here as an emollient but it also has a high foaming capacity which is why we often found them on cleansing products. When you open the soap, you will instantly smell the scent and this is because SebaMed used fragrance in their formulation so for those who are allergic to fragrance, you may want to test the soap or cleanser first. In addition to Panthenol, there is Saccharide Isomerate here to bind water to your skin so it can keep your skin moisturized.
Another beneficial ingredient here is Allantoin that derived from the comfrey plant and it is used here to soothe the skin as well as protecting them. Glycerin is listed as well and this popular moisturizing or emollient will make sure your skin stay hydrated, supple and prevent them from drying.
SebaMed Consistency
Its consistency is quite thick in our opinion, it is gel-like with green color and have a slight smell which is kind of powdery and we don’t really mind about the scent at all actually. It is easy to spread on skin and for better result, make sure to massage the area for a couple minutes or using them like using a cleansing cream. We can use them for both face and body so it is very convenient when you are traveling.
SebaMed Performance
On performance, the one thing we love from SebaMed is they are working well in removing dirt and oil from your skin without leaving the tight or dryness like when using regular soaps. But, you may want to avoid cleansing your water-proof makeup with this cleanser since it is not going to completely remove your makeup so we do recommend you to use a dedicated makeup remover or other cleansing solution.
Comparison
Now, let’s compare Cetaphil with SebaMed. The prominent difference between these cleansers are on the ingredient, consistency and pH level because SebaMed use an acidic formulation to provide the similar barrier in your skin, to keep the moisture and prevent drying with lots more moisturizing ingredients and have a slightly thicker consistency as well as fragrance as opposed to no-fragrance formulation in Cetaphil.
