Slightly obsessed with ceramides and CeraVe
Written By Jenny Wu on
I can’t remember the last time I shopped at a drugstore, especially when it came to skincare products. But surprisngly, one of my favorite skincare brand lately has been a drugstore brand – yep, good ol’ CeraVe. How did I not discover you sooner?
I first learned of CeraVe from Skin&Tonic’s skincare routine where the CeraVe Foaming Cleanser was listed as one of her staples. It’s pH balanced, doesn’t contain sulfates, and has lovely ingredients like niacinamide and ceramides. Mind you, this was before I started scrutinizing ingredients – I just wanted a cleanser that didn’t strip my skin squeaky clean.
Anyways, fast forward to when I started using my Curology prescription: I love me some tretinoin, but it was leaving my face dry as *^&% and my moisture barrier was in serious need of some repair. Enter my love affair with ceramides and my frustration on why more products don’t contain this. But you know what contains not 1, but 3 types of ceramides? Sweet drugstore-brand CeraVe!
Hold up, what are ceramides?
Ceramides are naturally occuring lipids that help makeup 50% the skin’s protective barrier, so you know it’s pretty damn important. As one of the critical components on our skin, it helps retain moisture, regulate cell activity, and repair the barrier when it gets damaged. In fact, studies have shown that dry and damaged skin are often linked to low ceramide levels.
Oh CeraVe, how I adore you
Ceramides are the star ingredients of the whole line, how awesome is that? From cleansers to moisturizers to serums to even sunscreen – everything contains ceramides! It’s like ceramide heaven up in here! So far I’ve tried the following:
- CeraVe Foaming Facial Cleanser – It’s wonderful for my healthy combination skin, but sadly it’s too drying for my tretface. As the label suggests, this would definitely be better for normal/combo/oily skin folks.
- CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser – Full review here. This is my new bae cleanser. It feels so gentle on the skin and leaves it feeling soft and clean, dryness not included. I wouldn’t trust this to remove makeup though, but it’s an excellent second/morning cleanser.
- Cerave Baby Moisturizing Cream – In addition to ceramides, this contains 10% dimethicone, making it a lovely occlusive to prevent moisture loss. I love layering this on right before bed to seal everything in.
I’m also eying (harhar) their Eye Repair Cream, which has niacinamide as the 2nd ingredient, and their Baby Diaper Rash Cream (it contains zinc oxide, niacinamide, and allantoin!). Actually their whole line makes me pretty giddy, I just wished the packaging is prettier.
If you’re interested in trying out CeraVe’s products, make sure you download the $2 off coupon from their site! It can be stacked on top of any additional discounts offered in-store!
Let’s Chat
- Have you tried CeraVe’s products before? If so, I’d love to know your thoughts on them and which ones are your favorites!
- Do you have any favorite drugstore skincare products/brands? Do share!
Passionate about science-based skincare. Tested hundreds if not thousands of products since my 20's. Working regularly with brands like iHerb, Ulta, CurrentBody, and MedStar Health to share my knowledge and experience in all things beauty. Learn more.
Skin profile: 35+, dry/combination, focused on well-aging, hydration, and a healthy glow ✨
Comments & Questions
Cheryl
YAY to ceramides! There are also some products out there that mimic the magic Cermides to cholesterol to fatty acid ratio naturally found in your skin. Those 3 together can wind back real sever dry skin. Elizabeth Arden do a range and Paula's choice also have that magic ratio :D
www.honestyforyourskin.co.uk
Jenny Wu
Ah yes, I know Elizabeth Arden has a whole range of ceramide products, but their prices are a bit steeper than I'd like to pay :P I didn't know Paula's Choice had a product like that though, I'll definitely have to look it up now! Thanks for the tip!
Michelle B
I haven't tried CeraVe but I'm keen on trying the hydrating cleanser. I use Cetaphil Gentle Cleanser which I use as a cleanser and make-up remover. I wonder how the two differs!
Jenny Wu
I've used Cetaphil Gentle Cleanser a long time ago and I remember it being pretty gentle! I don't recall much difference in terms of texture, but it terms of ingredients there seems to be a pretty vast difference. Cetaphil does contain sodium lauryl sulphate (sls), which can be pretty stripping and drying. But it also has less ingredients compared to CeraVe, which would usually mean less potential irritant triggers, except that Cetaphil still contains fatty alcohol (potential acne trigger) and parabens.
Asides from the ingredients, it looks like Cetaphil has a slighly higher pH (6.7) compared to our skin's natural pH, which isn't the worse, but isn't ideal either. So on paper, the Cetaphil cleanser actually looks pretty bad, and usually I would say but YMMV, except that I'm a big proponent on low pH cleansers and no-SLS :P I would definitely recommend looking for a cleanser that doesn't have SLS and is pH balanced for happy skin in the long run :)
Sorry to go on a rant, I had thought both cleansers were very similar (at least from my memory they felt very similar), but a bit of research told me otherwise :P
Michelle B
That's really informative! Thank you. I'm almost out of my cetaphil cleanser so I'm definitely going to try other brands. :D