Hi everyone! Today I am going to review “The Ordinary Skincare” products – with a budget price, but impressive results!
I was introduced to The Ordinary by Kayden’s sister and she raved about how the niacinamide works really well in clearing up her acne scars! Curious, I went to read up on the brand, the product and reviews on their niacinamide product.
And, I ended up with 3 different products from The Ordinary! The products are namely:
1. Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5
2. Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%
3. Argireline™ Solution 10%
Firstly, I apologise for the lack of “Before” and “After” photos in this review. My phone was damaged and I am using my spare phone currently, which is unable to accurately capture the changes to my face when I apply the products.
However, do rest assure that all reviews are absolutely honest. They are also not sponsored!
I tracked the changes the product has on my skin from day 1 and noted down the pros and cons of the products along the way!
I am going to break this review into 3 separate posts (each post featuring 1 product) as they are going to be quite lengthy.
For all 3 posts, I will be starting off with a short summary of the pros and cons. This will allow you to get a quick review of each product if you are not interested in the lengthy, scientific aspect of the product.
Following that, I will do a more in-depth analysis. Looking into different research articles, I will summarise the various benefits of the main component being advertised in the product.
The Ordinary. Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5
Summary
Price: $12 for 30mL
At this price, this product is definitely worth every penny spent on it! It has also been recommended by several pages for being a good budget skincare!
Function: (according to The Ordinary.)
- Hyaluronic acid (HA) is able to attract up to 1000x its weight in water, thus bringing moisture to the skin
- Formulation of low-, medium- and high-molecular weight HA and HA cross-polymer allows HA to enter into different layers of skin to exert its effect without drawing moisture out from skin
- Vitamin B5 enhances surface hydration, supporting the effect of HA
Directions of Use: (according to The Ordinary.)
Apply a few drops to face AM and PM before creams.
I only use it at night due to its tacky and sticky texture.
Texture:
Thick, viscous liquid. Gel-like consistency that spreads out easily on the face. After application, skin feels a bit tacky and sticky.
The tacky feeling goes away after application of a moisturiser cream on top of the HA.
Pros:
- Face feels a lot more moisturised and plumped up
- Fine lines from dryness are visibly reduced
- There are less peeling observed around nose area, which is usually the driest for my face
Cons:
- Texture is a bit sticky and takes a while of patting to get absorbed into the skin. Make sure it is fully absorbed before finishing off with a moisturiser cream
- There is a need to ensure that the moisturiser cream applied after HA covers the entire face. Or else, the skin might lose moisture and starts peeling, especially in dry environment such as aircon room
In-depth Analysis – The Ordinary. Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5
Hyaluronic Acid
Other than the wide range of skin benefits, hyaluronic acid (HA) has been incorporated in many cosmetic products. It is known to be non-toxic, non-sensitizing, and can be safely used for all types of skin with little risk of allergic reactions.
My skin went through a period of horrible break out before, and has become very sensitive to products. However, my skin reacted pretty well to the hyaluronic acid. There was minimal redness observed!
It does sting a little for areas that are especially dry, such as around the nose area. However, the stinging feeling goes away within a few minutes.
HA is naturally present in the skin, and is essential is the proper configuration of collagen and elastin fibres in the skin. As such, the absence of HA will result in the disorganisation of collagen and elastin in skin, resulting in the formation of wrinkles.
Other than the commonly known hydrating benefits, HA is also known for its antioxidant effects, which promote cell regeneration and stimulates the formation of collagen.
I will summarise the 3 main impacts of HA on skin, which I believe most people are interested in:
1. Skin hydration
Due to HA strong ability to trap large amount of water molecules, it is able to replenish moisture in the skin, which results in a softer, smoother and more radiant skin.
Additionally, HA has been shown to prevent transepidermal water loss, which is basically preventing the loss of moisture from your skin! The high-molecular-weight of HA in this product would be able to effectively prevent the transepidermal water loss, allowing your skin to retain more moisture and stay hydrated!
My nose area tends to peel, and I can always feel that it’s super dry around the nose and mouth area, with tight skin. However, with the addition of The Ordinary’s HA into my skincare routine, I have observed significantly lesser peeling around the nose area, and my skin feels less tight.
In addition to that, I have noticed that my skin around cheeks area look visibly more plumped up and hydrated.
Having hydrated skin is essential as it also delays the formation of wrinkles and prevents wrinkle formation!
2. Anti-wrinkle and anti-ageing
With age, the skin loses its elasticity, decreases fat contents, collagen and elastin. This leads to thinner skin with a less smooth surface and the formation of wrinkles.
Many factors can contribute to the formation of fine lines and wrinkles on the skin. This includes habitual facial expressions, age, sun damage, poor hydration, and many other factors.
HA as fillers have shown to be very effective in improving facial volume and tear trough deformity. However, topical HA has its own set of benefits as well!
How can topical application of HA contribute to anti-ageing, delay wrinkle formation and reduce fine lines?
- Improvements in fine lines, skin hydration, and elasticity
- Demonstrated in many clinical trials to treat wrinkles
- Some biological evidence suggested that HA stimulates collagen in the skin. This makes the skin smoother, increase elasticity and longevity, and reduce wrinkles.
- Different molecular weights of HA
- The smaller molecular weight of HA allows for better penetration into deeper layers of the skin, contributing to the more apparent results
- The Ordinary HA contains low-molecular-weight of HA, which is able to penetrate into the deeper layers of the skin to promote hydration and enhance collagen synthesis.
I do not have much wrinkles on my face, since I am still in my early-mid-twenties. However, I do have some wrinkles underneath my eyes due to my bad habit of rubbing eyes (PLEASE DO NOT RUB YOUR EYES), I notice that applying The Ordinary HA under my eyes seem to have plumped up the skin quite a bit, reducing the number of fine lines around there.
3. Collagen production
Many benefits of HA are linked to collagen production. However, most of the clinical trials done were through the injection of HA into the skin. The benefits are namely as such:
- Greater increase in collagen deposition around the filler.
- Cross-linked HA stimulated the synthesis of collagen and partially rejuvenated photo-damaged skin (aka sun-damaged skin).
- Enhanced collagen synthesis and increased its related proteins.
However, these trials mainly talk about the injection of HA and their effect on the skin.
This product by the ordinary is a topical serum, which would most likely not be able to achieve the same effect as injecting the HA directly into the skin layer desired.
Nevertheless, the different molecular weights of HA in the product are likely to be able to penetrate into different layers of the skin, thereby promoting the synthesis of collagen, which is also the key to anti-aging and reducing wrinkles!
Vitamin B5
Other than hyaluronic acid, Vitamin B5 is another important component in this product!
In the description from The Ordinary, they mentioned that vitamin B5 acts to support the effect of HA and enhances skin hydration.
However, as I read up on vitamin B5, I noticed that it is an amazing compound with several skin benefits! Vitamin B5 is commonly known as an essential nutrient from the B-complex vitamin. Vitamin B5 and its alcohol analogue have also been used to protect skin and improve skin regeneration for many years!
I will summarise 2 key benefits of Vitamin B5 on skin, which I believe most of you will be interested in!
1. Wound Healing
- Vitamin B5, along with other B vitamins are able to promote the wound healing process, allowing skin to recover quickly.
- High-dose supplementation of Vitamin B5 can also aid in the healing of surgical wounds
- Dexpanthenol (DEX), a common form of Vitamin B5, is commonly used for wound healing and in wound dressings. DEX also moisturises the skin, prevents skin irritation, and promotes skin regeneration, all of which aids in wound healing.
Now, you may wonder, what is the point of talking about wound healing effect of Vitamin B5…
Wound healing is especially important for the skin! You may have ‘popped’ an acne today, and there would be an open wound that is exposed to all the bacteria and dust in the air! If you do not close the wound in time, bacteria can enter the wound and cause inflammation and infection, which can worsen your acne problems!
By quickening the recovery of wounds, you would be able to prevent further inflammation and infection of this little wound you have caused to your face!
2. Treatment of acne
I think most of you would be interested in treatment of acne! This is a problem that haunts many people, especially in their teenage years (for me, it was during my early-twenties)!
If you can use a product that is able to help maintain your skin and prevent the appearance of acne, wouldn’t that be great?
Vitamin B5 has been tested in several clinical trials for treatment of acne:
- 12 weeks treatment with vitamin b5 reduced non-inflammatory lesions. Examples of non-inflammatory lesions include comedones such as blackheads and whiteheads. If left untreated, non-inflammatory lesions can also turn aggressive and progress to an angry pimple!
- Vitamin B5 treatment (within a few days) reduced facial oil and sebum secretion. Reducing sebum secretion and facial oil can significantly reduce clog pores!
- Within 2 weeks, pore sizes have become smaller and existing acne starts to heal. The eruption of new acne has slowed down too!
- By 8 weeks, the acne condition has been well controlled. (Severe acne condition require approximately half a year)
I have indeed noticed that blackheads on my nose has reduced significantly! There are still blackheads on my nose, but I have only used this product for 3 weeks. Hence, I am optimistic that the condition would improve over time!
Additionally, the little bumps of comedones that would appear randomly on my face previously have significantly reduced. My face definitely feels smoother now!
Conclusion
This marks the end of my first review product by The Ordinary. – Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5!
This is my first time reviewing a skincare product. Although there are many flaws in it, I hope it is useful and informative to you! I will continue to improve as I write more reviews on skincare products!
I have used this product for 3 weeks, and I have seen significant improvement in my face! It definitely looks more hydrated and plumped up, with less peeling around my nose area, and also feels smoother! If you are interested in introducing HA into your skincare, I definitely recommend getting this!
Feel free to contact me via our facebook page and tell me how you feel about it! Have you tried it before? Does it work for you? Do you love it as much as I do? Or does your skin react badly to it? I would love to hear all your opinions!
Stay tuned for the reviews on the other 2 products I have tried from The Ordinary!
(PS I LOVE THE NIACINAMIDE 10% + Zinc 1% FROM THEM! IT WORKS WONDERS IN LIGHTENING MY ACNE SCARS!)
References
If you are interested in reading articles related to hyaluronic acid and vitamin B5, you can try looking up on these journals.
The review journals do give a very good insight into each product and the benefits as well!
| Hyaluronic Acid | Vitamin B5 |
|---|---|
| Review – Bukhari et al. (2018) Int Jrl of Bio Macromol. Pavicic et al. (2011) J. Drugs Dermatol. Jegasothy et al. (2014) J. Clin. Aesthet. Dermatol. Poetschke et al. (2016) MMW Fortschr. Med. Turlier et al. (2013) J. Dermatol. Sci. | Review – Proksch et al. (2017) J Dermatolog Treat. Rembe et al. (2018) Adv Skin Wound Care Kobayashi et al. (2011) J Pharmacol Sci Yang et al. (2014) Dermatol Ther (Heidelb) Jerajani et al. (2010) IJDVL |
