Vitamin C 10%, Hyaluronic acid 0.5%, Niacinamide 2%, 3-O-Ethyl-L-Ascorbic Acid, Hyaluronic Acid, Chamomile Extract, Liquorice Extract, Niacinamide, Sodium PCA, C10-30 Acrylates Crosspolymer, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylhexylglycerine, Disodium EDTA, Limonene, Linalool. - Aure BelleAure-Belle

How Aure-Belle works

Hyaluronic acid holds up to a thousand times its own weight in water. Applied to skin it draws moisture into the upper layers and holds it there, which plumps the surface and makes fine lines less visible almost immediately. That effect is physical and temporary rather than structural -- it works while the skin is hydrated, so it is applied to damp skin and sealed with a moisturiser. Niacinamide is vitamin B3, and it is unusual in being useful for several unrelated skin concerns at once. It blocks the transfer of melanin from the pigment cells to the surface skin cells -- so pigment already made never reaches the surface. It also strengthens the skin barrier by increasing ceramide production, regulates sebum, and calms redness. It is well tolerated across skin types and does not sting the way acids do. Vitamin C works on pigmentation in two ways at once. It interferes with tyrosinase, the enzyme that begins melanin production, so less new pigment is made; and it is a powerful antioxidant, neutralising the free radicals ultraviolet light generates in skin. It is also required for collagen synthesis -- the enzymes that cross-link collagen cannot function without it, which is why vitamin C appears in anti-ageing formulations as well as brightening ones. Plain ascorbic acid oxidises quickly, which is why stabilised derivatives such as 3-O-ethyl ascorbic acid are used. Putting them in one formulation means the routine stays short, which is the main reason people keep to it.