The front of a jar tells you what a brand wants you to believe. The ingredient list on the back tells you what you are actually buying. Once you know how to read it, you can cut through most marketing in under a minute.
How an ingredient list works
In Australia, the cosmetics ingredients labelling standard requires every cosmetic to list its ingredients in descending order by amount. Brands can also list everything at 1% or more in order, then everything under 1% in any order, with colours at the end.
What that means for you:
- The first five or so ingredients are most of the product. Water is usually first.
- Ingredients near the end are usually present in small amounts, which is often all an active needs, but it also means a star ingredient listed last may be there mostly for the label.
- Percentages are not required, so a brand only tells you how much of something is in a product if it chooses to.
Ingredients use their international (INCI) names, which is why the plant names are in Latin. Tuber melanosporum extract is black truffle, sodium hyaluronate is a form of hyaluronic acid, and tocopherol is vitamin E.
What changes in your skin after 50
After menopause skin holds less water, its protective barrier thins and collagen continues to decline, as the American Academy of Dermatology explains. So the ingredients that matter most are the ones that put water back, hold it in and protect what you have.
The Peptide Crème to renew, hydrate, strengthen and protect. The Eye Crème for fine lines and tired looking eyes. Or both together in the Black Diamond Duo.
Ingredients worth looking for
- Humectants: hyaluronic acid (sodium hyaluronate) and glycerin. They draw water into the skin so it feels plumper and more comfortable. Our hyaluronic acid guide explains how to use it well.
- Oils and lipids: plant oils, shea butter, squalane, ceramides. They help hold water in and soften dry, rough skin.
- Retinoids: retinol, retinal, or prescription tretinoin. They have the most research behind them for fine lines and texture. Start slowly; see our retinol guide.
- Peptides. Gentle, well tolerated, and used for the look of firmness. The evidence is more modest than for retinoids, which is why they work best as part of a complete formula.
- Antioxidants: vitamin E, vitamin C, green tea. They help defend skin against free radical damage from UV and pollution.
- Sunscreen filters. Every morning, broad spectrum SPF 30 or higher. In Australia this matters more than any other ingredient on this list.
Ingredients to be careful with
None of these are bad for everyone. Thinner, drier skin simply tolerates them less well.
- Strong exfoliating acids, such as high strength glycolic acid. Gentle ones such as lactic acid and gluconolactone are usually easier to tolerate.
- Drying alcohols high up the list, often listed as alcohol denat. Fatty alcohols such as cetearyl alcohol are different and help soften skin.
- Fragrance or parfum, if your skin is reactive. Patch test first.
- Too many actives at once. A retinol, an acid and vitamin C every night is often too much for menopausal skin.
How to judge a claim
- "Clinically proven" should be followed by who was tested, how many, for how long and what was measured.
- Ingredient research is not product research. A laboratory result for an extract does not tell you how a finished cream performs.
- "Free from" claims are only meaningful if you care about what is being left out. Check the full list either way.
Our guide to whether black truffle skincare works shows these questions in practice, including how we tested our own creams.
A Truff’elle ingredient list, explained
The Peptide Crème starts with water and MCT oil, then softening plant based conditioners, then Australian black truffle extract, three Australian plums, green tea and goji berry, Sacha Inchi and safflower oils, sodium hyaluronate, gentle lactic acid and gluconolactone, and vitamin E, with a light Manuka honey scent. The full list, with plain English notes, is on the product page, and so is the list for The Eye Crème.
