Is the amount of niacinamide in Cerave enough for results?
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Sun Apr 29, 2012 1:35 am

Hi! I'm a long time lurker posting to EDS for the first time. Smile

I've been a long time fan of Cerave's PM lotion, although I only recently became aware of the fact that it contains niacinamide, which apparently does great things for the skin. While niacinamide is listed as the 4th ingredient on the label, there is no mention of the exact amount of niacinamide in the product. Does anyone have and information (or guesses) as to what percentage of niacinamide is contained in the product?

Quote:

Ingredients: Water (Purified), Glycerin, Capric/Caprylic Triglyceride, Niacinamide, Behentrimonium Methosulfate (and), Cetearyl Alcohol, Ceteareth 20 (and), Cetearyl Alcohol, Ceramide 3, Ceramide 6 11, Ceramide 1, Phytosphingosine, Hyaluronic Acid, Cholesterol, Dimethicone, Polyglyceryl 3 Diisostearate, Potassium Phosphate, Dipotassium Phosphate, Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate, Disodium EDTA, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Carbomer, Xanthan Gum

I've read that 4%+ is the amount shown in studies to be effective on the skin. I'm wondering if I should just stick to this or if I should give NIA 24's much more expensive Skin Strengthening Complex a try. (I have seen some people adding extra niacinamide to their Cerave lotions DIY style, but personally I am not interested in making my own products.)

Thanks in advance for any help you can give me!

free skin care · Sun Apr 29, 2012 5:56 am

Its pretty high up on the list so I think there probably is enough in there to be effective. There is no way to know for sure. Alot of the time %'s are considered proprietary information, which is silly since knowing would actually help them sell more. If you like it and it seems to be working for you I'd stick with it.

free skin care · Sun Apr 29, 2012 8:42 am

dietgrrl wrote:

I've read that 4%+ is the amount shown in studies to be effective on the skin. I'm wondering if I should just stick to this or if I should give NIA 24's much more expensive Skin Strengthening Complex a try. (I have seen some people adding extra niacinamide to their Cerave lotions DIY style, but personally I am not interested in making my own products.)

Thanks in advance for any help you can give me!

Instead of buying expensive NIA Complex, you may just add a toner with niacinamide. For example, Paula's Choice toner for combination skin has niacinamide.

free skin care · Sun Apr 29, 2012 11:58 am

Could you try emailing the company?

They might be willing to share this information.

free skin care · Sun Apr 29, 2012 12:05 pm

There is a short discussion and some recipes on the following thread for any interested.

DIY Niacinamide Recipes: Help!

http://www.essentialdayspa.com/forum/viewthread.php?tid=36490

free skin care · Sun Apr 29, 2012 6:07 pm

RussianSunshine wrote:

Instead of buying expensive NIA Complex, you may just add a toner with niacinamide. For example, Paula's Choice toner for combination skin has niacinamide.

CeraVe is an INexpensive lotion and can be found in most corner drugstores or grocery stores. That's the beauty of this one.

dietgrrl - I just became aware of the Niacinamide in CeraVe myself while buying my first bottle.

CeraVe was recommended by my dermatologist and since I've always heard good things about it, I visited my local Walgreens to purchase some. I bought the body lotion (which does not have niacinamide in it, but DOES have ceramides and Hyaluronic Acid in it). I'd consider the one you asked about for the future.

Sun Apr 29, 2012 11:37 pm

foxe - You should definitely give the PM lotion a try if you like the body lotion/cream! I also found out about the line through my derm. I'm currently using the hydrating cleanser as well (the foaming one made me break out, oddly enough).

The PM lotion is great because it's non-comedogenic, it's soothing and non-irritating (and therefore great if you use a lot of irritating actives like I do), and it manages to be very moisturizing without leaving a greasy or oily film on the skin.

I have no idea how they manage it, especially at such a low price point. It truly moisturizes better than a lot of high end products I've used, and I do feel like it's actually repairing my skin barrier rather than just sitting on top and protecting it. It has an almost matte finish, yet it's completely silicone free. I love it!

free skin care · Mon Apr 30, 2012 6:05 pm

dietgrrl- thanks for the info. I will give it a try soon.

free skin care · Tue May 01, 2012 9:03 am

I love the Cerave PM lotion too, I even order it, I am in Australia and they don''t sell it here. It has a lovely light texture and just sinks in. I also love the price!

free skin care · Tue May 01, 2012 12:32 pm

foxe wrote:

RussianSunshine wrote:

Instead of buying expensive NIA Complex, you may just add a toner with niacinamide. For example, Paula's Choice toner for combination skin has niacinamide.

CeraVe is an INexpensive lotion and can be found in most corner drugstores or grocery stores. That's the beauty of this one.

foxe, I am not sure what you mean. Nia24 Skin Strengthening Complex is around $65.

free skin care · Tue May 01, 2012 1:51 pm

RussianSunshine wrote:

foxe wrote:

RussianSunshine wrote:

Instead of buying expensive NIA Complex, you may just add a toner with niacinamide. For example, Paula's Choice toner for combination skin has niacinamide.

CeraVe is an INexpensive lotion and can be found in most corner drugstores or grocery stores. That's the beauty of this one.

foxe, I am not sure what you mean. Nia24 Skin Strengthening Complex is around $65.

I believe foxe is referring to the CeraVe products that are quite inexpensive at our drug stores in the US.

I am not sure if they are available in Canada RS?

Maybe online if not.

free skin care · Tue May 01, 2012 3:35 pm

DarkMoon wrote:

I believe foxe is referring to the CeraVe products that are quite inexpensive at our drug stores in the US.

I am not sure if they are available in Canada RS?

Maybe online if not.

Oh yeah, she probably referred to the Cerave lotion.

DarkMoon, I was just suggesting cheap ways to add extra niacinamide to the routine. Since dietgrrl is not interested in DIY, one possible option is add a toner with niacinamide.

I am personally not a fan of lotions and creams, they just do not agree with my skin. I only use serums.

free skin care · Tue May 01, 2012 4:57 pm

VainGloria has a 3.5% or 5.0% NIA cream for $5/oz.

http://www.vaingloria.com/niacinamide-moisturizing-cream-1oz/

Wed May 02, 2012 7:42 am

Quote:

DarkMoon, I was just suggesting cheap ways to add extra niacinamide to the routine. Since dietgrrl is not interested in DIY, one possible option is add a toner with niacinamide.

RussianSunshine - Thank you for your recommendation! I think that Paula's Choice toner might be a good choice, but....I'm a little scared to add a toner to my regime. I've never really felt they were "necessary" and I don't want to overstrip my skin, remove the ceramides and other hydrating stuff left over from my cleanser, or make my skin less able to absorb my Vit C serum. Hmm.

free skin care · Wed May 02, 2012 8:35 am

Here are a few DIY options from Josh. (From his notepad on MUA - http://www.makeupalley.com/user/notepad/JoshuaP)

DIY Niacinamide Toner

To a 100 ml spray bottle I add:

85 ml distilled witch hazel (Boots brand right now, which contains approximately 14% alcohol, as such, no preservative is required)
10 ml vegetable glycerin
5 g (approximately 1.5 teaspoons for those who don't/won't weigh it out - I prefer to weight it) niacinamide powder (from gardenofwisdom.com)

I shake this for about a minute to dissolve the niacinamide powder and that's it! Before use I give it a quick shake to ensure it's well mixed. The final concentration of niacinamide is 5% and the pH is between 5 and 6, which is ideal for niacinamide to be effective and is also very skin-friendly.

Niacinamide has become a Holy Grail ingredient for me. I originally started to incorporate it by using Olay Regenerist Daily Regenerating Serum (fragrance-free version). Wanting more (for less of course!) I then decided that I should play around with making my own treatment product. Since starting to use this (around May 2009) I've seen my skin become much less sensitive (to the point that I can tolerate the regular use of retinoids, BHA and AHA's), my skin tone even out a lot, my skin has become a lot firmer and I definitely have less trouble with acne (I'll just add to that and say I've not had a single spot in over 4 months now!).

One downside to using niacinamide (particularly if it's in a high concentration) is that it can cause flushing. This happened a little with me when I jumped from the Olay serum to my own treatment, so what I did was mix a batch at a lower concentration (2%). For the next few weeks I stepped it up by 1% each week until I reached 5% and was able to use it without flushing.

I have some links to sites with information on the many benefits of niacinamide in my Links of Interest section further down the page if you're interested in learning more about this wondeful ingredient.

Niacinamide Toner Alternatives (that work)

Clinique Moisture Surge Spray: To a bottle of Clinique Moisture Surge Spray (125 ml) I added 5 grams of niacinamide. This makes a product with a 4% concentration of niacinamide. The pH comes out at between 5 and 6 and the niacinamide (mine is from GOW) dissolves easilly with about a minute of shaking.

If you're not inclined towards DIY, Paula's Choice Skin Balancing Toner is an excellent product which contains a fairly high percentage of niacinamide (unfortunately the company won't disclose the amount, but I would expect it to be around 2-3% based upon where it is in the ingredient list and what's around it).

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