No matter where you are in your skincare journey, we bet that you’ve heard of hyaluronic acid, the skincare ingredient that’s known as the hero for skin hydration and a youthful complexion.
Loved for its deeply hydrating, moisturising and plumping properties, hyaluronic acid replenishes and retains our skin’s natural moisture levels. However, there’s another power ingredient that’s entered the skincare market that you need to know about. Said to be five times as hydrating as hyaluronic acid, polyglutamic acid is the ultimate skin hydrator and softener and changes the way your skin hydrates itself.
In this blog post, we’ve taken a deep dive into these two skincare superheroes, their differences and benefits and how they both work to keep your skin supple, plump and deeply hydrated.
What is Hyaluronic Acid?
Having gained immense popularity in the skincare world for its ability to attract and retain moisture, hyaluronic acid can hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water, making it a highly effective hydrating ingredient for all skin types. It’s a naturally occurring substance found in our skin and connective tissues and its small molecular size allows it to be absorbed deep into our skin cells. Using hyaluronic products regularly in your skincare routine will help replenish your skin’s moisture levels and improve your skin’s elasticity.
The benefits of using Hyaluronic Acid
If you’re looking to achieve a hydrated and glowing complexion, then we highly recommend using hyaluronic acid every day. Its powerful hydrating properties will plump up your skin, improve its texture and help you achieve a more youthful appearance. It’s also a gentle ingredient, so it’s suitable for all skin types, especially people with sensitive skin. A great way to introduce this hydrator to your skincare routine is by using hyaluronic acid face masks or sheet masks that feature sodium hyaluronate, a derivative of hyaluronic acid.
What is Polyglutamic Acid?
Polyglutamic acid is a naturally derived biopolymer that comes from fermented soybeans. Although it sounds complex, the benefits are straightforward. This hero ingredient is found in hydrating sheet masks because it keeps skin soft and supple and helps maintain your skin’s barrier function. It also keeps the skin hydrated for long periods of time, increases moisture retention and softens the skin which helps to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
The Benefits of using Polyglutamic Acid
Just like hyaluronic acid, polyglutamic acid is known for attracting and retaining moisture to keep the skin hydrated and plump. It also supports the skin’s natural production of collagen and improves the skin’s elasticity and firmness. Polyglutamic acid mainly targets the outer layer of the skin and acts as a protective film on the skin’s surface to protect your skin barrier function. Using polyglutamic products in your skincare routine will also help to reduce the appearance of dark spots and hyperpigmentation, leaving you with a more radiant and even skin tone.
What's the difference?
While both ingredients are highly effective hydrators, there are key differences between hyaluronic acid and polyglutamic acid that are important to know about. Polyglutamic acid is a much stronger ingredient which means that it can hold 4,000 to 5,000 times its weight in water which is five times more than hyaluronic acid. Each ingredient is also a different molecular size which means they target different areas of the skin. Hyaluronic acid’s smaller molecular size allows it to penetrate deep into our skin cells and polyglutamic acid primarily works on the skin’s surface due to its larger molecular structure. Polyglutamic acid has been found to stimulate the skin’s natural collagen production and it is loved by skin experts for its ability to improve the skin’s self-moisturisation capability. Leading skincare brands have now started using sodium hyaluronate and sodium polyglutamate, the salt forms of hyaluronic acid and polyglutamic acid, in their products because these derivatives are even more effective for hydrating and protecting the skin.
Twice the benefits
Because hydration is the foundation of healthy skin, we’ve formulated the GLIST Ultra Hydro Plumping Mask with a powerful combination of sodium hyaluronate and sodium polyglutamate. The molecular size of sodium hyaluronate that we’ve used in this mask allows it to penetrate the skin even deeper and the film-forming agent in sodium polyglutamate means that it is highly effective at protecting the skin barrier.
So, if you’re suffering from dehydrated skin or want to keep your skin supple and plump looking, adding this deeply hydrating and nourishing sheet mask into your skincare routine will care for the deeper and surface layers of your skin. It will also support your skin barrier function so you can achieve a naturally glowing and healthy complexion.