Where does this cream go in my routine?

As the last skincare step, morning and evening, over serum. Anything thinner than a cream goes on before it, and anything richer goes on after. If you are adding it to a routine you already like, give it a week on its own first, so what you see is the Biosaccharide Gum-1 and not three changes at once.

Is this the Korean-market cream or a US version?

The Korean-market one, Biosaccharide Gum-1 and all. We match this cream to its Korean barcode before it reaches the shelf, which is the check that tells you which market release you are holding.

What else is on the list besides Biosaccharide Gum-1?

Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Houttuynia Cordata Extract and Sedum Sarmentosum Extract. The order they are printed in on this cream's panel is the order on the box, so you can see where Biosaccharide Gum-1 sits relative to them. Further down the same panel: Glycyrrhiza Glabra (Licorice) Root Extract, Hydrogenated Polydecene and Carthamus Tinctorius (Safflower) Seed Oil.

ACWELL

Real Aqua Balancing Cream 50ml

Name: ACWELL Real Aqua Balancing Cream 50ml
Brand: ACWELL
SKU: 5759940933
Price: 35.0 USD
Availability: InStock

ACWELL Real Aqua Balancing Cream is a 50ml cream with Biosaccharide Gum-1, used as the last skincare step, morning and evening, over serum.

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$35.00

50 ml

$70.00 per 100 ml

Korean-market formula
Ships from California or direct from Korea
Korean barcode and batch code intact

Suited to: Congested skinUneven textureDehydrated skinSensitive skin

Helps with: Shoppers looking for Biosaccharide Gum-1 in a creamRoutines that want Biosaccharide Gum-1 and Portulaca Oleracea Extract in one stepFilling the cream step with a Korean-market formulaAnyone who wants the Biosaccharide Gum-1 cream sold on Korean shelves

One-time purchase

$35.00

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$31.50

In stock. Arrives in 3 to 7 business days

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How it works

The Real Aqua Balancing Cream is a 50ml cream, used as the last skincare step, morning and evening, over serum. The polysaccharide it is built around is Biosaccharide Gum-1, named fifteenth on its own ingredient list. The same list carries Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Houttuynia Cordata Extract and Sedum Sarmentosum Extract, so the polysaccharide is not the only thing on it worth naming. How much of the Biosaccharide Gum-1 stays on the skin, and for how long, is decided by the cream format rather than by the list alone. This is the Original Korean Formula, the cream ACWELL sells in Korea, Biosaccharide Gum-1 and all.

Key benefits

Biosaccharide Gum-1, the polysaccharide this cream is built around
Portulaca Oleracea Extract, Houttuynia Cordata Extract, Sedum Sarmentosum Extract and Glycyrrhiza Glabra (Licorice) Root Extract on the same list, plant extracts
Hydrogenated Polydecene and Carthamus Tinctorius (Safflower) Seed Oil further down the same list
Salvia Hispanica Seed Oil and Hyaluronic Acid further down the same list
Biosaccharide Gum-1 named fifteenth on the manufacturer list printed on this page
The Korean-market release of this cream, confirmed against its Korean barcode

How to use

Apply after your serum or essence, morning and night, smoothing a small amount over the face and neck.

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38 of 39 explained

Water solvent: Water is the base almost every serum, toner and cream is built on. It dissolves the water-loving ingredients and sets how light the finished texture feels. On an INCI list it is usually first, which only means it is the largest single ingredient by weight.
Glycerin humectant: Glycerin is the most used humectant in skincare. It draws water into the outer layer of skin and holds it there, and it is one of the very few ingredients whose hydrating effect is settled science rather than marketing. Higher amounts feel tacky, which is why it is usually blended.
Dipropylene Glycol humectant: Dipropylene Glycol is a glycol used as a solvent and a light humectant. Its main job is keeping the rest of the formula dissolved and the texture fluid rather than adding hydration of its own.
Propanediol humectant: Propanediol is a plant-derived glycol used in place of propylene glycol. It hydrates, carries actives into solution, and gives a lighter, less sticky slip than glycerin at the same strength.
Hydrogenated Polydecene emollient: Hydrogenated Polydecene is a synthetic hydrocarbon emollient used in place of mineral oil. It is stable, has no scent, and gives a cushioned slip without oxidising.
1,2-Hexanediol humectant: 1,2-Hexanediol is a glycol used for two reasons: it holds water like glycerin, and it makes a formula harder for microbes to live in, so less traditional preservative is needed. Korean formulas use it heavily for that second reason.
Butylene Glycol humectant: Butylene Glycol is a small glycol that does two jobs at once: it holds water in the top layer of skin and it dissolves plant extracts and actives that plain water cannot. It also thins a formula, which is why watery Korean essences lean on it.
Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride emollient: Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride is the light fraction of coconut oil, with the heavy parts removed. It is the workhorse emollient of modern formulas: it softens skin, dissolves oil-soluble actives and absorbs without the greasy weight of a whole plant oil.
Polymethylsilsesquioxane silicone: Polymethylsilsesquioxane is a silicone resin in fine sphere form. It soft-focuses the look of pores and lines and gives a smooth, powdery finish.
Cetearyl Olivate emulsifier: Cetearyl Olivate is the water-loving half of the olive-derived emulsifier pair. With sorbitan olivate it builds emulsions whose lipid profile is close to skin's own.
Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer thickener: This is a carbomer relative with fatty side chains, so it thickens and stabilises an emulsion at the same time. It gives a light gel-cream body rather than a heavy one.
Tromethamine pH adjuster: Tromethamine neutralises acidic thickeners such as carbomer so they gel, and holds a formula near skin-friendly pH. It is used at a fraction of a percent.

26 more explained

Sorbitan Olivate emulsifier: Sorbitan Olivate is an olive-derived emulsifier, the oil-loving half of the pair sold as Olivem. It holds oil into water and leaves a light, non-waxy feel.
Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate thickener: Sodium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate is a polymer thickener that holds a gel stable even with a lot of salt or acid in the formula.
Biosaccharide Gum-1 polysaccharide: Biosaccharide Gum-1 is a fermentation-derived sugar polymer that binds to skin and holds a moisture film in place. It gives a silky, non-tacky feel.
Carbomer thickener: Carbomer is a synthetic polymer that only gels once a base neutralises it, which is why arginine or tromethamine sits nearby on the list. It gives the clear, non-stringy gel texture a xanthan formula cannot reach.
Glyceryl Glucoside humectant: Glyceryl Glucoside is glycerin bound to glucose, from the resurrection plant. It is a humectant that holds water in the outer layer of skin.
Ethylhexylglycerin preservative booster: Ethylhexylglycerin softens skin and boosts a preservative system, which is why it is nearly always sitting beside phenoxyethanol or 1,2-hexanediol. It also cuts down the odour bacteria produce, so it turns up in deodorising products.
Hydroxyethylcellulose thickener: Hydroxyethylcellulose is a cellulose thickener that builds a clear, smooth gel and holds the rest of the formula in suspension.
Disodium EDTA chelator: EDTA is a chelator: it locks up trace metal ions from water and packaging that would otherwise turn a formula cloudy, off-colour or rancid. It does nothing to skin and appears at a fraction of a percent.
Trideceth-10 emulsifier: An ethoxylated fatty alcohol used as an emulsifier and solubiliser. It dissolves small amounts of oil or fragrance into a watery formula without clouding it.
Hyaluronic Acid humectant: Hyaluronic Acid is a sugar chain the body already makes, and one gram of it can hold several litres of water. In a formula it is a humectant that pulls water to the surface of skin and holds it in a film, which is what makes skin look plumper while it is there.
Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid humectant: Hydrolyzed Hyaluronic Acid is hyaluronic acid cut into much shorter fragments. The smaller the fragment, the further into the outer layer it can settle, which is why serums stack several sizes together instead of using one.
Portulaca Oleracea Extract plant extract: Portulaca Oleracea is purslane. Its extract is unusually high in omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants for a plant, and Korean formulas use it for the look of reddened, reactive skin.
Sodium Hyaluronate humectant: Sodium Hyaluronate is the salt of hyaluronic acid, and it is what most products labelled hyaluronic actually contain. The salt dissolves more readily and the molecule is smaller, so it sits in the outer layer of skin rather than only on top of it.
Houttuynia Cordata Extract plant extract: Houttuynia Cordata is heartleaf, and it is one of the two or three anchor plants of Korean calming skincare. Its extract carries quercitrin and other flavonoids and is used for the look of redness and blemish-prone skin.
Sedum Sarmentosum Extract plant extract: Stringy stonecrop, the dollnamul eaten as a Korean spring green. It is a succulent, so its extract is watery and hydrating.
Hydrogenated Lecithin emulsifier: Hydrogenated Lecithin is lecithin with its unsaturated bonds filled in, which makes it far more stable. It emulsifies and is the standard shell for the liposomes that carry actives into the outer layer of skin.
Linoleic Acid fatty acid: Linoleic Acid is an essential omega-6 fatty acid and the main fatty acid in sunflower, safflower and rosehip oil. In a formula it is a lipid that softens and sits in the outer layer.
Linolenic Acid fatty acid: Linolenic Acid is an omega-3 fatty acid from seed oils. It is an emollient and part of the lipid mix skin uses in its own surface layer.
Carthamus Tinctorius (Safflower) Seed Oil emollient: Safflower seed oil, among the highest-linoleic plant oils. High-linoleic oils feel lighter and absorb faster than high-oleic ones.
Polyglyceryl-10 Oleate emulsifier: Polyglyceryl-10 Oleate is a mild sugar-derived emulsifier and solubiliser used where a formula must stay clear.
Sucrose Palmitate emulsifier: A sugar ester: table sugar joined to a fatty acid. Sugar esters are mild emulsifiers with a light, silky feel and no detergent sting.
Salvia Hispanica Seed Oil emollient: Chia seed oil, one of the richest plant sources of omega-3 fatty acids. It is a light, fast-absorbing oil that softens skin.
Glycyrrhiza Uralensis (Licorice) Root Extract plant extract: Licorice Root Extract carries glabridin and liquiritin. It is one of the classic plant ingredients used for the look of uneven tone and redness, and it appears in almost every brightening formula that avoids synthetic actives.
Saccharide Isomerate humectant: A plant-sugar complex whose structure resembles the sugars already bound to the skin surface, so it stays through washing. It is used as a long-acting humectant.
Citric Acid pH adjuster: Citric Acid is used in tiny amounts to bring a formula to the pH its actives need, not as an exfoliant at that level. It is an AHA, so at much higher concentrations it can also exfoliate.
Sodium Citrate pH adjuster: Sodium Citrate is the salt of citric acid, used as a buffer: it holds a formula at a steady pH rather than pushing it in one direction. It is also a mild chelator.

Inside the formula

Ingredients declared

No fragrance

on the list

Worth knowing

Patch test this cream on a small area and wait a day before using it more widely, especially with Biosaccharide Gum-1 on the list.
Introduce this cream on its own for the first week, so anything your skin does is traceable to the Biosaccharide Gum-1 rather than to three changes at once.

Complete the routine

This itemACWELL Real Aqua Balancing Cream 50ml$35.00
Seal the routine in as the last stepacwell Aqua Clinity Cream (Original) 50ml$42.50
Prep after cleansing, before the treatment stepacwell Licorice pH Balancing Essence Mist 100ml$40.00

Total for 3 items$117.50

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ACWELL, Korean-market original

The Original Korean Formula cream from ACWELL, 50ml formulated with Biosaccharide Gum-1 and Portulaca Oleracea Extract, shipped from California or direct from Korea.

Verify your unit when it arrives

Korean-market stock with the original barcode and batch code intact, exactly as it left Korea.

On the unit itself

The Korean-market barcode, unaltered from the retail package.
The manufacturer’s batch code, exactly as the maker printed it.

정품Genuine article, Korean-market stock

What professionals say

What skin-care professionals say about skin care, quoted from the medical sources linked beside each.

Your skin barrier is basically your outer layer of the skin.
Melissa Piliang, MDDermatologist, Cleveland Clinic
Pretty much every step of a Korean skin care routine is going to have some component of hydration.
Alok Vij, MDDermatologist, Cleveland Clinic