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 Niacinamide and not three changes at once.

What else is on the list besides Niacinamide?

Madecassic Acid, Madecassoside and Asiaticoside. The order they are printed in on this cream's panel is the order on the box, so you can see where Niacinamide sits relative to them. Further down the same panel: Asiatic Acid, Adenosine and Allantoin.

Anua

Heartleaf Centella Red Spot Cream

Name: Anua Heartleaf Centella Red Spot Cream
Brand: Anua
Price: 16.99 USD
Availability: OutOfStock

Heartleaf water is second and all four centella triterpenes sit together at eighteen to twenty-one in this Anua cream, with niacinamide eleventh and squalane fourteenth, and six ceramides plus cholesterol and phytosphingosine closing the list.

Reviewed by Nurcan Saglam, licensed dermo-cosmetic expert (Paris)

No reviews yet

$16.99

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

Suited to: Dry skinCompromised barrierDehydrated skinSensitive skin

Helps with: Shoppers looking for Niacinamide in a creamRoutines that want Niacinamide and Madecassic Acid in one stepFilling the cream step with a Korean-market formula

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Key benefits

Niacinamide, the active this cream is built around
Madecassic Acid, Madecassoside, Asiaticoside and Asiatic Acid on the same list, actives
Adenosine and Allantoin further down the same list
Tocopherol and Ceramide NP further down the same list
Niacinamide named eleventh on the manufacturer list printed on this page

Key actives

11Niacinamideactive

Niacinamide is vitamin B3, and it is the most studied active in Korean formulation. On this cream's own ingredient list it is named eleventh.

All products with Niacinamide

18Madecassic Acidactive

Madecassic Acid is the fourth centella triterpene. A list that names all four is telling you the extract was standardised rather than simply pressed, which is the difference between a cica claim and a cica formula. It is named eighteenth on this cream's list, alongside Niacinamide.

All products with Madecassic Acid

19Madecassosideactive

Madecassoside is the centella triterpene most associated with the look of redness, and the one brands lead with in cica products. It is water soluble and stable, so it appears in essences as readily as in creams. The panel names it nineteenth on this cream's list, beside Niacinamide.

All products with Madecassoside

20Asiaticosideactive

Asiaticoside is one of the four active triterpenes isolated from centella and the most studied of them. Korean formulas name it separately when they want to show which fraction of the plant they standardised. The panel names it twentieth on this cream's list, beside Niacinamide.

All products with Asiaticoside

21Asiatic Acidactive

Asiatic Acid is the third of centella's four triterpenes and the aglycone form, meaning it has no attached sugar. It is oil soluble, so it turns up in cica creams and balms more than in watery layers. The panel names it twenty-first on this cream's list, beside Niacinamide.

All products with Asiatic Acid

Inside the formula

Ingredients declared

No fragrance

on the list

11Niacinamide18Madecassic Acid

11Niacinamide
18Madecassic Acid

Where each key active sits on the declared ingredient list, by entry number. Position is proportion: the further forward, the larger its share.

1 of 4

Anua Heartleaf Centella Red Spot Cream

65 of 67 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.
Houttuynia Cordata Flower/Leaf/Stem Water plant extract: Heartleaf water, taken from the whole plant above ground. Korean formulas use it as a base in place of water, where it is far more dilute than the extract of the same plant.
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.
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.
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.
2,3-Butanediol humectant: 2,3-Butanediol is a fermentation-derived glycol. It hydrates and, like the other longer glycols, makes a formula harder for microbes to grow in.
Panthenol humectant: Panthenol is pro-vitamin B5: skin converts it to pantothenic acid. It is a humectant that holds water and leaves skin feeling soft and less tight, and it is one of the ingredients formulators reach for when a formula also contains something harsh.
Dicaprylyl Carbonate emollient: Dicaprylyl Carbonate is a light, fast-spreading emollient with a notably dry finish. It is chosen where a formula has to spread thin without leaving a heavy film.
Tocopherol antioxidant: Tocopherol is vitamin E. It is an oil-soluble antioxidant that protects the oils in a formula from going rancid and works on skin as an emollient, and it is regularly paired with vitamin C because each keeps the other going for longer.
Methyl Trimethicone silicone: Methyl Trimethicone is a light, volatile silicone chosen for a notably dry finish. It thins a formula and disperses powders evenly.
Niacinamide active: Niacinamide is vitamin B3, and it is the most studied active in Korean formulation. It is used at roughly 2 to 5 percent for the look of uneven tone and visible pores, and it is water soluble, stable and comfortable beside almost every other active, which is why it turns up in so many lists.
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.

53 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.
Squalane emollient: Squalane is the stable, saturated version of squalene, a lipid human skin already makes. It is a light emollient that absorbs quickly, does not oxidise, and is one of the few oils widely considered safe for blemish-prone skin. Most cosmetic squalane is now from sugarcane or olive rather than shark.
Pentylene Glycol humectant: Pentylene Glycol hydrates and, like the other longer-chain glycols, makes a formula less hospitable to microbes so the preservative system can be lighter. It also improves how evenly a product spreads.
Polyglyceryl-6 Caprylate emulsifier: A polyglycerin emulsifier with a short fatty chain, which makes it more water-loving than its longer-chain relatives. It suits cleansing waters and micellar formulas.
Polyglyceryl-4 Caprate emulsifier: Polyglyceryl-4 Caprate is a mild sugar-derived solubiliser used to dissolve fragrance and oil into watery formulas.
Madecassic Acid active: Madecassic Acid is the fourth centella triterpene. A list that names all four is telling you the extract was standardised rather than simply pressed, which is the difference between a cica claim and a cica formula.
Madecassoside active: Madecassoside is the centella triterpene most associated with the look of redness, and the one brands lead with in cica products. It is water soluble and stable, so it appears in essences as readily as in creams.
Asiaticoside active: Asiaticoside is one of the four active triterpenes isolated from centella and the most studied of them. Korean formulas name it separately when they want to show which fraction of the plant they standardised.
Asiatic Acid active: Asiatic Acid is the third of centella's four triterpenes and the aglycone form, meaning it has no attached sugar. It is oil soluble, so it turns up in cica creams and balms more than in watery layers.
Sorbitol humectant: Sorbitol is a sugar alcohol used as a humectant. It hydrates like glycerin with a smoother, less sticky finish, and it adds a little body to watery textures.
Cetyl Palmitate emollient: Cetyl Palmitate is a wax ester, the same kind of molecule that makes up much of spermaceti and jojoba. It thickens the oil phase and leaves a smooth, non-greasy film.
Sorbitan Palmitate emulsifier: Sorbitan Palmitate is a sugar-derived emulsifier, usually paired with a polysorbate, used to hold oil and water together in creams.
Sucrose Polystearate emulsifier: A sugar-based emulsifier built from table sugar and stearic acid. It holds oil and water together in mild, plant-derived creams.
Cetearyl Alcohol fatty alcohol: Cetearyl Alcohol is a waxy solid, not the drying kind of alcohol. It is a blend of cetyl and stearyl alcohols used to thicken a cream and keep oil and water from separating, and it softens skin as it does so.
Olea Europaea (Olive) Oil Unsaponifiables emollient: The fraction of olive oil that cannot be turned into soap, where its sterols and squalene concentrate. It softens skin and helps hold water in.
Diphenylsiloxy Phenyl Trimethicone silicone: Diphenylsiloxy Phenyl Trimethicone is a high-shine silicone used where a formula needs gloss without stickiness.
Stearyl Dimethicone silicone: A silicone wax, solid at room temperature. It thickens silicone and oil phases and helps a formula resist water.
Hydrogenated Polyisobutene emollient: Hydrogenated Polyisobutene is a stabilised synthetic hydrocarbon used in place of mineral oil. It is an emollient that leaves a smooth, cushioned film.
Poly C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate film former: Poly C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate is a polymer that forms a soft film, thickens the oil phase and gives a smooth, non-greasy finish.
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.
Polyglyceryl-3 Distearate emulsifier: Polyglyceryl-3 Distearate is a plant-derived emulsifier used to hold oil and water together in creams and lotions.
Glyceryl Stearate Citrate emulsifier: Glyceryl Stearate Citrate is a mild, citrate-modified emulsifier. It holds oil and water together and is chosen for formulas aimed at reactive skin.
Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer thickener: This is the thickener behind most gel-cream textures. It builds a soft, bouncy gel that collapses to a light fluid as it is rubbed in.
Sorbitan Isostearate emulsifier: Sorbitan Isostearate is a mild emulsifier that holds water into oil, the direction a cleansing balm or an oil-based cream needs.
Hydrogenated Olive Oil Decyl Esters emollient: Olive oil hardened and rebuilt as esters, which makes it a soft wax. It gives balms body while keeping the feel of an olive-derived emollient.
Sodium Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer thickener: This is a pre-neutralised polymer thickener that gels on contact with water and stabilises an emulsion without heat.
Polyisobutene film former: Polyisobutene is a synthetic polymer that forms a flexible, water-resistant film. It gives gloss and holds a formula in place, which is why it appears in lip products and long-wear textures.
Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside surfactant: Caprylyl/Capryl Glucoside is a sugar-derived cleansing surfactant. It foams modestly and is mild enough for low-pH cleansers built for reactive skin.
Sorbitan Oleate emulsifier: Sorbitan Oleate is an emulsifier for water-in-oil formulas. It keeps a rich cream or a cleansing oil from separating.
Aminomethyl Propanediol pH adjuster: An alkaline compound used to raise the pH of a formula, most often so an acrylate thickener will swell into a gel.
Glyceryl Stearate emulsifier: Glyceryl Stearate is glycerin joined to stearic acid, and one of the most used emulsifiers in skincare. It holds oil and water together and thickens the result, and it softens skin at the same time.
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.
Ceramide NP barrier lipid: Ceramide NP is the most used cosmetic ceramide, the same class of lipid that makes up roughly half the mortar between cells in the outer layer of skin. Added to a cream it slots into that structure, which is why ceramide formulas feel less leaky rather than merely greasy.
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.
Cellulose absorbent: Cellulose is plant fibre. In a formula it thickens, absorbs oil and, in a sheet mask, is often the fabric itself.
Candida Bombicola/Glucose/Methyl Rapeseedate Ferment ferment: This ferment produces sophorolipids, sugar-based molecules that behave as very mild surfactants and emulsifiers. It is used to keep a formula blended without a harsh cleanser.
Beta-Sitosterol emollient: Phytosterols are plant sterols, structurally close to the cholesterol in skin's own lipid layer. They soften skin and help the oil phase of a formula hold together.
Macadamia Ternifolia Seed Oil emollient: Macadamia Seed Oil is unusually high in palmitoleic acid, a fatty acid that human sebum also contains, which is why it absorbs faster than most nut oils. It is a cushioning emollient for dry skin.
Adenosine active: Adenosine is a nucleoside that Korea's own cosmetic authority recognises as a wrinkle-care functional ingredient, which is why it appears on so many Korean lists at a low level. It is used for the look of fine lines and is stable and well tolerated.
Melia Azadirachta Flower Extract plant extract: Melia Azadirachta is neem. Its leaf and flower extracts are long-standing Ayurvedic ingredients, and Korean formulas use them in products aimed at the look of congested, blemish-prone skin.
Ocimum Sanctum Leaf Extract plant extract: Ocimum Sanctum is holy basil, or tulsi. Its leaf extract carries plant antioxidants and is used in formulas built for the look of stressed, reactive skin.
Curcuma Longa (Turmeric) Root Extract plant extract: Turmeric Root Extract carries curcuminoids, well studied plant antioxidants. It is used for the look of dullness and uneven tone, and it tints a formula faintly yellow.
Corallina Officinalis Extract plant extract: Corallina Officinalis is coral seaweed, which holds calcium and magnesium in its structure. Its extract is used as a mineral-rich conditioning ingredient.
Sodium Phytate chelator: Sodium Phytate is a rice-derived chelator used in place of EDTA. It ties up trace metals so the formula stays stable and its colour and scent hold.
Allantoin active: Allantoin is a comfrey-derived compound used to condition skin and soften the outer layer so it feels smoother. It is one of the standard additions to a formula built for easily irritated skin.
Stearic Acid fatty acid: Stearic Acid is a saturated fatty acid from plant fats, and one of the three lipid classes skin's own barrier is built from. In a formula it thickens, stabilises the emulsion and can be turned into a soap-style cleanser by adding a base.
Phytosphingosine barrier lipid: Phytosphingosine is the backbone every ceramide is built on, and skin uses it in its own lipid layer. In a formula it works with ceramides and cholesterol and also keeps the product stable against microbes.
Cholesterol barrier lipid: Cholesterol is the third of the three lipids the outer layer of skin is built from, with ceramides and fatty acids. Formulas that carry all three are following the ratio skin itself holds.
Ceramide NG barrier lipid: One of the ceramide types found between skin cells, also written ceramide 2. Ceramides are the lipid that fills the space between cells in the outer layer.
Ceramide NS barrier lipid: Ceramide NS is another of the ceramides skin makes for itself. It is used alongside NP and AP so a formula supplies a mixture rather than a single lipid.
Ceramide AS barrier lipid: Ceramide AS is a further member of the same lipid family. Its presence usually signals a formula built around a full ceramide profile rather than a single headline one.
Ceramide AP barrier lipid: Ceramide AP is a second cosmetic ceramide, distinguished by an extra hydroxyl group. Formulas that name several ceramides are copying the mix skin actually holds rather than relying on one.
Ceramide EOP barrier lipid: Ceramide EOP is the ceramide with the longest tail, and in skin it acts as the rivet holding the lipid layers together. It is the third member of the standard cosmetic ceramide trio.

How it works

The Heartleaf Centella Red Spot Cream is a cream, used as the last skincare step, morning and evening, over serum. The active it is built around is Niacinamide, named eleventh on its own ingredient list. The same list carries Madecassic Acid, Madecassoside and Asiaticoside, so the active is not the only thing on it worth naming. How much of the Niacinamide stays on the skin, and for how long, is decided by the cream format rather than by the list alone. Anua sells this Niacinamide cream in Korea, and this is that version.

How to use

Use the Heartleaf Centella Red Spot Cream as the last skincare step, morning and evening, over serum.
A pea for the face and another for the neck. Warm it between fingertips first so it spreads in one pass.
It closes the routine at night, and in the morning it is the layer sunscreen goes over.
Twice a day. Do not skip it on an oily day; without a sealing layer the water the steps beneath it brought in leaves again.

Worth knowing

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

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Anua Heartleaf Centella Red Spot Cream

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Anua, Korean-market original

The Original Korean Formula cream from Anua, formulated with Niacinamide and Madecassic Acid, 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.

Anua uses a holographic QR seal that only the HiddenTag app can read. Install HiddenTag from your phone’s app store and scan the seal on the box. A camera app alone will not resolve it.

Source: Anua packaging, HiddenTag scheme

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 the key actives in this formula, quoted from the medical sources linked beside each.

Centella can make your skin appear more hydrated, plumper and healthier.
Samantha Stein, PA-CDermatology physician assistant, Cleveland Clinic
Niacinamide helps reduce the appearance of pores in a few ways. By strengthening the skin barrier and improving elasticity, pores appear less noticeable and more even.
Ashlyn YankeAesthetician, Cleveland Clinic