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Do i need a penetration enhancer in this niacinamide serum?
This is a serum that i make
Niacinamide 5%
Lactic acid 5% active
Phenoxyethanol 0.5%
Salicylic acid 0.1%
Peg12 dimethicone 0.1%
Citric acid 0.2%
Sodium hydroxide to pH 4.
Water
Package 120ml flip top cap bottle.
Question:
Do i need to use a penetration enhancer like DMI for niacinamide to work better or it is not needed?
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7 Replies
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Hi,
This might help with choosing the enhancer: https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/26/4/1555
mdpi.com
Niacinamide, a derivative of vitamin B3, has been shown to reduce skin pigmentation (i.e., acting as a brightening agent) and inflammatory responses such as dermatitis and acne vulgaris. However, niacinamide is a hydrophilic compound and poor partitioning to the lipid … Continue reading
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Thanks for the link.
Of course these enhances penetration of niacinamide. But do we need to penetrate it deep in the skin to do it’s job or superficial is enough?
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If it’s for acne, it’s fine. The penetration is needed for having an effect on skin pigmentation.
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No it is not for acne. It is to get all it’s benefits as much as possible
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Then using a permeation enhancer is a good idea.
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Glycols all help with penetration and also add some humectancy. You can go with propylene glycol or butylene glycol at around 3–5%. Other good options are dimethyl isosorbide or oleic acid. PG + oleic acid is the most potent combo but they need to be emulsified, which probably doesn’t work for your serum.
A 5% lactic acid solution at pH 4 gives you about 2% active (free) acid. The rest is in its salt form.
Niacinamide stays most stable around pH 6.
Phenoxyethanol alone is not very strong against fungi, and gram+ bacteria.
The formula doesn’t have a rheology modifier, so it won’t glide very well. I’d throw in at least some xanthan gum or HEC.
Also, what’s citric acid doing here? Why use sodium hydroxide instead of TEA or something else? No chelators, either?
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Sodium hydroxide is readily available and cheaper. Why should i use tea? <div>
pH is 4 so EDTA wouldn’t work. Im i correct?
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