Pevonia vs Eucerin

 

The Comparison

           

The reason why I had chosen to compare these two particular products is because my mother has used Eucerin moisturizer as long as I can remember. She has always sworn by Eucerin products, and I never thought they were all that great. Therefore, I had chosen to compare her moisturizer (Eucerin Sensitive Skin Everyday Protection Face Lotion) to the moisturizer we use here at NECEE (Pevonia Soothing Sensitive Skin Cream.) Both of these products claim to do the same thing; they both claim to soothe, moisturize and protect the facial skin. However, one product is the better choice while the other falls short. I have compared these two products based upon texture, color, aroma, cost, availability, and the ingredient content. I find this project interesting because it challenges the theory that cheaper drug store products are just as good as the more expensive spa products. While that presumption can be debatable, since I haven’t compared every single drug store brand of skin care to every single professional spa skin care product, I can tell you that as far as Eucerin sensitive moisturizer vs. Pevonia sensitive moisturizer is concerned; Pevonia wins the battle.

 

Texture

 

            While both products have an adequate amount of slip and spread ability, Pevonia has a thicker and creamier consistency and Eucerin has more of a thinner, lotion-like feel. The Pevonia sensitive cream had a very, clean, non-greasy feel. As a matter of fact, immediately after I applied it to my hands I started typing this comparison and there was no oily residue the computer keys at all even though my fingers felt as if they had plenty of moisture and lubrication on them, therefore that tells me that the moisture is firmly locked in my skin. The Eucerin seemed to linger on the skin’s surface longer and had kind of a slippery feel. Its interesting that Eucerin has more of a lotion like consistency because it is filled with thickeners while Pevonia hardly has any at all. Perhaps Pevonia doesn’t need any because the product is thick all on its own and without thickeners Eucerin would possibly be at a near liquid form. That is just a conclusion since I am no cosmetic chemist, but I would say that it is a safe assumption. Most of the moisturizers in the Pevonia product are performing ingredients. For example, the Pevonia product contains Sorbitol which is a performing ingredient that absorbs moisture from the air to prevent skin dryness therefore leaving the skin feeling smooth. Instead of just having a higher amount of functional ingredients like thickeners and dispersing agents, Pevonia has a higher amount of performing ingredients that actually cause a physical change in the skin, often from an outside element occurring naturally. That could be why Pevonia is thicker without thickeners, because it just doesn’t need them. Another thing I was surprised at is how many functional ingredients that were in the Eucerin product to give it “lubricity” or ‘slip.” About five different ingredients total, just solely to aid in spreading capabilities. While, emollients are necessary in any cream five seems to be a little too much. A phrase comes to mind “all slip and no grip.” Meaning, sure the spreading quality is great, but what about the actual absorption of the moisture? Pevonia has its fair share of emollients as well, but usually the ingredient also has some form of a performing quality. For example, it contains Carthamus Tinctorius (Safflower Seed Oil), which in addition to aiding in spread ability also hydrates the skin. “Grip as well as slip.” It impresses me that the Pevonia product chooses ingredients that are both functional as well as performing. It shows me as a consumer that the ingredients are more than “fluff” to make the product thicker or smell nicer, the ingredients they chose have all the necessary “fluff” but are also giving me the results I am aiming for. In all fairness, Eucerin also contains functional ingredients that also act as performing. It contains lactic acid, which is a good ingredient because it is functional by acting as an exfoliant and a preservative, and it is also performing because it has the ability to increase the water holding capacity in the corneum layer. It also contains Dimethicone which provides lubricity, slip and a good feel as well as protecting the skin against moisture loss. The Pevonia product contains both of these ingredients as well.

 

Color

 

Both products are white in color. They both contain Titanium Dioxide, which in addition to being an SPF contributor also is used in cosmetics to add a white color to the product. The Pevonia product is a bit more of a pure, white color while the Eucerin appears slightly more of a cream color of white.

 

Aroma

 

          The Pevonia product has very little fragrance at all. Since it is designed for sensitive skin, there are no fragrances present in the product. This is a good thing because some fragrances can irritate sensitive skin. The Eucerin moisturizer had more of a fragrance than the Pevonia product. While the frangrance wasn’t heavy at all, it was still more fragrant. The Eucerin product contains Cyclomethicone which delivers fragrance while the Pevonia product contains Corylus Avellana (Hazel Nut Oil) which aides in giving the product a low odor.

 

Cost

 

          This is the one area where Eucerin beats Pevonia… sort of. The Eucerin moisturizer costs $9.99 for a 4 oz bottle ($2.50/oz). The Pevonia product retails for about $54.00 for a 1.7 oz bottle($31.76/oz.) However, a little saying that my father always used to say comes to mind “You buy junk, you get junk.” I believe this to be true in this case. The Pevonia product is superior based upon the quality of its ingredients. Generally speaking, its like comparing a diamond to a cubic zirconia. Sure, the C.Z. will cost substantially less but it is not of the high quality of the real deal. Diamonds are worth more because they are more difficult to obtain. The same is true for skin care. Take the ingredient (present in the Pevonia product) Propolis Cera for example. It is comprised of resigns, essential oils, pollen, vitamins and minerals. It is obtained from bees and it is what they use to construct their hives. I’m not a chemist, nor the poor soul they send out to retrieve this from a bee hive but it is safe to assume that this is not all that easy to obtain. At least, its not the equivalent of mixing it up in the lab. Therefore, it’s more expensive. Simple economics. This may also be a good time to add that the Eucerin has zero ingredients that considered “natural” or “healing” while the Pevonia product has seven (Not including water, which I don’t believe has healing properties in a direct sense, in skin care it serves more of a lubricating purpose.) That’s right. Seven all natural ingredients that have healing or soothing qualities, it makes sense since it is a product designed for a more sensitive skin. Interesting that Eucerin claims to help sensitive skin when it has absolutely NO ingredients that are natural, soothing, or healing which sounds to me like a perfect recipe for no results. However, Eucerin does contain Sodium Hydroxide, and that does something for the skin… it irritates it.  It may cost about $44.00 more, but I would be more than willing to spend the $54.00 on a quality product than spend $9.99 on a “slippery” product that does nothing for my skin.

 

Availability

 

          The Eucerin product is available at pretty much any drugstore. Walmart, CVS, Rite Aid, Target and most grocery stores carry it; just to name a few. The Pevonia product is available at spas, online, and (sometimes) at esthetic schools. Eucerin is widely more available to consumers than Pevonia. It all goes back to economics, the cheaper the ingredients are the cheaper the product will be…the cheaper something is the easier it is to get, because it costs less to produce and the less something costs to produce, the more it will be dispersed and sold on every corner. Count how many fast food restaurants there are in a busy part of town, then count the gourmet, pricey restaurants. Chances are good that the latter will be harder to find. The same goes for skin care. Eucerin may be available at every corner but Pevonia, which is available only at spas or online, is the better product. Think about it, would you get a more quality piece of jewelry at Tiffany’s or Walmart? Both stores have jewelry, but a Tiffany’s may be a little bit harder to find than a Walmart. If you ask me, I’d rather go out of my way to find a Tiffany’s than trust a Walmart when it comes to quality. So, buying Pevonia may be a bit more difficult than buying Eucerin, but if quality is what you’re looking for than I suggest going a few extra miles out of your way to get it.        

 

My conclusion

 

          After gathering all of this information, analyzing and reviewing the ingredients in both products I can accurately conclude that the Pevonia Soothing Sensitive Skin Cream is a better skin care product than the Eucerin Sensitive Skin Everyday Protection Face Lotion. Pevonia has more performing ingredients than functional ingredients. Both ingredient types are important, but a quality product contains more ingredients that will actually cause a change in the skin also known as performing ingredients.  Pevonia also has many natural ingredients with healing and soothing qualities such as safflower seed oil, propolis, sorbitol, hazel nut oil, bisabolol, and allantoin. I was surprised to discover that Eucerin doesn’t have any. I was also surprised to find out that the Eucerin moisturizer contains sodium hydroxide which is a chemical reagent used to make soap that can cause serious skin irritation if too concentrated. Why is it even in there? This is a cream not a soap, and why add an ingredient that irritates skin? Especially when the ingredient is in a cream designed for SENSITIVE skin! Although, I must admit that Eucerin does perform better as a sunscreen. It boasts five different sunscreens, which is most of its performing ingredients. So, if you want a cheap sunscreen that will block out UVB rays but does nothing to help your sensitive skin, go get the Eucerin Sensitive Skin Lotion. If you want a quality moisturizer that will soothe, heal, protect (remember, it contains titanium dioxide as well), and, of course, moisturize the skin then Pevonia is the right choice.