Wow-Wow Wonder 3-Hyaluron + C Serum 7.5 / 10

The full breakdown

Stable vitamin C, triple-weight HA and indigenous buchu make for a lovely formula, but the small 15ml size hurts the value score.

Ingredient breakdown

• Sodium Ascorbyl Phosphate
  Moderate evidence

  Commonly used as a stabilized vitamin C derivative for antioxidant and brightening benefits with fewer stability/irritation concerns than pure L-ascorbic acid. A systematic review of vitamin C in dermatology confirms stabilized derivative systems consistently improve photoaging and pigmentary disorders, and a related vitamin C ester derivative (magnesium ascorbyl phosphate) has been shown to provide real antioxidant photoprotection when combined with mineral UV filters.

• Sodium Hyaluronate
  Moderate evidence

  Commonly used as a humectant to draw and hold moisture in the skin, functionally equivalent to hyaluronic acid. A controlled RCT of topical hyaluronic acid (of which sodium hyaluronate is the salt form typically used in cosmetic formulations) found low molecular weight forms significantly improved skin capacitance versus high molecular weight forms and vehicle, with no adverse effects.

• Buchu Extract
  Limited evidence

  Traditionally used botanical with demonstrated in vitro antioxidant activity (Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity assays) and anti-inflammatory activity (COX-1/COX-2 and 5-lipoxygenase enzyme inhibition in lab assays); no human topical dermatology trials have been conducted to date.

Best suited to

All, Dull, Dehydrated