Review: First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream (2018 Formula)

I’ve tested this cream a few times, using it 3-4 days in a row each time. It is being advertised as a “head-to-toe moisturizer.” While most people use it on their face, and I also tested it on my face, I feel it is more appropriately used as a body cream. They make other products that are formulated for facial moisturization. My skin felt great the first time I tried it, but felt as if I hadn’t applied anything each time thereafter. I wasn’t satisfied with the results, or lack thereof. Granted, the last time I used it was during a vacation in Las Vegas, which is known to have extremely arid conditions, thus resulting in dry and dehydrated skin.

Ingredients

Water/Aqua/Eau, Stearic Acid, Glycerin, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Glyceryl Stearate Se, Glyceryl Stearate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter, Dimethicone, Squalane, Allantoin, Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract, Caprylyl Glycol, Ceramide 3, Chrysanthemum Parthenium Extract, Colloidal Oatmeal, Disodium Edta, Eucalyptus Globulus Leaf Oil, Glycyrrhiza Glabra Root Extract, Sodium Hydroxide, Xanthan Gum, Phenoxyethanol.

2018 Formulation

Let’s examine the ingredients: There are 8 ingredients listed before anything of interest. There is water, followed by stearic acid, a saturated fatty acid used to keep oil & water components from separating. Then we have glycerin, a humectant. After that, there’s more binding and texture enhancing ingredients that double as humectants & emulsifiers. Next is shea butter, which we know is a natural moisturizing factor (NMF). Dimethicone – an occlusive, which means it seals in moisture and prevents water from escaping – is also present here.

The rest are all touted as key ingredients. Squalane (another NMF), allantoin, green tea extract, ceramide 3, feverfew, colloidal oatmeal (great for eczema sufferers), eucalyptus, and licorice root. They list the plant extracts as their “FAB antioxidant booster,” but I wonder how beneficial they are, given that they’re so low on the list.

Noticeably absent from this list is urea. It’s in some of their other products, including one of their lip balms. Urea treats eczema by dissolving the keratin that holds the top layer of skin cells together. It may also help remove dead tissue to help wound healing. Given the fact that this cream is pushed as a solution for dryness and eczema, it’s curious that they excluded something known to be effective.

Let me know what you all think of this cream in the comment section below.

Update

Since being acquired by Unilever, First Aid Beauty has changed the formulation of their best selling product, along with some of their other products. The full name of this moisturizer is now Ultra Repair Cream Intense Hydration. The new ingredients deck is as follows, as of September 17, 2022:

colloidal oatmeal — 0.50%, water, stearic acid, glycerin, c12-15 alkyl benzoate, caprylic/capric triglyceride, glyceryl stearate, glyceryl stearate se, cetearyl alcohol, butyrospermum parkii (shea) butter, dimethicone, squalane, phenoxyethanol, caprylyl glycol, xanthan gum, allantoin, sodium hydroxide, disodium edta, chrysanthemum parthenium (feverfew) extract, camellia sinensis leaf extract, glycyrrhiza glabra (licorice) root extract, ceramide np, eucalyptus globulus leaf oil

FirstAidBeauty.com