Centella Content vs Composition, Which Matters More?

When choosing cosmetics, many people are first drawn to phrases like 'contains X% Centella.' However, skin soothing or condition care isn't determined by the content of a single ingredient alone. Other soothing and moisturizing ingredients blended together, the stability of the formulation, and compatibility with the skin barrier all work together as well.

Why Centella content alone is hard to judge by numbers

Centella Asiatica extract is a complex of various active ingredients including madecassoside and asiaticoside. Even if labeled with the same 'Centella content X%,' the actual effect can vary depending on the extraction method, refinement level, and the ratio of active ingredients in the raw material.

Also, increasing the proportion of a specific ingredient doesn't necessarily mean the overall formulation's usage feel or irritation-soothing ability improves proportionally. In fact, a formulation skewed toward a single high-concentration ingredient may lose balance with other moisturizing and soothing ingredients and burden the skin instead.

Why you should look at 'composition' rather than content

Skin maintains its condition through an organic interplay of lipids (ceramides, cholesterol, fatty acids), moisture, and various soothing ingredients. That's why, when choosing a product that helps with soothing and hydration, it can be more practical to check whether supporting ingredients like panthenol, allantoin, and beta-glucan are blended in balance together, rather than focusing on a single Centella content number.

Especially during periods when skin is sensitized, such as right after a procedure, a formulation designed with a composition similar to skin lipids—rather than a high-concentration single ingredient that could be irritating—can help it absorb comfortably without irritation.

Care directions that differ by stage

Right after skin irritation occurs (days 1-3), soothing care to calm redness and heat is the priority. During this period, rather than the concentration of an ingredient, what matters more is a formulation that applies comfortably without irritation and a combination of ingredients that help with soothing and barrier care.

After moving into the recovery phase from day 4 onward, redness tends to subside somewhat, but a feeling of tightness, flaking, and roughness often begins to appear. During this period, it can help to shift the care direction toward a composition of ingredients that support deep moisturizing and skin texture refinement rather than soothing ingredients.

Try dividing your home care by stage like this

Stage 1 (right after irritation to day 3): After cleansing, tone the skin, then gently layer a soothing care product over areas with redness and heat as if covering them thinly. The key point is to lightly absorb it without rubbing.

Stage 2 (from day 4 onward): Once redness has subsided, switch to deep moisturizing care focused on areas that feel tight or flaky. Gently patting it in to absorb deeply can help refine skin texture.

A 2-step home care designed with ingredient composition

Rather than competing on the concentration of a single ingredient like centella, ZXQMAGAZINETERM Aviju Cream ZXQ is a 2-STEP recovery solution designed with ingredient compositions tailored to the skin's condition at each stage. During the period right after irritation when redness and heat are felt, the Ultra Cera-Rich Cream, formulated with a balanced blend of 5 types of ceramides, panthenol, and allantoin, provides suitable care, while during the recovery phase after redness subsides when tightness begins, the Hydro Re-Boosting Cream, featuring a high concentration of panthenol and a ceramide composition, provides care suited to that stage.

Home care determines post-procedure recovery

Regardless of whether a procedure was performed, periods when the skin is sensitive and periods when it needs recovery each require different ingredient compositions. ZXQMAGAZINETERM Aviju Cream ZXQ's Ultra Cera-Rich (clinical name Cera-Biju) and Hydro Re-Boosting (clinical name Renew-Biju) are a 2-STEP lineup designed to meet these stage-specific needs. See more → You can check the ingredients and timing of use for each product at ZXQMAGAZINETERM Aviju Cream ZXQ.