Cicaplast Baume B5 Full Ingredient Breakdown: Ingredient Analysis & My Honest Review

Over the past year, La Roche-Posay’s Cicaplast Baume B5 has taken the skincare world by storm. This multi-purpose skin-healing balm has been widely praised for its soothing and barrier-repairing properties, with some even claiming it gave them “glass skin” - a K-beauty term for skin so smooth, clear, and hydrated it looks almost translucent.

With all the hype surrounding this cult-favorite, a deep dive into its full ingredient list is long overdue. So, let’s break down what’s really inside this best-selling balm, and whether it lives up to the buzz.

Full INCI (Ingredient) List

Let's start with showing the full ingredient list that is shown on the packaging:

INGREDIENTS: AQUA / WATER, HYDROGENATED POLYISOBUTENE, DIMETHICONE, GLYCERIN, BUTYROSPERMUM PARKII BUTTER / SHEA BUTTER, PANTHENOL, PROPANEDIOL, BUTYLENE GLYCOL, ALUMINUM STARCH OCTENYLSUCCINATE, CETYL PEG/PPG-10/1 DIMETHICONE, TRIHYDROXYSTEARIN, ZINC GLUCONATE, MADECASSOSIDE, MANGANESE GLUCONATE, SILICA, MAGNESIUM SULFATE, DISODIUM EDTA, COPPER GLUCONATE, CAPRYLOYL GLYCINE, CITRIC ACID, ACETYLATED GLYCOL STEARATE, POLYGLYCERYL-4 ISOSTEARATE, TOCOPHEROL, PENTAERYTHRITYL TETRA-DI-T-BUTYL HYDROXYHYDROCINNAMATE, CI 77891 / TITANIUM DIOXIDE.

These types of ingredient lists can be very overwhelming, which often leads people to skip over them. Such a bummer, because there’s loads of valuable information hidden in these puzzle-worthy lists. So, let’s see what this puzzle has to offer for our skin!

Key Ingredients & Their Functions

First, let's break down the more prominent ingredients and their functions.

Dimethicone: a silicone-based occlusive that smoothes skin, locks in hydration, and helps form a protective layer.

Shea Butter (Butyrospermum Parkii Butter): a nourishing emollient that softens and protects.

Glycerin: a humectant that attracts moisture and supports hydration balance.

Panthenol (Vitamin B5): deeply soothing and supportive of barrier repair, helps calm irritation.

Madecassoside (Centella Asiatica Extract): anti-inflammatory antioxidant aiding epidermal renewal.

Copper, Zinc & Manganese Gluconate: mineral complex that reduces bacterial adhesion, supports healing and overall barrier recovery.

Tocopherol (Vitamin E): antioxidant that helps protect skin from free radical damage.

Capryloyl, Glycine, Citric Acid, EDTA: these help with pH stability, preservation or mild exfoliation and texture control.

Apart from these very promising and soothing ingredients, Cicaplast Baume is also fragrance-free, alcohol-free and free from parabens or harsh irritants, making it a safer option for people with sensitive skin.

Pros and Cons of Cicaplast Baume

Overall, Cicaplast Baume B5 is packed with skin-protecting, barrier-repairing ingredients that help calm irritation, support hydration, and leave the skin feeling smooth. It almost sounds too good to be true. So, let’s take a closer look and see if there are any potential drawbacks hiding behind the hype.

First up, some users mention that the skin-saving cream has triggered breakouts or fungal acne, possibly due to Shea Butter of Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, which may be comedogenic for some skin types. Fungal acne (medically known as malassezia folliculitis) is a skin condition caused by an overgrowth of yeast that naturally lives on the skin.

Additionally, the formula includes preservatives like Chlorhexidine Digluconate and Phenoxyethanol, which, while generally considered safe, may irritate very sensitive or allergy-prone skin.

Finally, in some markets, a reformulated version has surfaced containing Denatured Alcohol high on the ingredient list. This ingredient can trigger stinging or redness after use, especially for rosacea prone-skin, which is a chronic inflammatory skin condition mainly affecting facial skin.

How To use It

Cicaplast Baume has mostly been known for its use on the face, but it's actually well-suited for use on the lips, body, and even cracked areas like elbows and hands. It is ideal for dry, chapped, post-procedure, or irritated skin all over the body. It is safe to use across all ages, from babies to adults, which makes Cicaplast a staple among households.

Let’s focus on the use on the face then. For best results, apply a thin layer, morning and/or night, onto clean, dry skin. If you're treating severely dry or rough patches, a thicker layer can be used. Since it's an occlusive formula (read: seals in moisture by sitting on top of the skin), it's best applied as the final step in your skincare routine, right before sunscreen or makeup.

My personal experience

For my sensitive, reactive, and acne-prone skin, Cicaplast Baume has had some amazing benefits. For me, it has been the only product thus far that can soothe and repair my skin barrier quickly. After one night of use, I noticed visibly less irritation caused by using tretinoin cream. To avoid breaking out from this product, I use it only at night because I find the formulation too thick to wear during the day. Also, I apply a thin layer over my face so that it is, in my experience, not too occlusive. Finally, I use it as the 'sandwich method' when using tretinoin cream at night, by putting on a thin layer of Cicaplast, then tretinoin cream, and then again a thin layer of Cicaplast.

Overall, this product has delivered for me, and for many others, in soothing, hydrating, and repairing skin in less time than other products have done!

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