The Story Behind Acure Organics

Acure Organics is a skin and hair care brand that was founded by Jon and Kristy Guerra. Jon had worked in the natural personal care industry for more than 17 years in product formulation and development, and Kristy convinced him that he should start his own company. Kristy also began to realize the correlation between chemical cosmetic ingredients and various health concerns. Her search for natural, effective personal care products is what inspired her to create Acure Organics.

The Acure Organics skin care products are formulated with high-quality, natural, certified organic ingredients and do not contain parabens, sulfates, formaldehyde, paraffin, or mineral oil. The brand believes that “It’s not enough to be natural, it also has to work.” Acure Organics also prioritizes sustainability, which is why all products are 100 percent biodegradable. In this review, we’ll discuss the brand’s best selling skin care products, key ingredients, Acure Organics reviews from real customers, and more.

The Top 6 Acure Organics Skin Care Products

Acure Organics skin care products include cleansers, scrubs, face mists, moisturizers, oils, serums, eye care, masks, and more. Below we’ll give you the details on the top six Acure Organics skin care products.

Seriously Soothing Cleansing Cream
This Acure Organics sensitive facial cleanser contains a blend of organic argan oil, peony extract, and sunflower amino acids in order to gently cleanse the skin while also improving skin hydration. Like most cleansers, this formula contains surfactants, such as sodium cocoyl isethionate and disodium coco-glucoside. A surfactant molecule contains one end that is hydrophilic (attracted to water) and one end that is lipophilic (attracted to oil). This allows surfactants to attract and suspends oils, dirt, and other impurities that have accumulated on the skin and wash them away, leaving the skin clean.

ALTERNATIVES: Carrot & Stick The Gentle Hydrating Cleanser. This gentle, hydrating is formulated with natural hydration, including hyaluronic acid, that won’t strip precious oils, disrupting the surface barrier. 

Brightening Facial Scrub
The Acure Brightening Facial Scrub uses walnut shell powder and kaolin clay to physically exfoliate the skin. Physical exfoliation, also referred to as mechanical exfoliation, utilizes an abrasive substance to scrub away dead skin cells through motion. This is in contrast to chemical exfoliation, which involves using ingredients like alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs) to dissolve keratin in order to remove dead skin cells. While both methods of exfoliation can help remove dead skin cells from the outer layer of skin, most skin care experts recommend using chemical exfoliants. This is because physical exfoliants, such as the walnut shell powder used in this Acure Organics facial scrub, are often too abrasive for the skin and may cause microtears and irritation.

Brightening Night Cream
This Acure night cream is said to promote a brighter complexion while also hydrating and protecting the skin. The brand claims that chlorella, echinacea, and argan oil are key ingredients in this night cream, yet these ingredients are used in very low concentrations. We know this because these ingredients are listed after xanthan gum. Xanthan gum is a thickener that is generally used at a concentration of 1%, but as little as 0.1% can be used in many applications. This means you’re getting less than 1% of the key ingredients in the Acure night cream.

ALTERNATIVES: Carrot & Stick The Repair Serum. It contains 7 peptides for smoother, firmer looking skin.

Brightening Day Cream
The Acure Brightening Day Cream is said to help moisturize, protect, fight dullness, and even out skin tone. The brand claims that cica (centella asiatica) extract and argan oil are key ingredients in this day cream. However, similar to the Acure night cream, this formula contains extremely low concentrations of these “key” ingredients. In fact, argan oil is the second to lowest concentration ingredient! We think it’s pretty misleading to call these “key” ingredients when there is such a small amount present in the product that these ingredients aren’t doing anything for your skin.

ALTERNATIVES: Carrot & Stick The Moisturizer. It’s overflowing with potent plant proteins, vitamins, peptides and amino-collagen. 

Brightening Cleansing Gel
The Acure Brightening Cleansing Gel contains surfactants to help wash away dirt, oil and make-up. The formula also contains small amounts of pomegranate, blackberry, and acai extracts, which theoretically could provide antioxidant benefits. However, since this is a rinse-off product, we doubt that these extracts will provide much of an effect.

The Essentials Marula Oil
Acure Marula Oil is a lightweight facial oil that is quickly absorbed to help alleviate dry skin. The brand also recommends applying the Acure Marula Oil to split ends, dry cuticles, scars, and stretch marks. Marula oil contains a similar fatty acid composition to olive oil (about 70 to 78% oleic acid, a monounsaturated fatty acid), but is 10 times more resistant to oxidation.

What Are The Key Acure Organics Skin Care Ingredients?

Acure Organics uses a variety of naturally-derived botanical extracts to formulate their 100% vegan skin care products. But we did notice that the brand uses a few key ingredients throughout their collection, such as chlorella, coconut oil, argan oil, and pomegranate extract.

Chlorella is one key ingredient you’ll find in several Acure Organics skin care products, such as the Brightening Facial Scrub and the Brightening Night Cream. Chlorella is a green eukaryotic microalgae. When applied to the skin, chlorella has been shown to stimulate collagen synthesis. Additionally, chlorella has an anti-collagenase and an anti-elastase effect. Collagenase and elastase are enzymes that break down collagen and elastin, respectively. Since collagen and elastin are responsible for the strength and elasticity of skin, preventing the degradation of these proteins is important for maintaining a youthful complexion.

Coconut oil is used in almost all Acure Organics skin care products, which is great because coconut oil offers many benefits to the skin. Coconut oil contains between 80 and 90% saturated fat and, therefore, is very stable even when exposed to heat and oxygen. According to a publication in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences, topical application of coconut oil helps to strengthen the skin barrier, promotes faster wound healing, and even protects the skin from UV radiation.

Argan oil is mostly composed of unsaturated fatty acids (80%), including oleic acid and linoleic acid. Oleic acid is an omega-9 monounsaturated fatty acid that functions as a penetration enhancer by disturbing the skin barrier. Linoleic acid is an omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA). Unfortunately, PUFAs are very unstable and prone to oxidation, which means they easily go rancid and can lead to the generation of free radicals that can damage our cells and lead to signs of aging. While argan oil only contains about 35% PUFAs (linoleic acid), this is still something to keep in mind, especially since Acure Organics does use several other high-PUFA oils in their products (safflower oil, sunflower oil, etc.).

You’ll find pomegranate extract in many of the Acure Organic skin care products. Pomegranate contains catechins, which are phenolic compounds with potent antioxidant activity. Antioxidants limit oxidative stress caused by free radicals, the unstable molecules that contribute to the formation of premature wrinkles and fine lines on the skin. Thus, the pomegranate extract in Acure Organics skin care products may be able to prevent signs of aging.

Even though Acure Organics skin care products do not contain artificial fragrances, we’d like to point out that the brand does use fragrant essential oils and extracts in their products. Some products contain high concentrations of these essential oils, for example, the Acure Organics Brightening Facial Scrub contains a pretty high amount of lemon peel oil. The use of fragrant essential oils is problematic because they have the potential to cause contact allergies, skin irritation, and even skin damage. In fact, according to a 2016 publication in the scholarly journal Dermatitis, nearly 80 essential oils have caused contact allergy. This is because all fragrance ingredients (whether natural or synthetic) impart scent through a volatile reaction, and this natural reaction almost always causes a sensitizing reaction on skin. Even if you don’t have a full blown reaction to the ingredient, the damage may still be occurring every day. Ultimately, this can cause mild problems for your skin in the short term and worse problems in the long term.

Where are Acure Organics Skin Care Products Sold?

Acure Organics skin care products are sold on the brand’s website, as well as several third party online retailers such as Ulta, Target, Walgreens, Walmart, Amazon, and more. The brand also has a store locator on their website so that you can find a physical location that sells Acure Organics skin care products near you.

What is The Acure Organics Return Policy?

The Acure Organics return policy states, “If you purchased from our website and are not 100% satisfied with your purchase for any reason, please email or call our customer service at [email protected] or 877-902-2873 to obtain a Return Authorization Number. Please return your item within 365 days with proof of purchase to receive a refund, exchange, or store credit. We will gladly provide a prepaid shipping label if the item is unopened and in original condition. If your product has been opened and used, you must mail back to us at your expense.”

Is Acure Organics Cruelty Free?

Acure Organics is cruelty free and the products are officially Leaping Bunny Certified. Leaping Bunny Certification means Acure Organics skin care products are free of animal testing at every stage of product development.

Acure Organics Reviews

Acure Organics reviews on the brand’s website are actually very positive, with all of the products we mentioned above receiving at least an average rating of 4.7 out of 5 stars. Out of all the Acure Organics skin care products, the product with the most reviews is the Acure Brightening Facial Scrub, which has received an average of 4.9 out of 5 stars after about 100 customer reviews.

There are many Acure Organics reviews for the Brightening Facial Scrub that mention how it gently cleanses the skin and doesn’t cause irritation, even for those with sensitive skin. For example, one very positive review says, “Seriously an incredible product. It’s vegan, cruelty free AND works for my dry skin and my partners oily/acne prone skin. AND a great price!!! A product I will happily always endorse!” There’s actually only one negative review for the Acure Brightening Facial Scrub from someone who experienced skin dryness and acne after using this product.

What Are Some Alternatives to Acure Organics Skin Care?

There’s no need to compromise when it comes to finding skincare that’s effective and safe.

If you’re looking for effective skincare products that skip harmful toxins, one brand we recommend is Carrot & Stick.

Carrot & Stick is committed to creating plant-derived formulas that deliver extraordinary results without relying on toxic chemicals or standard preservatives.

Carrot & Stick takes a tough love approach to skincare, perfectly balancing the gentle nurturing of plants with innovative science.

References:
1. Int J Mol Sci. 2018 Jan; 19(1): 70.
2. de Groot AC, Schmidt E. Essential Oils, Part IV: Contact Allergy. Dermatitis. 2016;27(4):170-175. doi:10.1097/DER.0000000000000197