Dr.Althea Pure Grinding Cleansing Balm

What is this product?

A 14-ingredient cleansing balm whose short, ester-based formula suits people who want minimal ingredient lists, with centella-derived actives (madecassoside, asiaticoside) for a soothing angle.

What makes it different?

The formula is unusually short at 14 items and skips fragrance and essential oils entirely. The soothing actives, madecassoside, centella extract and asiaticoside, sit in the mid-list (positions 9 to 11) behind a light ester and PEG emulsifier base. No concentrations are printed, so the actual strength of the centella actives is not verifiable.

What is in it?

The full ingredient list as the brand publishes it, in the printed order. Each name links to what we know about that ingredient.

This brand publishes its ingredient list in Korean only. Names below are the matching INCI names from the Korean Cosmetic Association ingredient dictionary.

Key ingredient

• Cetyl Ethylhexanoate
• Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
• PEG-20 Glyceryl Triisostearate
• Synthetic Wax
• PEG-10 Isostearate
• Sorbitan Sesquioleate
• Camellia Sinensis Seed Oil
• Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Oil
• Madecassoside
• Centella Asiatica Extract
• Asiaticoside
• Water
• Caprylyl Glycol
• Ethylhexylglycerin

Ingredients with no mark are ones we found nothing notable about, and when marks overlap on one ingredient we show the caution first.

Did the ad claims hold up?

We checked 2 lines this product advertises against the ingredient list and public documents. None of them hold up on their own. They are partly right at best.

Claims translated from Korean, originals preserved.

Each line is quoted as the brand published it, and each one was read on its own against the ingredient list and the documents the brand publishes.

How we read these lines