Acne.org : Moisturizer with Licochalcone

I?ve been using this for A LONG TIME and like others I have to make a review.  Dan, your regimen has been the only thing that?s ever cleared my acne!  The moisturizer was thin and absorbs well!  I wasn?t ever afraid to put more on.  This new bottle (bought last month) is white in color, thick like Cerave moisturizing cream, and it feels very heavy on my skin.  My skin feels like it has a layer of film on it and the product pills in the morning (balls up) when I wipe my finger across my face.  I?ve got horrible cystic acne in places I don?t normally have (my neck, middle of cheeks, by ears near hairline) and a red rash near my ears (see picture).  I only ever use the Regimen and the moisturizer is the only thing that?s different.  Also, has anyone else noticed the awful smell?  I tried to ignore it, but it smelled like liquid fermenting at the bottom of a trash can when I first opened it.  It makes me sad to see so many negative reviews, and even more sad to write one.  Dan!  Please change it back!  You?ve helped countless people struggling with acne MYSELF included!  I want to cry because this is the only thing that has worked for me and now I?m thinking about tossing it in the bin.

I just bought the acne.org lotion for the first time and I got the biggest bottle.  Up until recently I was afraid to add a separate moisturizer into my regimine.  I have been very happy with the BP and the AHA from acne.org.  Since adding the lotion I've started breaking out and like others have mentioned it is causing stinging.  I never used the old formulation but I'm back to using no moisturizer.

Similar to many other reviews here, I have been an avid Acne.Org regimen user for the better part of a decade. It is the ONLY cleanser, moisturizer, and treatment I have used since 2014, and that is not an exaggeration (I briefly tried a Cetafil cleanser to save money for about a month and my acne came back so I returned to the regimen and never looked back). After seeing everyone else's reviews here, I'm so glad I'm not the only one who is having issues with the new moisturizer's formulation. I just opened a new bottle of the moisturizer after finishing a bottle with the old (yellow) formula. I initially thought I got sent a mislabeled bottle of the Benzoyl Peroxide because that was the look and consistency of the new moisturizer. I put it on and it was sticky, so strongly scented, and burned. And not like sometimes my skin burns because I put my treatment on too quickly after showering, like felt like a chemical peel BURNED for hours. My skin burned and felt so tight and dry that I was convinced I applied a heaping amount of Benzoyl Peroxide and not moisturizer. I don't know what happened or why the formula was changed but it is so so so incredibly disappointing after having felt like I found the holy grail in the old yellow formula. If the creators are reading the reviews (and I would hope they are) PLEASE consider offering the old formulation as an option to your loyal customers. I have such incredibly sensitive, acne-prone skin that the slightest change in my skincare routine will send my skin into a downward spiral which is why I can assure you, not a THING in my routine has changed within the past 2 years or so (had to add in some anti-wrinkle serums, hi thirties!) to make this moisturizer behave the way it did on my skin, unless something drastic happened within the formulation. Please creators, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE bring the old version back as an option. I'm quite literally BEGGING.

(I'm also editing to add in that when I started using these products in 2014, I read on this website that the yellow color was because of the licorice root being used in these products and to beware of moisturizers that are white in color because it means the moisturizer has been unnecessarily altered to have a whiter color. Seems odd that now the moisturizer is white...?)

The new formula stings and makes my skin quite upset leading to more breakouts as well as tiggering eczema to flare. I’ve been using this moisturizer for years, but unless it changes back I won’t be buying any more. Very frustrated to have to throw out a pricey bottle, and to have to find something else! There was nothing wrong with the yellow color before. If it’s not broke, don’t fix it! 

Similar to everyone else, I don’t like the new white moisturizer. I prefer the old yellow one, my skin was glowing and clear for the past few years. Now With the new white formula I’ve been having breakouts, and won’t be ordering more.

I have used the regimen faithfully  for 10 years. I struggled with acne through my teens and 20s until I started using the acne.org regimen / products in my early 30s.  Simply put, It changed my life, and I am truly grateful. I have never commented on anything until now, and I feel bad giving a less favorable review after all these years of using a product that has done so much good for my life.  As soon as the licochalcone was swapped out, I started having several problems. I have stuck with it now for many months and I still struggle.  My face is often red and itchy. I get that burning sensation more often after application. I appear to break out more, possibly from some extra irritation. I've also been getting small hot spot rashes that seem like little eczema patches (have never had this before). Ive been struggling more with dry weather changes, having extremely dry and irritated flaky skin. I am also noticing faster wrinkle formation that may correlate with my struggles.  Overall my skin feels more consistently inflamed and irritated, which is frustrating after 10 years of being satisfied. It is as if it just doesn’t counteract the negative effects of BP as well as it used to. Even though I actually liked the feel and yellow tint of the old formula, I really don’t care about how a moisturizer feels, smells, or looks, as long as it works. I should say that I also regularly used the AHA, but that also appears to have had the licochalcone swapped out and the irritation is even worse when I use it. More recently (after trying to acclimate), I have been trying less BP, more moisturizer, more jojoba oil, etc to try and find a good combo for me, but have not had success yet. Note that there are no other obvious changes in my life that might have this impact. If nothing else has changed (excipients, ratios of excipients, etc)  for BP or moisturizer, then i am very suspicious of the licochalcone swap specifically. I am curious if even ratios of other excipients have changed recently, I am also curious if the BP excipient ratios have changed or if there is a batch or two that has elevated BP.   I have not tried any other moisturizer with the regimen, but I’m considering trying others. As a biotech drug discovery scientist who works in formulation development among other things (not making this up), I remain open to the possibility that an unknown variable other than the licochalcone change is the source of my problems. I also understand that my single anecdotal experience holds little weight, so I would encourage others to rate and review (good or bad) so that product decisions are made with the most accurate information possible. Perhaps a separate/new product review that doesn’t mix reviews with the old formula would be helpful. I am very curious if most people are having success with the change, which might help me understand if my problems truly are the moisturizer or not. Having both versions of the old and new moisturizer and AHA is probably the best option from a customer point of view (people appear to be more split on moisturizers in general than they are about the cleanser and BP treatment; perhaps a single moisturizer doesn't fit all skin types?)  but I understand that may not be possible from a business point of view. Also, I understand if there are supply and financial issues at play driving the switch, I guess not a lot you can do there. Again, I am truly grateful for the past decade, and I hope to continue use into the future. 

I have been using the acne.org moisturizer for 8 years. The new white version stings my face everytime now. If its not broke dont fix it. Or make an alernative  moistuizer, but dont replace the good one guy....

Like so many here, I have had a terrible time with new formula.   It actually causes any breakout to get much much worse.  I still have some of the old yellow formula and I’ve tested them against each other.  The yellow formula actually gets rid of my breakouts even without the benzo peroxide it seems. I understand that only one ingredient changed, but my experience just isn’t lining up with that. :/

The only thing I have changed in my skincare routine is this new moisturiser and ever since I have, there has been a string of dermatitis on my face which I could figure out why! But now i have! Causes really bad dermatitis around eyes, on cheeks and on neck! Dan this is a very bad formulation! Been a customer for several years and will not be this ordering again

Stared the regimen back in April, had a bit of a rough start (very dry and sensitive skin) but after 8 weeks or so skin was looking much better. Had a lot of trouble with flakes (only using BP once a day and not much) but got flakiness under control with the help of AHA and jojoba. Have tried other famous brands moisturizers and none of them were good for my skin. But this moisturizer was perfect. In August as usual I ordered my new moisturizer and as soon as I pumped some to my hand I knew this one's different. It smelled really weird (subtle alcohol like, but don't really care about the smell as long as it works) but the texture was very different. New one feels kinda thick, milky in a way. Unfortunately it doesn't fully absorb into my skin, and once again skin is very flaky. 

I really don't know why they had to change the formula but the new one is really bad, would give 0 stars if I could.

Sadly can't use CeraVe's moisturizer since it doesn't mix well with BP...