Receipt

Biossance Squalane + Ectoin Overnight Rescue

Everything behind the verdicts on this product: the rule that fired for each concern, the three answers and the documents they rest on, every study on the row with the date it was opened, and the versions of the tables that produced them. Nothing here is edited by hand; it is generated from the same records the verdicts are.

The scaleRecommendedGoodSupportingEarly evidenceNot for thisAvoidhow it works

Engine 5.2.0 · rules 0.5.1 · evidence table ev-2026.10-r231 · computed October 13, 2026 · how we decide · the evidence table · the anchors

Good choice

for Dryness

Squalane is a reference standard by mechanism for dryness; this cream carries it high in the ingredient list.

A trial-supported active, or a reference standard by mechanism, at a working level; or a first-line active below its studied range.

Rule
R5 → Good choice. A supported active (trial-backed, or a reference standard by mechanism); declared at a working strength, or a labelled active or at a plausible but undeclared level.
q1 = supported · q2 = adequate | plausible
Why this rule exists: Trial-supported or guideline-supported active, adequately or plausibly dosed.
Rule R5 decided 9,843 verdicts across the catalog; “Good choice” is the verdict on 10,340 of 45,446. The full register.
Carrying active
Squalane
1 · Standing
Supported — its mechanism is established (a reference standard, not a trial result)
2 · Form
Adequate — concentration not declared; read from the position in the ingredient list
Studied range: 1–100%, from the trials on the row; needs leave-on contact
3 · Tolerability
Gentle
Evidence dots
Limited evidence
Row checked against its sources on July 17, 2026 (evidence table ev-2026.10-r231).
What readers report
No reviews read yet for this product. Shown beside the verdict; never blended into it.
Verdict since
September 5, 2026 (unchanged across rebuilds since then)

The studies and documents on the row

  • International Cosmetic Ingredient Dictionary and Handbook — declared function — Personal Care Products Council
  • Harry's Cosmeticology / Baran & Maibach Textbook of Cosmetic Dermatology — humectant, emollient and occlusive classification — standard reference text

← Back to the verdict All dryness products → Disclose a concentration or correct a fact →

Supporting role

for Dehydration

Nothing here targets dehydration directly; humectant hydration is the recognised companion to treating it, and this cream does that without known triggers.

Nothing here targets the concern directly, but the product’s job — barrier care, gentle cleansing, photoprotection — is the recognised companion to treating it. Rinse-off products carrying leave-on actives land here too.

Rule
R8 → Supporting role. An active with early or mechanistic evidence only or an active researched for the concern and found wanting or an active with no evidence row for the concern yet; the product’s category job is a recognised companion to treating the concern.
q1 = plausible | none | not-assessed · supportive = true
Why this rule exists: The category's job (barrier care, humectant hydration, gentle cleansing, photoprotection) is the documented supportive role for this concern. This is the honest verdict for a moisturizer on an acne page.
Rule R8 decided 3,793 verdicts across the catalog; “Supporting role” is the verdict on 7,796 of 45,446. The full register.
Carrying active
Squalane
1 · Standing
Not assessed
No evidence row exists for this active and concern; it is in the research queue.
2 · Form
Plausible — concentration not declared; read from the position in the ingredient list
3 · Tolerability
Gentle
Evidence dots
Not from a trial row
What readers report
No reviews read yet for this product. Shown beside the verdict; never blended into it.
Verdict since
September 5, 2026 (unchanged across rebuilds since then)

← Back to the verdict All dehydration products → Disclose a concentration or correct a fact →

Supporting role

for Compromised Skin Barrier

Nothing here targets compromised skin barrier directly; barrier lipids and occlusion is the recognised companion to treating it, and this cream does that without known triggers.

Nothing here targets the concern directly, but the product’s job — barrier care, gentle cleansing, photoprotection — is the recognised companion to treating it. Rinse-off products carrying leave-on actives land here too.

Rule
R8 → Supporting role. An active with early or mechanistic evidence only or an active researched for the concern and found wanting or an active with no evidence row for the concern yet; the product’s category job is a recognised companion to treating the concern.
q1 = plausible | none | not-assessed · supportive = true
Why this rule exists: The category's job (barrier care, humectant hydration, gentle cleansing, photoprotection) is the documented supportive role for this concern. This is the honest verdict for a moisturizer on an acne page.
Rule R8 decided 3,793 verdicts across the catalog; “Supporting role” is the verdict on 7,796 of 45,446. The full register.
Carrying active
Squalane
1 · Standing
Not assessed
No evidence row exists for this active and concern; it is in the research queue.
2 · Form
Plausible — concentration not declared; read from the position in the ingredient list
3 · Tolerability
Gentle
Evidence dots
Not from a trial row
What readers report
No reviews read yet for this product. Shown beside the verdict; never blended into it.
Verdict since
September 5, 2026 (unchanged across rebuilds since then)

← Back to the verdict All compromised skin barrier products → Disclose a concentration or correct a fact →

Supporting role

for Winter Skin

Nothing here targets winter skin directly; occlusive hydration is the recognised companion to treating it, and this cream does that without known triggers.

Nothing here targets the concern directly, but the product’s job — barrier care, gentle cleansing, photoprotection — is the recognised companion to treating it. Rinse-off products carrying leave-on actives land here too.

Rule
R8 → Supporting role. An active with early or mechanistic evidence only or an active researched for the concern and found wanting or an active with no evidence row for the concern yet; the product’s category job is a recognised companion to treating the concern.
q1 = plausible | none | not-assessed · supportive = true
Why this rule exists: The category's job (barrier care, humectant hydration, gentle cleansing, photoprotection) is the documented supportive role for this concern. This is the honest verdict for a moisturizer on an acne page.
Rule R8 decided 3,793 verdicts across the catalog; “Supporting role” is the verdict on 7,796 of 45,446. The full register.
Carrying active
Squalane
1 · Standing
Not assessed
No evidence row exists for this active and concern; it is in the research queue.
2 · Form
Plausible — concentration not declared; read from the position in the ingredient list
3 · Tolerability
Gentle
Evidence dots
Not from a trial row
What readers report
No reviews read yet for this product. Shown beside the verdict; never blended into it.
Verdict since
September 5, 2026 (unchanged across rebuilds since then)

← Back to the verdict All winter skin products → Disclose a concentration or correct a fact →

Good choice

for Sensitivity

No fragrance, drying alcohol, declarable allergens or sensitising preservatives in this cream — the profile sensitive skin looks for.

For sensitivity only: no fragrance, drying alcohol, declarable allergens or sensitising preservatives in the formula.

Rule
F2 → Good choice. The formula carries no trigger and no caution for the concern.
q3 = gentle
Why this rule exists: Gentle = no weighted deduction fired and fit ≥ 90.
Rule F2 decided 1,955 verdicts across the catalog; “Good choice” is the verdict on 1,955 of 45,446. The full register.
Carrying active
Squalane
1 · Standing
Not assessed
No evidence row exists for this active and concern; it is in the research queue.
2 · Form
Plausible — concentration not declared; read from the position in the ingredient list
3 · Tolerability
Gentle
Evidence dots
Not from a trial row
What readers report
No reviews read yet for this product. Shown beside the verdict; never blended into it.
Verdict since
September 5, 2026 (unchanged across rebuilds since then)

← Back to the verdict All sensitivity products → Disclose a concentration or correct a fact →

Supporting role

for Aging

Nothing here targets aging directly; hydration and barrier support is the recognised companion to treating it, and this cream does that without known triggers.

Nothing here targets the concern directly, but the product’s job — barrier care, gentle cleansing, photoprotection — is the recognised companion to treating it. Rinse-off products carrying leave-on actives land here too.

Rule
R8 → Supporting role. An active with early or mechanistic evidence only or an active researched for the concern and found wanting or an active with no evidence row for the concern yet; the product’s category job is a recognised companion to treating the concern.
q1 = plausible | none | not-assessed · supportive = true
Why this rule exists: The category's job (barrier care, humectant hydration, gentle cleansing, photoprotection) is the documented supportive role for this concern. This is the honest verdict for a moisturizer on an acne page.
Rule R8 decided 3,793 verdicts across the catalog; “Supporting role” is the verdict on 7,796 of 45,446. The full register.
Carrying active
Squalane
1 · Standing
Not assessed
No evidence row exists for this active and concern; it is in the research queue.
2 · Form
Plausible — concentration not declared; read from the position in the ingredient list
3 · Tolerability
Gentle
Evidence dots
Not from a trial row
What readers report
No reviews read yet for this product. Shown beside the verdict; never blended into it.
Verdict since
September 5, 2026 (unchanged across rebuilds since then)

← Back to the verdict All aging products → Disclose a concentration or correct a fact →

The category job
Falls short

as a moisturizer

Judged as a moisturizer, it comes up short on: seals moisture in, supplies barrier lipids.

Rule
J3 → Falls short. Otherwise — when no earlier rule in this group matched.
Category job score below 65 over the features that can be measured from the label (5.1.0: unmeasured features no longer enter at a prior; when under half the spec's weight is measurable there is no job verdict). The sentence names the criterion missed, never 'its basics'.
Measured from the label
draws in water, softens and smooths, seals moisture in, supplies barrier lipids, right weight for the job
Tolerability
Gentle

A verdict is Dermington’s assessment of how well a product’s ingredients fit a concern — never a claim about what the product treats. Every rule is public and the same for every product; a brand cannot buy a reading. How we decide · what has changed · disclaimer.

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