Gold Plus Beauty Cream

• hree acids, three different routes: Glycolic on the surface, salicylic inside the pore, azelaic on redness and pigment. Very few creams carry all three.
• Four tone actives underneath the acids: Glutathione, alpha arbutin, kojic dipalmitate and ascorbyl glucoside, with licorice extract behind them.
• Acetyl hexapeptide-8 for expression lines: The same peptide sold as Argireline, here under its proper name and aimed at movement rather than tone.
• A 225gm jar for body use: Body creams with glycolic acid suit upper arms, backs and rough patches, where facial doses would be uneconomical.
• Strong enough that starting slowly matters: Twice weekly for a fortnight is not caution for its own sake — it is how you avoid peeling.

Glycolic acid: The smallest alpha hydroxy acid, so it penetrates furthest. It loosens the bonds between dead surface cells rather than scrubbing them off.

Salicylic acid: Oil-soluble, so it gets inside a pore where glycolic cannot. A body cream salicylic acid ingredient as much as a facial one.

Azelaic acid: The gentlest of the three. It works on redness and on pigment, and it is generally the one sensitive skin tolerates best.

Kojic acid dipalmitate: The oil-soluble form, which matters here because it stays stable alongside three acids where free kojic acid would not.

Acetyl hexapeptide-8: A peptide studied for expression lines. Evidence is modest, and it is doing a completely different job from everything else in the jar.

No percentage is given for any of the three acids, and water is not listed at all. That means you cannot judge strength from the label, so treat this as an anti aging cream with glycolic acid of unknown potency and build up from twice weekly. How glycolic acid works has the background.

Full ingredient list (INCI) — verbatim from the catalogue

Glutathione, Alpha Arbutin, Kojic Dipalmitate, Niacinamide, Titanium Dioxide, Glycolic Acid, Azelaic Acid, Salicylic Acid, Ascobyl Glucoside, Licorice Extracts, Acetyl Hexapeptide-8, Fragrance.

1. Patch test on the jaw for three nights before it goes anywhere near your whole face.
2. Nights only. Twice a week for the first fortnight, three times in weeks three and four.
3. A thin layer. This is not a cream where more works faster, and more is where peeling starts.
4. Sunscreen every single morning while you use it. Three acids leave newer skin exposed.
5. Never on the same night as a retinol, a scrub or another acid. One exfoliant at a time.

Three acids in one cream — is that safe?

It can be, at low concentrations, and combinations like this are common in the region. The difficulty is that no strength is printed, so nobody can tell you where this sits. That is why the schedule matters more here than with a cream marked 6 or 10 per cent. Start twice weekly and let your skin set the pace.

Can I use it around my eyes?

No. Three acids and fragrance next to the thinnest skin on the body is not a risk worth taking, and eye-area products are formulated differently for good reason. Stop at the orbital bone. If crow’s feet are the concern, that needs a product designed for the area.

How long before it does anything?

Texture usually moves first, within two to four weeks, because that is the acids working on the surface. Tone takes longer — eight to twelve weeks for the arbutin, kojic and glutathione group. Lines are the slowest of all and the peptide does not change that.

Will it peel my skin?

It can if you go too fast. Mild flaking in the first fortnight is common and settles. Sheet peeling, stinging that lasts, or redness that is still there the next morning all mean stop, moisturise plainly for a week, and restart at a lower frequency.

Which size should I buy?

The 7gm to find out whether your skin tolerates it. The 23gm or 30gm for the face once you know. The 225gm only makes sense if you are treating arms, back or legs, where rough texture and visible pores are the usual reason people buy the big jar.

Can I use it with the Gold Plus serum?

Yes, and it is the sensible pairing. The serum has no acids in it, so applying it first and this cream on top gives you a buffer. The cream and serum pack exists for exactly that reason and works out cheaper than buying both separately.

Is it suitable for dry skin?

Cautiously, and once weekly to start. Acids exfoliate but do not moisturise, and there is no petrolatum or heavy occlusive here to compensate. Follow it with a moisturiser every time. If your skin is dry and sensitive, this is the wrong product in the range.

Can men use it?

Yes, with one caveat: not on a night you have shaved. Shaving is itself an exfoliation, and adding three acids to freshly shaved skin is how people end up with a burning face. Leave a day between the two and it is fine.