Skin & Tonics : Skincare Guides & Product Reviews

As soon as I ran across Mizon Natural Breath Cheese Repair Cream online, my first thought was, “That looks disgusting!” My second thought was, “I must buy it.“ Don’t get me wrong – cheese, in and of itself, doesn’t gross me out in the least. It’s one of my favorite foods. But I’ve never had the urge to slather it on my face. Additionally, why must a product that contains the word “cheese” also contain the word “breath?” Cheese breath is not something I enjoy thinking about, especially when I’m trying to be beautiful. Still, the idea of cheese breath in my skincare was not enough to stop me from immediately ordering this moisturizer. In fact, it was kind of the selling point.

I have a very hard time resisting the temptation to try a skincare product that grosses me out a little. My curiosity is driven by a need to know a number of things: Is it effective? Will it smell bad? Will it feel skeevy? Why would someone buy this? Why is someone selling this? Will my face fall off? Will I grow a bushy mustache? Will I achieve everlasting life? It is my search for answers to life’s most compelling mysteries that drove me to this particular purchase.

What is it?

Mizon Natural Breath Cheese Repair Cream ($15) is a moisturizing cream that promises to moisturize as well as reduce and prevent wrinkles. It claims to be harnessing the power of “French quality cheese fermented cream.”

Ingredients:
Aqua, Quark Cheese, Hydrogenated C6-14 Olefin Polymers, Cetyl Ethylhexanoate, Butylene Glycol, Cyclomethicone, Stearic Acid, Ethylperfluorobutyl, Ether, Ethylperfluoroisobutyl Ether, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate, Peg-100 Stearate, Beeswax, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), Dimethicone, Microcrystalline Wax, Arachidyl, Alcohol, Behenyl Alcohol, Arachidyl Glu-Coside, Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethicone/vinyl Dimethicone Cross-Polymer, Sorbitan Sequioleate, Japanese Coptis Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Triethanolamine, Carbomer, Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Extract, Sodium Polyacrylate, Adenosine, Panthenol, Allantoin, Punica Granatum Extract, Iris Florentina Root Extract, Disodium EDTA, Phenoxyethenol, Methylparaben, Propylparaben

The cheese ingredient in this formula, Quark cheese, isn’t really a mainstream thing here in the US, so I had to do a little research on it. Here’s what I found, along with my comments on some of the other notable ingredients:

Quark Cheese – Quark cheese is a fresh cheese that seems to be most common in Europe. There appears to be a lot of varieties of it, with textures ranging from that of sour cream to American cottage cheese. Mizon says their cheese extract is abundant in Vitamins A, B1, B2, and E. When I looked for nutritional information, the sources I found confirmed that Quark contains those vitamins, but I’m not sure I would call the amounts “abundant.” It’s possible that Mizon’s extraction process condenses the nutrients in the cheese; but on it’s own, it’s not really bursting with them. Still, they’re there.

An example of a German variety of Quark cheese.

Sodium Hyaluronate – Often referred to as hyaluronic acid, this ingredient is able to hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water. This humectant also does a great job attracting and maintaining water in the skin, and promotes blood circulation and nutrient absorption.

Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Extract – In addition to being rich in antioxidants, cocoa also contains a constituent called theobromin, which acts as a vasodilator, increasing the blood flow to the skin. Increased blood flow helps prevent dryness and promotes healing.

Adenosine – This ingredient possesses anti-inflammatory properties, promotes the production of collagen and elastin, and has a respectable handful of studies showing it to be an effective anti-aging ingredient. Here’s an interesting abstract from one of those studies, which appeared in the International Journal of Cosmetic Science in 2006:

Evaluation of anti-wrinkle efficacy of adenosine-containing products using the FOITS technique

Allantoin – Allantoin is a chemical compound with a number of beneficial skincare properties. It’s an anti-irritant, and increases the water content of the structural support matrix of the skin (the areas between skin cells). It also possesses exfoliating properties.

According to COSDNA, it does have a few potential irritants and acne triggers. The biggest red flags were for Cetearyl Alcohol (as usual), which scores a 4 out of 5 as a potential acne trigger and a 3 out of 5 as a potential irritant. Hydrogenated vegetable oil scored a 3 out of 5 as a potential acne trigger, and the pH adjuster Triethanolamine scored a 2 out of 5 as a potential acne trigger, and a 3 out of 5 as a potential irritant.

Performance

Appearance
Mizon Natural Breath Cheese Repair Cream is packaged in a sturdy, opaque yellow, glass jar.

Mizon touts a special fermentation process that allows the cheese to “breathe,” which is the reason behind the air pockets in this moisturizer. The air pockets are clearly visible and give the cream it’s whipped, airy appearance. Some people have described it as looking like Swiss cheese, but I don’t see the resemblance. Sure, they both have holes, but it’s hard for me to picture Swiss cheese as anything but solid.

Mizon says the fermentation is an ongoing process, which continues through the life of the cream. It appears that might be true – when I stopped using the cream, I’d smoothed all the air bubbles out of the surface at that point from dipping my fingers in it. When I opened it again a few months later to write this review, new air pockets had formed.

Smell
The smell of the Mizon Natural Breath Cheese Repair Cream is one of the aspects I was most curious about when I ordered it. Based on the photos I saw of it, it looked as if it would smell awful – like a runny, skeezy cheese. I recently posted a close-up photo of the cream on the S&T Facebook page and took a poll to see what others thought it might smell like based on its appearance, and the answers were pretty interesting. A few people thought it might smell like cheese – more specifically, cream cheese, cottage cheese, or some kind of soft French cheese. There were also a few folks who were imagining something more desirable, like pineapple or vanilla frosting. I think I’d like a facial moisturizer that smells like pineapples, come to think of it.

Anyway, here’s what it actually smells like: nothing. Well, almost nothing. It has the faint, bland, nearly indescribable scent of an unfragranced emollient product. I was both relieved and disappointed by this.

Application
I applied Mizon Natural Breath Cheese Repair Cream as the last step in my skincare routine in the morning and evening, just after applying my emulsion step (which was typically my own mixture of Benton Aloe Propolis Soothing Gel and one of my favorite facial oils).

The texture is fluffy and almost mousse-like – I found the application to be very pleasant. It absorbed quickly and did not have a greasy finish.

Results
I used this Mizon Natural Breath Cheese Repair Cream for approximately three weeks back in October. I couldn’t complete my usual 28-day testing period for a couple of reasons. The primary reason is that it was aggravating my acne. I had a few new spots pop up in areas where I don’t normally break out, and my lingering on-again-off-again problem areas seemed a little angrier than usual. My skin just didn’t like the formula. The other reason was that I didn’t find this cream to be quite moisturizing enough. It’s definitely a lot more moisturizing than the Mizon All-in-One Snail Repair Cream, but still not as moisturizing as I’d like.

To be fair, my skin is very acne-prone. It actually took over a week for me to break out to the point of suspecting foul play, and the breakouts themselves weren’t severe –they were small, flesh-colored bumps and a few tiny whiteheads, as opposed to the cystic nightmare that often happens when a product doesn’t agree with my skin. The breakouts were present enough for me to notice something was happening, but not enough to make me panic. They went away pretty quickly when I stopped using the cream, and when I started again just to see if the Mizon Natural Breath Cheese Repair Cream was the culprit, they came back.

As for the moisturizing properties – I actually think this would be a good product for someone with oily skin who is looking for a slightly richer cream to use in the drying months of winter, or even as a night moisturizer in the summer. It’s richer than a lot of the moisturizers made for oily skin, but not at all greasy. It absorbs quickly and dries matte.

During my three weeks of use, I did not notice any changes in fine lines, skin tone, or the color of my PIH (post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation) marks.

I do think it would work well for more oily skin types. It now lives in my queue of products that don’t work well for my face, but will make acceptable moisturizers for my chest and décolleté.

I’m still a little disappointed that it doesn’t smell like cheese or pineapples.

Pros:
– No added fragrance
– Light, airy texture
– Absorbs quickly, dries matte

Cons:
– Triggered acne
– Not moisturizing enough for dry skin types

Skin & Tonics Rating:

Performance: 2/5 – I give this moisturizer points for being somewhat moisturizing, and for it’s pleasant, airy texture, but the moisture wasn’t enough for my dry skin type, and the breakouts were a major dealbreaker.

Quality: 3/5 – There’s no added fragrance, and there are a few nice ingredients in this formula such as the Adenosine, Allantoin, and the Sodium Hyaluronate – but I am skeptical of the value of the cheese ingredient, which should be the star of the show, and there were quite a few acne triggers and irritants in the formula as well. The packaging is sturdy and attractive, though not the most hygienic option.

Value: 4/5 – It’s extremely affordable, and you get a lot of product for the price – but I knocked off a point because I’m not sure how much that means for a product that gave me such a mediocre performance.

Overall: 2.7/5

Where to buy

I bought my Mizon Natural Breath Cheese Repair Cream from an eBay seller that no longer carries it, but it can still be found for $15 at W2Beauty.com. You can get a $5 W2Beauty voucher by entering my sponsor code at sign-up: 025605.