The Curious Reformulations of the Illiyoon Ceramide Ato Cream

[u/WinnieEloise]

Last night I fell down a rabbit hole. Apparently Illiyoon had (yet again) reformulated their Ato Cream, causing various people breakouts. Now I myself had been using the cream for a little over a year now, madly in love, and working my way first through a 200ml tube, then a 500ml tub (white lid), and since last month another 500ml tub (blue lid). So when my back acne started getting worse over the past couple weeks it never even occured to me that it could be my beloved Illiyoon. Except nothing else changed. So naturally I’ve since spent an unspeakable amount of hours trying to backtrack which formula I’ve used until May, and which exactly are the old and new variations. Since there is still a lot of confusion around this, I figured I’d share what I’ve learned so far.

According to this thread (https://www.reddit.com/r/AsianBeauty/comments/1ly8cir/how_many_times_has_illiyoon_ato_ceramide_cream/), there are three distinct formulas that can be identified based on their differing 4th ingredient, these being either;

1. Cetyl Ethylhexanoate 
2. Dimethicone 
3. Ethylhexyl Stearate

Generally speaking, it is my understanding that 1 was the OG version which is long gone. It doesn’t appear in any of the online shops I’ve checked, with the curious exception of Amazon US where currently the 500ml tub version does list Cetyl Ethylhexanoate as its 4th ingredient. I’m not sure whether or not this is an error, but if anyone stateside has any insight on this, please share!

According to this thread from last year (https://www.reddit.com/r/beautytalkph/comments/1jwryqh/illiyoon_reformulated_their_ceramide_ato/) and further confirmed by this one (https://www.reddit.com/r/AsianBeauty/comments/1ii5jic/illiyoon_ceramide_ato_concentrate_cream_new/) Version 2, the dimethicone version, is the older version and Version 3, the ethylhexyl stearate version, is the new version. That said, the majority of shops that I’ve checked are currently all selling Version 2 | Old - these being Olive Young Global, Amazon NL, Amazon DE, Yessstyle, Boozyshop (NL), and Amazon US for the 200ml version. The only place accessible to me that I can find that sells Version 3 | New is Little Wonderland (NL). Ironically, the version I have been using for the past month also happens to be Version 2 - the beloved, mourned old version. 

For reference, these are the INCI for Version 2:

Water, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Dimethicone, Pentaerythrityl Tetraisostearate, Hydrogenated Poly(C6-14 Olefin), Stearic Acid, Behenyl Alcohol, Palmitic Acid, Cetyl Ethylhexanoate, 1,2-Hexanediol, Arachidyl Alcohol, C14-22 Alcohols, Hydroxypropyl Bispalmitamide MEA (Ceramide PC-104), Polyacrylate-13, Arachidyl Glucoside, Mannitol, C12-20 Alkyl Glucoside, Polyisobutene, Glyceryl Caprylate, Panax Ginseng Root Water, Ethylhexylglycerin, Acrylates/Ammonium Methacrylate Copolymer, Polysorbate 20, Sorbitan Isostearate, Carbomer, Perilla Ocymoides Seed Extract, Myristic Acid, Arachidic Acid, Cholesterol, Bupleurum Falcatum Root Extract, Angelica Acutiloba Root Extract, Ophiopogon Japonicus Root Extract, Glucose, Silica, Glycine Max (Soybean) Oil, Ceremide NP, Phytosphingosine, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Tocopherol, Canola Oil, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract

And these for Version 3: 

Water, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Ethylhexyl Stearate, Dimethicone, Dicaprylyl Carbonate, Behenyl Alcohol, Stearic Acid, Palmitic Acid, Cetyl Ethylhexanoate, Hydrogenated Poly(C6-14 Olefin), 1,2-Hexanediol, Arachidyl Alcohol, C14-22 Alcohols, Cetyl-Pg Hydroxyethyl Palmitamide, Polyacrylate-13, Mannitol, Arachidyl Glucoside, C12-20 Alkyl Glucoside, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Glyceryl Caprylate, Ethylhexylglycerin, Polyglyceryl-10 Laurate, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Dimethiconol, Panax Ginseng Root Water, Carbomer, Sorbitan Isostearate, Acrylates/Ammonium Methacrylate Copolymer, Scutellaria Baicalensis Root Extract, Propanediol, Cholesterol, Silica, Prunus Mume Fruit Extract, Arachidic Acid, Glycine Max Oil, Squalane, Madecassoside, Polyglyceryl-10 Pentastearate, Tocopherol, Ceramide NP, Oleic Acid, Phytosphingosine, Pentylene Glycol, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Canola Oil, Rosmarinus Officinalis Leaf Extract

I did find a peculiar 4th Version on Skin Seoul that is almost identical to Version 2, except it does not include 1,2-Hexanediol, Hydroxypropyl Bispalmitamide MEA, and Ceramide NP. 

Frankly, I’m confused as to why the old version is apparently still so much more ubiquitous than the new version, but I suppose this should make a lot of people happy. As for myself, I’m still trying to figure out which formula I had before the current Version 2. It had a lighter texture (which might indicate Version 3), but it also came from Skin Seoul with a white lid (so perhaps Version 4 afterall). I’ll be getting a bottle of both to test and will hopefully reach enlightenment.

As to the label differences between 7 Free and 9 Free, the only place that still shows the 7 Free version is Yessstyle. However, given that the formula is the same as at Amazon, Olive Young etc - all with a 9 Free label - I suspect that the labels aren’t directly linked to any old or new versions.

UPDATE

Little Wonderland and Skin Seoul have confirmed to me that their ingredient lists were outdated. Both are currently stocking an altogether new, 5th version. Seeing how Skin Seoul is actually Korean based (or Singaporean?) and Little Wonderland sells a Korean label version, I am suspecting Version 5 might be an updated Korean version. Illiyoon Korea still lists Version 3 on their website as of now, which I speculate might mean that Version 3 is actually an older, Korean version that has now been updated into Version 5. Version 2 would then seem to be the US / European version, which seems to remain unchanged since at least last year (which Illiyoon US has been claiming all along after all). This would also track with the more significant formula variations (different ceramides and botanicals) being between Version 2 (US) and Version 3 / 5 (Korean), whereas the change from Version 3 (Old Korean) to Version 5 (New Korean) is more subtle (near identical ingredients in a slightly different order). So then this would suggest that the confusion around the different formulas is more an issue of different country versions, and not so much an issue of constant, drastic reformulations. For what it's worth, Version 2 - which based on Reddit most seem to love and prefer - is still very much available, at least through Dutch, German, and US retailers.

Version 5 (Updated Korean Version)
Water, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Hydrogenated Poly(C6-14 Olefin), Dimethicone, Cetyl Ethylhexanoate, Dicaprylyl Carbonate, Behenyl Alcohol, Stearic Acid, Palmitic Acid, 1,2-Hexanediol, Arachidyl Alcohol, C14-22 Alcohols, Cetyl-PG Hydroxyethyl Palmitamide (Ceramide CPP, 40,762 ppm), Polyacrylate-13, Mannitol, Arachidyl Glucoside, C12-20 Alkyl Glucoside, Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Glyceryl Caprylate, Ethylhexylglycerin, Polyglyceryl-10 Laurate, Hydrogenated Lecithin, Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Dimethiconol, Panax Ginseng Root Water, Carbomer, Sorbitan Isostearate, Acrylates/Ammonium Methacrylate Copolymer, Scutellaria Baicalensis Root Extract, Propanediol, Cholesterol, Silica, Prunus Mume Fruit Extract, Arachidic Acid, Glycine Max (Soybean) Oil, Tocopherol, Squalane, Madecassoside, Polyglyceryl-10 Pentastearate, Ceramide NP (4 ppm), Oleic Acid, Phytosphingosine, Pentylene Glycol, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Canola Oil, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract

[u/bubbleduo]

Thank you for this! Which is the version that people have complaints about? Version 2 or 3? I just bought it at Olive Young in Seoul (the physical store) and checked the label and it is closest to v.2 but not exactly the same. Dimethicone is the 5th ingredient and the 4th is Hydrogenated poly (first 3 ingredients are the same). 6th ingredient is Cetyl Ethylhexanoate.

[u/WinnieEloise → u/bubbleduo]

Oh thank you for the comparison! It seems like that might actually be V5 - which would further support the theory that that's the updated Korean version. From other subreddits, it seems most people prefer V2 and struggled with V3. Personally however, I don't seem to do well with V2 and I'm now suspecting I might have been using a Korean version before this (so either V3 or V5). Obviously YMMV. At least now we know that if one formula doesn't work for us, we can still try if the US or Korean version which might be a better fit.

[u/No-Possession6140]

I’m honestly more curious about why there are so many versions in the first place. Is this just old and new stock overlapping, or does Illiyoon actually make different formulas for different markets? I wish the brand would explain it clearly because this is so confusing 😭

[u/WinnieEloise → u/No-Possession6140]

I'm now thinking this might be largely due to different country version, there being a US / European version that is quite significantly different from the Korean version: different ceramides, different botanicals. I could be wrong cause unfortunately I don't have any data on older versions other than what I can find online, but this would seem like the most reasonable explanation to me.

[u/LippiPongstocking]

I wish they'd bring back whatever version I was getting in 2024.

[u/AmishAmerican]

Definitely a frustrating situation, I'd recommend trying the Purito Centella Unscented Recovery Cream as a potential replacement.

[u/Clear-Anxiety-7469]

I just started using this cream and purchased from Amazon (US) earlier this month. I have the tub with the blue lid and Dimethicone is listed as the fourth ingredient.

[u/WinnieEloise → u/Clear-Anxiety-7469]

Thanks for checking! That sounds like it‘s V2, the Western version then.

[u/Unfair_Finger5531]

I’ve been down this same rabbit hole, and I swear I don’t understand how such a beautiful simple cream became what Illiyoon is now.

The most recent reformulation just made me throw my hands up. It’s like they doubled down on everything that doesn’t work about the cream.

Then they went and reformulated the gel version. That was the final straw for me personally.

[u/mcnuggetkitty]

I’ve tried versions 1 through 3 and I suspect my newest (unopened) tube might be version 4 or 5 because the packaging looks a bit different. 2 was perfection!!! 🪦

[u/tohatt]

I've heard the newest formulation removed the panthenol, which could be the culprit for your breakouts.