Updated June 10, 2015.
Murad Acne and Aging Skin Solutions Kit:
An over-the-counter skin care program especially designed for adults with acne. This kit includes a cleanser, treatment lotion, moisturizer with SPF, and a spot treatment.
Active Ingredients:
Salicylic acid, sulfur, and in the sunscreen/moisturizer: avobenzone, ensulizole, homosalate, octisalate
Other Ingredients:
Tea tree oil, retinol, willow bark extract,
glycolic acid
The Kit Contains:
- Time Release Acne Cleanser
- Acne and Wrinkle Reducer
- Anti-Aging Moisturizer SPF 20 PA++
- Acne Spot Treatment
Price:
$45 for the kit
Where You Can Buy:
Available at Sephora (inside JC Penney), some spas and salons, directly from Murad (manufacturer's website), and from other online retailers ()
Pros:
- Products can be bought in the kit or individually
- Doesn't dry out the skin
Cons:
- A bit pricey
- Low percentage of active ingredient, so it may not be very effective against breakouts
Murad Acne and Aging Skin Solutions Guide Review:
So many acne skin care products are designed with teens in mind. Many of them are good, but I've gotten to the point where I am wanting more from my skin care.
So I was excited to try Murad Acne and Aging Skin Solutions products. Anti-acne and anti-aging? Yeah. That's perfect. And, since adult acne is pretty common, I know a lot of you are in the same boat as I am.
This kit is basically a three step system (cleanser, treatment lotion, moisturizer) with a bonus forth product, a spot treatment, thrown in to use when needed.
(For me that's almost always. It's a good thing I really like the spot treatment.)
You can also get the kit with Skin Perfecting Primer Acne and Shine Control instead of the spot treatment. It's supposed to help reduce the look of large pores, control oil, and help makeup go on smooth. It's tinted, so it can lightly cover up redness on its own too.
If you're sensitive to benzoyl peroxide, you'll be able to use all of these products. None of them contain benzoyl peroxide. Instead, they rely on salicylic acid and sulfur to help keep breakouts at bay.
I'm not sure if this will be enough to do much for acne. The salicylic acid is a very low percentage (just 0.5%). The sulfur is in a higher percentage, but it's only found in the spot treatment.
If you tend to get just minor, mild breakouts, you might see some improvements. I doubt this program would clear up a case of inflammatory acne.
Also, this isn't a good treatment choice for those with moderate to severe acne, at least not on its own. You'll be much better off seeing a doctor in this case rather than trying to clear acne with OTC products. You can use these products as a supplement to whatever treatments your doctor has prescribed for you, though.
Personally, I had mixed feelings about this kit. I really liked the treatment lotion and the spot treatment. The cleanser and moisturizer were just OK, definitely not something that blew me away. Since you don't have to buy the entire kit each time you need to replace one item, I'd probably just buy the products I like rather than the entire kit.
But I know Murad has quite a following, and in general these products were fairly gentle and non-drying. If you like their products anyway you may want to try this kit, especially if both acne and aging are concerns of yours.
Disclosure: Review samples were provided by the manufacturer. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.