Best Cica Creams For The Whole Family

The next time you’re rummaging through your beauty collection because yours or your little one’s skin has flared up, I want you to think about cica creams. Why? No matter our age, our skin is vulnerable, and cica creams are essential for healing and repairing.

Cica creams get their name from their star ingredient: Centella Asiatica, a medicinal herb found in Asia, used for over 3000 years for wound healing. Rumour has it, even tigers use (roll around in) it to heal their battle wounds, hence the nickname tiger grass.

In short, cica restrengthens your skin’s protective barrier. They create a protective barrier around sensitive areas, without letting any irritants or nasties in.

The homeostasis health (stable equilibrium) of the skin is vital for a healthy complexion. Cuts, scrapes and minor burns are obvious signs of damaged skin; however, our lifestyle and our environment cause all kinds of sensitivity too. Even the subtlest signs of dry skin around your nose, or a red rash on your cheeks are tell-tale signs that your skin is compromised. The good news? These reactions can all be soothed with cica – consider this edit your ‘skincare first aid kit’.

• Face: cheeks, around the mouth.
• Body: knees and elbows, skin folds, external intimate areas, nappy rash, hands.

• Scratches.
• Insect bites.
• Traces of chickenpox.
• Redness.
• Minor burns: sunburn, chemical burns.
• Cuts and scrapes.
• Post-shave rashes.

• Scarring.
• Tattoos fading or peeling.
• Itching.

To reap the benefits of cica cream, always apply to clean skin twice a day, every morning and evening.

All of the cica creams below be used on sensitive skin and are fragrance-free.

Best for babies and delicate skin

• Suitable for babies, children and adults.
• Made with 91% ingredients of natural origin.
• Fragrance-free.
• Non-greasy or sticky.
• The tube has a nozzle for easier application.

Mustela is a baby skincare brand, but no matter how old you are, Cicastella is ideal if naturality is important to you. As well as healing and repairing, this cica cream won’t sting or irritate sensitive areas; it purifies, calms and soothes.

The innovative patent, avocado perseose is a natural ingredient that works in harmony with the skin to preserve skin cells. Cicastella also supports the development of the skin’s barrier from birth onwards.

• Suitable for babies, children and adults.
• Antibacterial.
• Fragrance-free.
• Water-resistant.

Uriage Bariederm Cica Cream is the upper echelon of Cica Creams. Call it a skincare bandage, this all-in-one hydrator protects, repairs and soothes with a mix of regenerative patents, copper, zinc and hyaluronic acid – all of which are essential ingredients for keeping skin healthy.

What’s different about this cica cream, is the fact it’s SPF50+. If you want to double protect your skin from environmental damage, this is the one for you. If you’ve recently had an aesthetic procedure, use skincare acids daily, or have particularly sensitive skin, add the Bariederm Cica Cream to your basket to avoid sunburn, brown and red spots.

Best for rebalancing skin

• Suitable for babies, children and adults.
• Antibacterial.
• Fragrance-free.
• Non-sticky.
• Semi-occlusive.

Cicalfate+ can heal skin 2.5x faster than your body’s natural healing process. How? A combination of postbiotics, patents and Avene’s Thermal Spring Water. But, what makes this cica cream stand out is an ingredient called C+-Restore. As postbiotics (a by-product of probiotics) are found in this cream, and naturally, on the skin, Cicalfate+ supports the natural balance of the flora for rapid recovery. Copper and zinc work together to strengthen your skin and prohibit bacterial proliferation around weakened areas. If you like the sound of this, you’ll love Cicalfate for lips too.

Best for post-procedure or acne-prone skin

• Suitable for adults, children and infants.
• Fragrance-free formula.
• Preserves the skin's natural microbiome.
• Non-comedogenic, so won't clog pores.
• Lightweight, fast-absorbing texture.

Bioderma's Cicabio Creme+ is built on an "ecobiological" approach, meaning it repairs skin while respecting its natural ecosystem rather than fighting against it. The patented Optimal repair complex promotes epidermis reconstruction, with studies showing skin repair improving significantly after just 7 days versus untreated skin.

The star ingredient, Antalgicine™, works to soothe discomfort and itching sensations, making it ideal for anyone dealing with post-procedure marks, remodelling scars, or general irritation. It's a great pick if you want a cica cream that treats your skin as an ecosystem rather than just a problem to fix.

Best for everyday multi-purpose repair

• Suitable for the whole family, including babies from 3 months+.
• Fragrance-free and dermatologist-approved.
• Contains Tribioma, a unique prebiotic complex.
• Thicker balm texture, ideal for use under bandages or plasters.
• Multi-purpose: face, body, hands and lips.

Cicaplast Baume B5+ is one of the most trusted names in cica skincare, and for good reason. It's a skin recovery cream clinically proven to soothe damaged and irritated skin, and creates optimal conditions for faster and better repair from day one. 

Its formula is built around madecassoside and the unique probiotic Tribioma, which work together to rebalance your skin's microbiome. It's genuinely multi-purpose too, think nappy rashes, mosquito bites and blisters, and is even suitable for those recovering from surgery or undergoing cancer treatment, making it the reliable, do-it-all option to keep in every bathroom cabinet