Dr. Althea 345 Relief Serum: What It Is, What's Inside, and Who It's For
A fast-absorbing daily serum built around birch sap, ceramide, and niacinamide to calm sensitive and acne-prone skin.
The Dr. Althea 345 Relief Serum is a lightweight soothing serum, described by the brand as vegan, designed for daily use on sensitive and acne-prone skin. It layers under moisturizer in both AM and PM routines and helps hydrate and support the skin barrier; first-time users should patch test.
Who This Serum Is For
The Dr. Althea 345 Relief Serum is built for anyone whose skin flares easily — whether from environmental stressors, an active acne situation, or a compromised barrier that just needs steadying. It sits in the sensitive and acne-prone category, which in practice means the formula avoids unnecessary fragrance and leans hard on calming, hydrating ingredients rather than exfoliating or brightening actives.
If your skin is currently on prescription topicals, the brand advises confirming compatibility before adding this serum, which is sensible. If you are pregnant, breastfeeding or treating post-procedure skin, check the brand's current guidance and ask your doctor before use.
The brand describes it as vegan.
What It Is and How It Feels
This is a serum-liquid texture, which means it pours and spreads more freely than a gel-cream but is not watery or essence-thin. It absorbs fast. There is no heavy or tacky residue after patting in, which matters for layering: it needs to sit cleanly under a moisturizer without balling or pilling.
According to the brand, the name "345" refers to three blemish-relief, four nourishing and five soothing ingredients combined in one formula. The overall feel is closer to comfort than to treatment, which is exactly the point for reactive skin.
The Ingredients That Matter
Right after water, the ingredient list features Betula Platyphylla Japonica Juice — birch sap — which brings its own hydrating character to the formula. Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Water, which is tea tree leaf water rather than concentrated tea tree oil, follows early in the list and is associated with a calming rather than stripping effect on irritated skin.
Niacinamide appears in the mid-list and is one of the two named key ingredients. It is widely used in Korean skincare as a multi-functional toner and serum ingredient — it supports hydration, helps even skin tone over time, and is generally well-tolerated even by sensitive skin when used at moderate concentrations. Ceramide NP is the other named key ingredient. Ceramides are lipid molecules naturally present in the skin barrier; including them in a serum helps support the barrier and reduce moisture loss.
