Skin Health

Share

Tweet

Email This Page

Sign up here for
our Newsletter: *

Natural nutrients add to your skin health

Skin health is very important to a lot of people, especially in the fashion and beauty industries. And these are  high-dollar enterprises. People pay exorbitant sums to maintain the appearance of beauty. There are three recent trends in natural personal care:

• botanicals as well as antioxidant ingredients in topical creams
• beauty beverages
• so-called “inside-out” beauty, which is supplements that improve skin hydration. 

Green tea is still seeing interest in topicals – if not outright green tea then at least the active ingredient, which is the catechin EGCG (the four letters represent a nine-syllable chemical name which we won’t bore you with). EGCG has anti-inflammatory properties that help protect the skin from UV rays. EGCG does not get deeply absorbed into the skin so its effects are limited to the epidermis – but that’s the visible parts of the skin so what’s not to like, right? It’s also routinely marketed for benefits around moisturizing, soothing and protecting.¹

Some interesting beauty drinks leverage superfruits, such as acai² or sea buckthorn.³

But the biggest breakout product is the beauty drink by Nestle called Glowelle. Each container costs $7 a day and consumers are encouraged to get a month-long supply. Its ingredients are antioxidants and carotenoids such as beta-carotene, vitamins C and E, lycopene, lutein, and selenium.^4-8 Nestle projects the growth of beauty beverages at 50 percent over the next five years, so look for more such launches coming to stores near you.

Supplements can also help by hydrating the skin. For instance, the omega-3 EPA, when applied to the skin, reduced UV-induced epidermal thickening and inhibited collagen decrease.⁹  Similarly, krill oil, has been shown to improve hydration, skin tone, hair tone and wrinkle appearance.¹⁰  Astaxanthin, contained in krill oil, has been shown to protect the skin from UV damage that would otherwise damage skin DNA.¹²

Other notables in this arena include glucosamine (known for its joint-health applications) and niacinamide, which when applied topically reduced the appearance of facial fine lines and wrinkles, particularly in the eye area.¹¹

Read about other health conditions here. 

Read about dietary supplements here.

References:

1. http://www.drhoffman.com/page.cfm/118

2. http://www.monavie.com?r=1

3. http://www.sibubeauty.com/products.php

4. Stahl W, et al. Carotenoids and carotenoids plus vitamin E protect against ultraviolet light-induced erythema in humans. Am J Clin Nutr 2000;71(3):795-8.

5. Mireles-Rocha H, et al. UVB photoprotection with antioxidants: effects of oral therapy with d-alpha-tocopherol and ascorbic acid on the minimal erythema dose. Acta Derm Venereol 2002;82(1):21-4.

6. Placzek M, et al. Ultraviolet B-induced DNA damage in human epidermis is modified by the antioxidants ascorbic acid and D-alpha-tocopherol. J Invest Dermatol 2005;124(2):304-7.

7.Césarini JP, et al. Immediate effects of UV radiation on the skin: modification by an antioxidant complex containing carotenoids. Photodermatol Photoimmunol Photomed 2003;19(4):182-9.

8.Heinrich U, et al. Antioxidant supplements improve parameters related to skin structure in humans. Skin Pharmacol Physiol 2006;19(4):224-31.

9. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16467281?itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum&ordinalpos=1

10. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2893189?itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum&ordinalpos=2

11. http://www.pgbeautygroomingscience.com/index.php?id=279

12. Lyons NM, et al. Modulatory effects of an algal extract containing astaxanthin on UVA-irradiated cells in culture. J Derm Sci 2002;30(1):73-84.