Cosmetics for men is getting increasingly popular. In 2008 around 25% of facial skincare products sold in the Netherlands were for men (NCV annual report).
Although the structure of the skin is slightly different, men and women need virtually the same skin care.
Vitamin C is one of the most studied cosmetic ingredients. There is enough well established and independent research which shows that vitamin C really works. But what does it do exactly? We already know that vitamin C is an important part of our diet.
Again a complex term: nutricosmetics. This is the collective name for nutrients which have a beneficial effect on the skin. In simple terms: by using these substances your skin improves. In particular anti-oxidants such as vitamin C and E are mentioned.
Cosmeceuticals and derma pharmaceuticals. They look like jumbled words that don’t really mean much. Yet the terminologies are used daily by specialists.
Two weeks ago I wrote about vitamin A and what super results this substance can have on the skin. The fact that your skin needs to get used to a product is a myth. But there is an exception in the case of vitamin A acid.
The programme koopkracht was shown on the 14th October on Dutch television about the use of cosmetic products. You can imagine that I was sitting glued to the TV! There was a lot of focus on the safety and benefits of using cosmetic products in this programme.
I have written before about certain ingredients which are best avoided. You can check if these ingredients are in your product by looking at the ingredients list (also known as the INCI list). But I realise that for many, this is like reading “Double Dutch”.
A couple of days ago I wrote that cosmeceuticals are making successful progress as an intermediate step between cosmetic products and medical products. These are products containing substances which work on ‘normal’ skin (although some people think that ageing skin is also an illness) and optimize the functioning of the skin.
Yesterday I wrote that putting anti-oxidants in cosmetic products is the ‘in thing’. But do they also work? I can say, without a doubt, that there is enough scientific evidence that anti-oxidants which are used in cosmetic products are able to eliminate free radicals. Or at least that’s what they do in test tubes. How these substances behave ‘in vivo’ (meaning when applied to the skin) is unfortunately less clear. A lot more research still needs to be carried out in this area. Despite the fact that we still don’t know exactly how anti-oxidants behave in creams, I can definitely recommend the use of anti-oxidants based on what we already do know.
There are probably very few people who haven’t heard of anti-oxidants. Vitamin supplements, health drinks and cosmetic products; if the adverts are to be believed these products are packed full of that one unique powerful anti-oxidant. What are anti-oxidants actually and what is their role in skin care products?