products decoded

The truth behind skincare.

Marketing hype is on overdrive in our industry unfortunately. Walking through coles on my shopping trip today i came across some masks and thought i would do a product breakdown and show you that a lot of products do not live up to their claims.

What I am looking at today is:

Nutrogena youthful boost
100% hydrogel mask
Claim: This unique hydrogel mask contains 2 types of hyaluronic acid, which helps to improve the smoothness and elasticity of the skin. The formula also contains adenosine which helps to reduce the signs of ageing.
This is no ordinary sheet mask. It is 100% hydrogel material which contours to your skin sealing in the formula for optimum absorption and is clinically proven to hydrate.
Truth: This is all true.
-It does have 2 types of hyaluronic acid, it does contain adenosine, it is a hydrogel mask.
-The 2 types of hyaluronic acid are 14 and 19 out of 21 ingredients. (In Australia it is the law that ingredients are listed in order from highest quantity to least)
-Adenosine 12th on list.
-All main ingredients are after fragrance. (Due to the high irritation factor of fragrance this is normally in minimal qualities, therefore anything after it must be in very minimal amounts as well)
-In my search i could not find any whitepapers (scientific study articles) clinically proving it.

So what is in it?
water- main ingredient in all products
Dipropylene glycol-provides appropriate consistency for the product, also used to disguise the natural smell of the active ingredients
Propanediol- enhance the absorption of ingredients. Has hydrating properties
Ceratonia siliqua gum- binding, emollient, emulsion stabilising.
Xanthan gum- to improve binding, emulsify (mixes oil and water) and thicken the product
Chondrus crispus- a rich source of many nutrients for skin and antioxidants. Mild irritation may occur when applied to the eye area
Phenoxyethanol-preservative
Chlorphenesin-preservative
Hydrogenated castor oil- the weight and size of this product is too large to penetrate beyond the skin surface. it is an emollient(hydrates skin surface only)

In conclusion
This isn’t a bad product, it isn’t going to cause breakouts, the chance of an allergic reaction in normal skin is very minimal. But….. the ingredients don’t lie, it isn’t going to make changes in your skin. The amount of the active products are too small of an amount to give long lasting results. Instead this mask will give a surface hydration feeling, an instant feeling of hydration that will disappear quickly.

It is important products have a delivery system to allow ingredients to penetrate into the skin cells to make a change. It is important that the active ingredients are near the top of the list (preferably in the top 5 ingredients)

By law you only have to have a minimal amount of an ingredient in a product to be able to headline it. This is where price comes into it. Higher amounts of active ingredients cost more therefore the price goes up.

Do you know what is in your products? Do you know if they are working how you need them to? Are they just giving surface hydration? Does your skin feel soft on the surface, but still a tight feeling underneath? Do you know that they aren’t contributing to your breakouts?

Book in for a consultation during shutdown to find out. We go through all your product ingredients in our consultation and get you on the road to great skin.