THE NEW COMPLETE SILVER MASQUE

The New Complete Silver Masque

Having a face mask as a finale in a facial procedure is quite popular. There is a face mask for just about every skin type and every skin concern. You can have an anti-aging and moisturizing face mask, or one that lightens your skin. For sensitive and acne-prone skin, there is an anti-bacterial and soothing mask.

At SkinStation, we developed our own proprietary face mask serum that offers all these skin care benefits in one easy application. We call it The Complete Silver Masque. 

The soothing and moisturizing silver masque serum infuses a synergistic blend of active nutrients deep within the skin, to help

* lighten skin discolorations and improve skin tone
* minimize fine lines and tighten loose skin
* control acne-breakouts and minimize blemishes.

Why call it a silver mask? At the heart of the serum formula is the new, patented porous silver that soothes sensitive skin and provides anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial post-treatment protection. 

Clinical strength natural lightening extracts from licorice, mushroom, and wheat help even out skin discolorations. 

Nano-sized hyaluronic acid and plant-derived amino peptides from pine needle extract provide clinically proven anti-aging and anti-oxidant benefits.

A few minutes after the silver masque application, you will feel your skin tightening up, as if you just had a face lift.

After 10 minutes or so, feel your skin as the paper mask is lifted up. You will feel your skin so cool and refreshed. This gives you a rejuvenated feeling. Practically no serum is left behind so you know that all the serum nutrients have been thoroughly absorbed by your skin.

Use The Complete Silver Masque as part of your facial care routine. Whether you are getting a full facial or a simple diamond peel procedure, having the mask as a finale is a nice and easy way to treat your skin to all kinds of skin goodies. Have it as well after a facial laser or firming procedure to sooth your skin and speed up healing. Your skin will look at its very best with real benefits from the silver mask. 

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This column was published in the Manila Bulletin Lifestyle Section on September 16, 2014 . The author is the CEO of SkinStation. He received the 2011 Outstanding Chemist Award from Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) for his achievements in the field of cosmetic chemistry. Skin Smart aims to clarify facts and myths on skin care. Send your questions and comments to info@skinstation.ph. 

TOP ANTI-AGING BREAKTHROUGHS (Part 2)

Top Anti-aging Breakthroughs (Part 2)

We continue to present the second of a three part series on the top anti-aging scientific breakthroughs to help in your quest for your best skin ever. In the first part, we mentioned Nano-encapsulation Technology and Fractional Lasers. Here are the next two breakthroughs.

Dermal Fillers

Perhaps nothing is more gratifying for patients than having an immediate correction of wrinkles after a filler injection. Dermal filler injection is one of the most popular procedures at SkinStation. We can use dermal fillers to volumize any part of the face, to sculpt a more natural youthful look without surgery. Nonsurgical rhinoplasty, lip augmentation, volumizing of cheeks, and filling up lines in nasolabial folds are among the most popular procedures. These fillers have effects lasting for one year, with new variants claiming to last up to 2 years. But the benefits go beyond these timelines. These fillers can lead to robust increase in collagen production for longer lasting anti-aging results. 

Since 1981, bovine collagen was used as dermal filler, with effects lasting for only 3 months. The breakthrough came in 2003 with the approval by the FDA of hyaluronic acid, marketed under the Restylane brand. Perlane and Juvederm followed shortly, using similar variants of synthetic hyaluronic acid. The wrinkle injection market soared to new heights with these approvals by the FDA. Recently, the FDA approved Artefill and Radiesse, each using a different substance to fill wrinkles. 

Anti-aging Sunscreens 

A new 4-year study in Australia showed that daily use of sunscreen resulted in 24% reduction in signs of aging. We can now look at sunscreen not just as a protection against aging. It can also reverse signs of aging.

DERMAX UV MILK
Anti-Aging Sunscreen

However, not just any sunscreen will do.  Your sunscreen must work against the damaging and aging effects of UVA rays. New breakthrough ingredients are now available to protect against UVA rays. Look for the broad-spectrum label. Check the PA rating, the measure of protection against UVA rays. The maximum rating is PA+++.

DERMAX UV MILK anti-aging sunscreen has the maximum PA+++ rating, plus a milky, non-greasy feel that’s best for daily use. 

What about SPF? This refers only to protection against burning UVB rays. Most sunscreens will effectively protect against UVB rays, even at a “low” SPF30. Save for a few field related work, there is no real risk of getting sunburn in our day-to-day activities. The marketing hypes on high SPF sunscreens are simply just that…hypes.

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This column was published in the Manila Bulletin Lifestyle Section on November 26, 2013. The author is the CEO of SkinStation. He received the 2011 Outstanding Chemist Award from Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) for his achievements in the field of cosmetic chemistry. Skin Smart aims to clarify facts and myths on skin care. Send your questions and comments to info@skinstation.ph. 

TOP ANTI-AGING BREAKTHROUGHS (Part 1)

Top Anti-aging Breakthroughs (Part 1)

Anti-aging beauty products and clinic procedures have been coming out every year, each one claiming to be the new elixir of youth.  While some present scientifically solid and significant advances, many are simply hyped up rehash of old products and procedures with a new name. To guide you in what can really make a difference in your skin, we present to you a three part series on the top anti-aging scientific breakthroughs that can create your best skin ever. 

Nano-encapsulation Technology

Nano refers to size, the size of a virus. Nano is a billionth of a meter; a thousand times smaller than micro. The development of encapsulated nano sized active ingredients marks a major advance in skin care formulations. DERMAX Professional is the first Philippine brand which launched nano-encapsulated skin care products with enhanced effectiveness and stability.  Targeted skin absorption has vastly improved with the smaller particle size of the nano active ingredients.

Ordinarily, skin care actives would only lay on the surface of the skin accomplishing nothing beyond improving feel. For anti-aging products, the active ingredients must work inside the skin to have any effect at all. Nano-encapsulation technology has made it possible for actives to 

• go beyond the barriers much more easily,
• protect ingredients  from losing efficacy, and
• impart time-released benefit.

Anti-aging DERMAX products containing nano-encapsulated ingredients are NanoWhite, Hyal C, HYALIFT, Retinol C and UV MILK.

Fractional Laser Resurfacing

Many dermatologists consider fractional laser resurfacing as one of the most important breakthrough wrinkle treatments in recent years.  Prior to this, the gold standard in wrinkle removal was the traditional CO2 lasers, which completely ablate skin, resulting in horrendous downtime and complications. With fractional laser resurfacing, you still get the best way to remove wrinkles with less downtime and less complications. 

Fractional laser resurfacing uses beamlets of laser light to bore pin point holes in the skin. This prevents damage to the top layer of the skin, reducing downtime to just 4 to 7 days. The body’s natural collagen production is encouraged to work fast-forward, with effects that will last for years. 

What’s new: Aside from the CO2, new fractional lasers are now available that are more skin friendly, meaning there is less possibility of hyperpigmentation with Asian skin types. These are the Erbium:YAG laser, Erbium:Glass laser, and fractional RF (uses radiofrequency energy rather than laser). All these fractional lasers are available in SkinStation.

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This column was published in the Manila Bulletin Lifestyle Section on November 5, 2013. The author is the CEO of SkinStation. He received the 2011 Outstanding Chemist Award from Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) for his achievements in the field of cosmetic chemistry. Skin Smart aims to clarify facts and myths on skin care. Send your questions and comments to info@skinstation.ph.  

Stem Cells in Skin Care: Hope or Hype? (Part 1)

Stem Cells in Skin Care: Hope or Hype? (Part 1)

Stem cell is touted as the new miracle cure in anti-aging, and has found its way in skin care application. Is it the greatest advance in anti-aging skin care, or is it just a lot of marketing hype? Both answers are probably correct, depending on the source, processing, and application of the stem cells. 

Stem cells are a part of all living things: plants, animals, and humans. They have the ability to develop into different cell types, and continue to divide almost indefinitely. When a stem cell divides, the daughter cells have the potential to either remain a stem cell, like the parent cell, or they can differentiate into cells with a more specialized function. (See diagram below.)

Skin Stem Cells
The skin stem cells are located at the base (basal layer) of the epidermis. When the cells divide, they form more stem cells, and daughter cells that progressively differentiate into skin cells as they travel through the epidermis. They eventually degenerate and die as they reach the skin surface. The skin that you touch is composed is composed of dead keratinized cells that are shed. Skin stem cells continuously renew the epidermis, with a normal turnover of 25 - 30 days.

Skin Aging
As we age, the stem cells begin to regenerate more slowly, with skin cell turnover likewise slowing down. Dying cells begin to outnumber their regenerated counterparts, which lead to signs of aging. It is for this reason that stem cells make an intriguing additions to anti-aging products. These expensive anti-aging products claim having stem cell ingredients from plants, animals, and/or humans.  

Plant Stem Cells

Plant stem cells are frequently derived from Swiss apple, grape seed, lilac, melon, rose or rice plant. These plant-based stem cells can be found in many expensive anti-aging products. Are they beneficial to the skin? Yes. They have properties not unlike antioxidants and are an excellent source of protection against free radicals.

But do plant stem cells stimulate the body's human stem cells? NO! It’s a clear case of marketing hype based on contentious scientific assumptions. Human cells communicate by a complex symphony of biochemical signals exclusive to the animal kingdom. There is no way plant stem cells can relate to human stem cells.

Animal and Human Stem Cells
While it is logical to assume animal and human stem cells will provide a better source of ingredients than plant stem cells, that is not always the case. This will be our topic in Part 2.

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This was published in the July 31, 2012 issue of Manila Bulletin, Lifestyle Section. The author is the CEO of SkinStation. He received the 2011 Outstanding Chemist Award from Professional Regulations Commission for his achievements in the field of cosmetic chemistry. He can be reached at fred.reyes@skinstation.ph.

Retinol Treatment for Aging Skin

Retinol Treatment for Aging Skin

Topical vitamin A in the form of retinol and retinoic acid is probably the most studied anti-wrinkle ingredient. Retinoic acid speeds up cell division thus quickening skin renewal, prevents collagen from breaking down, and helps improve skin tone. However, retinoic acid has many side effects, including skin redness and irritation.

To minimize side effects, retinol is used instead in non-prescription anti-aging creams and lotions. Retinol is slowly converted to retinoic acid once it penetrates the skin, causing retinoic acid-like skin rejuvenating effects. The slow conversion to retinoic acid makes incidence of skin irritation much less.

Old retinol formulas have encountered stability and efficacy issues. Retinol is highly unstable when exposed to air and may get degraded even before skin application. New formulations now use advanced nano-encapsulation technology to address this important retinol stability concern.

Nano-encapsulated retinol makes
DERMAX Retinol C highly effective.

Of all the clinical studies on retinol, one stands out for having geriatrics as its subjects. The study published in the Archives of Dermatology describes the clinical effect of retinol lotion (0.4%) on 36 subjects with ages 80 to 96. “Safe and effective therapies to reverse the atrophy of natural skin aging do not exist currently,” the investigators led by Dr. Kang wrote, “possibly because skin aging is poorly understood, and conducting clinical studies in a geriatric population represents a considerable challenge.”

At each visit, topical retinol lotion was applied to the upper-inner (sun-protected) portion of one arm and its vehicle lotion (a popular brand of body moisturizer) was applied to the other arm. Lotions were applied up to three times a week for 24 weeks.

The fine wrinkles of intrinsic aging began to improve after four weeks of retinol use, with continued improvement throughout the study, the researchers reported. The four-week response was faster than that observed in photoaging studies. Typically, at least two to three months of topical retinoic acid therapy is needed before noting any significant improvement in wrinkles caused by photoaging.

After 24 weeks, there were significant differences between retinol-treated and vehicle-treated skin for changes in fine wrinkling scores. Retinol treatment significantly increased collagen production in six patients by about 40% compared with vehicle treatment.

The improvement was not permanent. Three months after the therapy was discontinued the difference in fine wrinkle severity had lessened between the retinol- and vehicle-treated sides but remained significant. Six months after the discontinuation of retinol treatment, no significant differences remained between the 2 sides. 

If topical retinol can improve fine wrinkles, collagen deficiency, and atrophy in the fragile skin of elderly subjects, it should be able to do more on younger, less challenging skin.

______________________________________________________________________________________This was published in the June 5, 2012 issue of Manila Bulletin, Lifestyle Section. The author is the CEO of SkinStation. He received the 2011 Outstanding Chemist Award from Professional Regulations Commission for his achievements in the field of cosmetic chemistry. He can be reached at fred.reyes@skinstation.ph.

Can Antioxidants Make You Look Younger?

Can Antioxidants Make you Look Younger?

Products with antioxidant labels are now the trend. The more popular antioxidants are extracts of green tea, grapes, and mangosteen. Best-sellers include glutathione, vitamins C & E, a-lipoic acid, and CoQ10. Cosmetic companies advertise antioxidant products that claim to reduce or even eliminate the signs of skin aging. The marketing hype is repeated over and over that it now appears to be the gospel truth. But what really is the truth about antioxidants?

Aging is a complex natural process. It involves genetic, hormonal and environmental mechanisms. Free radicals play a central role in aging. They are highly reactive oxygen molecules that can damage various cellular structures in our body. They are produced naturally through normal human metabolism. They are also formed by environmental factors such as UV exposure, cigarette smoking, and alcohol consumption.

The body possesses natural defense mechanisms. It produces antioxidants, substances that provide protection against free radicals. As we age, our natural defense mechanisms decreases, while the production of reactive free radicals increases. This imbalance results in accelerated aging. 

Topical application of antioxidants helps neutralize free radicals, and consequently lessen or prevent signs of skin aging. Beyond prevention, many topical antioxidants are also marketed to eliminate wrinkles. However, among antioxidants, only vitamin C can actually treat wrinkles by boosting collagen production through a mechanism other than antioxidation. For other products, their ability to improve wrinkles is either due to swelling or hydrating effects, or to other ingredients, such as the exfoliating retinol, AHA and BHA, and collagen boosters like hyaluronic acid and amino peptides. 

Current research suggests that antioxidants can have synergistic effects and, thus, better efficacy when combined. Examples are Vitamin C and glutathione, and vitamin C and E. Also, an additive benefit may be derived from using a combination of oral and topical antioxidant products. For topically administered antioxidants to be effective, there are two important concerns that are now addressed by advanced nano-encapsulation technology:

1) Product stabilization. Antioxidants are very unstable; they may      become oxidized and inactive before reaching the target. Encapsulation provides a protective layer that can keep the antioxidant as active as when it was blended during production.

2) Skin absorption. Antioxidants must be small enough to be absorbed into the skin, reach their target tissue in the active form, and remain there long enough to exert the desired effects. Nanotechnology converts antioxidants to nano-sized particles to enhance skin penetration.

Bottomline. Antioxidants play a key role in prevention of premature skin aging. However, they cannot undo the damage done by free radicals at the cellular level. Topical and oral antioxidants cannot erase wrinkles and crows feet. They cannot firm up sagging skin. An antioxidant product that claims to make you look younger is either over promising, or has other ingredients that can exfoliate, plump, and hydrate skin. Always look at the ingredients list.

____________________________________________________________________________This was published in the May 22, 2012 issue of Manila Bulletin, Lifestyle Section.The author is the CEO of SkinStation. He received the 2011 Outstanding Chemist Award from Professional Regulations Commission for his achievements in the field of cosmetic chemistry. He can be reached at fred.reyes@skinstation.ph.

Nanotechnology in Skin Care

Nanotechnology in Skin Care

Nanotechnology is not a new concept. This technology has been in use for many years in various scientific applications. Skin care is just a new dimension of the technology. With nanotechnology, active ingredients are converted into very tiny microscopic particles, so tiny that they can penetrate deep into the skin, giving astonishing results.

Ordinarily, skin care actives only lay on the surface of the skin. This is good enough for sunscreen products.  Sun protection should happen at the outermost layer of the skin. But for anti-aging or lightening products, they must work inside the skin to have any effect at all.

Nanotechnology enhances the benefits of many skin care products. Nano-sized natural whitening actives like licorice extract and ellagic acid are used in the DERMAX NanoWhite line, which is available exclusively at SkinStation.  These nano sized lightening actives can better penetrate the dermal and epidermal junction where melanin formation can be effectively minimized. Many anti-aging actives are now also being used in nano form. Examples are the antioxidants from green tea and grapes and the anti-irritant ursulic acid. DERMAX HYAL-C serum has nano-sized hyaluronic acid to provide lifting and dermal-filler like effects. Topical lip plumper using nanotechnology is now possible. Although effect can be transient, it could provide a way to avoid expensive lip augmentation procedure.

Nanotechnology products are also used for treating dark circles under the eyes. Dark eye circles occur due to problem with microcirculation of blood. They look ugly and are difficult to eliminate. A blend of nano-ingredients can much more readily penetrate to improve blood circulation. Also, nanotechnology is being explored to treat spider veins and to prevent stretch marks. Many more exciting breakthrough developments are forthcoming.

Encapsulating nano particles is a very recent development. This has tremendously boosted effectiveness and stability of new skin care products. Encapsulation protects the degradation of nano-actives, keeping them as fresh and as effective as when they were first added into the blend. Nano encapsulated active ingredients are used extensively in SkinStation's DERMAX line of professional skin care products. 

Definitely, the future of skin care lies in tapping advanced technologies. That future is now available in SkinStation.

(In July 2012, the author spoke before the members of Philippine Society for Cosmetic Science (PSCS) on the same topic, with the title, "Nano+Encapsulation Technology in Personal Care Products". The updated and modified version of that presentation before the PSCS can be accessed here:  https://app.box.com/s/7igjxmfyh5olyz6ktlv7.)
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This column was published in the Manila Bulletin Lifestyle Section on April 3, 2012. The author is the CEO of SkinStation. He received the 2011 Outstanding Chemist Award from Professional Regulations Commission for his achievements in the field of cosmetic chemistry. He can be reached at fred.reyes@skinstation.ph.