![]() So far we were writing about ceramides in plural. The BeautyBrains blog made a fantastic article about ceramides and they have listed a couple of examples about studies showing that ceramides - especially when used in certain ratios with cholesterol and fatty acids - do hydrate the skin and can help to repair the skin barrier. Now the question is only this: If we put ceramides all over our face do they work as well as ceramides already naturally in our skin? Well, the answer is probably a no, but they do work to some extent. So ceramides form kind of a "water-proof" protecting layer and make sure that our skin remains nice and hydrated. If ceramides in the skin are decreased, more water can evaporate from the skin and there is less water remaining in the skin. Ok, so now we know what ceramides are, let's see what they do in our skin: research shows clearly that they play a super important role in keeping the skin barrier healthy and the skin hydrated. The most probable scenario for the Alge Extract is that it works as a moisturizer and emollient and it might have some additional anti-aging properties. Unless the brand tells you what they use, it's impossible to know for sure. These were just three random examples from three manufacturers all called Algae extract even though they all come from different algae with different claims.Īnyhow, the point is this there are tons of different types of Algae Extracts out there. Here is a brown algae extract (the most common type, about 59% of macroalgae), also just called Algae Extract on the product label that is simply claimed to be a free radical scavenger, aka antioxidant. There is another algae extract from another manufacturer that comes from red algae (much more common, about 40% of total macroalgae worldwide) and is claimed to have not only moisturizing but also skin smoothing and densifying effects. reduce wrinkles, smooth skin) but without the side effects (though it seems now that the INCI name of Lanablue was changed to Aphanizomenon Flos-Aquae Extract). There is, for example, an algae extract trade-named Lanablue that comes from blue-green algae (green algae is rare, less than 1% of the total macroalgae in the world) and is claimed to have retinoid like effects (i.e. We have also browsed through Prospector to see what manufacturers say about their algae. Currently, algae extracts are mostly used as moisturizing and thickening agents, but algae also have great potential to combat skin aging, pigmentation as well as working as an antimicrobial. It's worth a try, especially if you are after Vitamin C's skin-brightening effects.Ī 2015 research paper on the potential of uses of algae in cosmetics summarizes that algae are rich sources of biologically active metabolites including antioxidants, anti-inflammatory agents, alginates, polysaccharides, and carotenoids. Overall, Ethyl Ascorbic Acid is a very promising but not a fully proven Vitamin C derivative. On top of manufacturer claims, there is also clinical in-vivo (tested on real people) data showing that 2% EAC can improve skin tone and whiten the skin. The strong point of EAC though is skin brightening. EAC seems to have both an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effect, and it's claimed to be able to boost the skin's collagen production. Regarding conversion, we can cite only a manufacturers claim saying that EAC is metabolized in the skin into pure ascorbic acid (and the ascorbic acid content of EAC is very high - 86,4% - compared to the usual 50-60% Vitamin C content of other derivatives).Īs for the three magic abilities of Vitamin C, we again mostly have only the manufacturer's claims, but at least those are very promising. We have good news regarding the absorption: on top of manufacturer claims, there is some data (animal study) demonstrating in can get into the skin, and it seems to be better at it than Ascorbyl Glucoside, another vitamin C derivative. However, for a Vitamin C derivative to work it's not enough just to be stable, they also have to be absorbed into the skin and be converted there to pure Vitamin C. ![]() Vinyl Dimethicone/Methicone Silsesquioxane Crosspolymer Hydroxyethyl Acrylate/Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer
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