The study was carried out on a natural supplement called Pycnogenol, marketed by US company Horphag Research, and the results were published this month in the journal Skin Pharmacology and Physiology.
Conducted by the Leibinz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, in Dusseldorf, Germany, the clinical trial examined 20 women between the ages of 55 and 68 over a 12 week period.
Trial tested 20 women over 12 weeks
Participants in the trial were given 75mg of Pycnogenol a day over the test period, during which time the skin of the volunteers was assessed for hydration levels, elasticity and signs of fatigue.
Likewise, a biopsy was taken at the beginning and end of the clinical test to assess gene expression of HAS-1 and COL1A1 and COL1A 2, which hold the genetic codes for collagen and dictate skin elasticity.
The trials discovered that COL1A1 increased by 29 percent, while COL1A2 increased by 41 percent, in turn increasing production of hyaluronic acid by 44 percent.
Measured increase in elasticity
Likewise, the supplement also contributed to a measured increase in skin elasticity of 25 percent, and an 8 percent improvement in hydration, which rose to 21 percent for women who started the trial with dry skin.
And the all-important market was a reported 3 percent reduction in skin wrinkles and a 6 percent increase in overall skin smoothness.
“To date, Pcynogenol is the only natural supplement that stimulates hyaluronic acid production in human skin,” said Dr. Jean Krutmann”, head researcher.
“And, we are encouraged by the molecular evidence confirmed in the this study that shows nutritional supplementation with Pycnogenol benefits human skin.”