“Our Research & Development team is committed to developing the technology in our products so we can help improve skin health and provide women across the globe with the skin confidence they deserve,” Dr. Lucy Gildea, chief scientific officer at Mary Kay, says in a media release about the company’s recent appearance at the Society for Investigative Dermatology’s 77th annual meeting in Chicago. “Participating in events like…SID,” adds Gildea, “allows us to learn and share relevant research so we can continue to deliver meaningful benefits and amazing products to consumers.”
Looking at plants
Skin care, cosmetics, and personal care made with natural ingredients continue to have a following among beauty consumers—a fact Gildea’s team at Mary Kay recognizes but isn’t deferring to entirely: “There is a segment of consumers that prefer plant-based ingredients,” Gildea tells Cosmetics Design. “Having said that,” she adds, “not all plant and fruit extracts are suitable for skin use. And she goes on to explain further, emphasizing that “At Mary Kay, our decision on ingredient use is based on safety, quality, and efficacy. We investigate and test many plant and fruit extracts to find the ingredients that meet our high standards.”
For the research presented at this month’s SID event, the team started from the premise that, “Fruit extracts typically contain high levels of nutrients and sometimes high levels of antioxidants that are good for your skin.” From there, Gildea explains, “We selected fruit extracts that contain high levels of Vitamin C, a well-known antioxidant that protects skin from oxidative damage induced by the environment,” says Gildea.
“The 5 fruit extracts [we worked with] are Acerola Cherry, Camu Camu, Kakadu Plum, black currant, and pomegranate.” And, “in an independent clinical study, this serum [made with those extracts] was clinically shown to improve skin texture in 100% of the panelists, and 96% of the panelist showed improvement in skin clarity after 4 weeks of use,” Gildea tells Cosmetics Design.
The complete findings that Mary Kay associate principal scientist Tiffany Carle presented at the SID meeting covered how an initial “genomic evaluation revealed involvement of four main classes of genes important for skin firmness. Furthermore, the study showcased that the serum treatment increased production of dermal matrix proteins collagen and laminin that support skin firmness,” according to the media release.
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Deanna Utroske, CosmeticsDesign.com Editor, covers beauty business news in the Americas region and publishes the weekly Indie Beauty Profile column, showcasing the inspiring work of entrepreneurs and innovative brands.
