Fighting Time! Anti aging creams.
While in Palm Springs this winter…an article in the local paper, the Desert Sun caught my eye! ‘Fighting Time’ screamed the headline….Do anti-aging creams work?” The answer, no surprise to me ….”dermatologists say, “Mostly No!”
The article was about those really big companies, not us..who use things that “help to boost oxygen microcirculation.” And they can reset “the skin’s aging clock by converting resting stem cells.” Other ingredients “turn on digestive enzymes that will only go after scars and wrinkles.” In short, continued the article, “they can utterly transform your old, dry, thinning, wrinkled skin.”
True? Well, mostly NO say the experts. Actually, I think no one really knows. Apparently, even the cheapest creams will moisturize…are there really any benefits beyond that?…which make some prohibitively expensive creams worth the $1500 per oz?
Such claims, say the article are “very vague,” and “it is difficult to say whether these do anything.” This from Dr. Simon Yoo, assistant professor of dermatology at Northwestern University. The FDA has also sent warning letters to cosmetics companies, (mostly small ones???) for making drug claims. (Is it O.K. for the big guys to do it?)
You can read all about how companies use fake science to sell products in Dr. Ben Goldacres book,”Bad Science: Quacks, Hacks and Big Pharma Flacks.” He thinks such marketing is ‘meaningless.’
It seems that the claims made are not backed up by any studies or peer reviews. Without published studies, says the article, its impossible to know whether their ingredients are effective. Dermatologists interviewed said most products are harmless. ” If you like it,” basically, they said, “enjoy it!” But they won’t do much more than a moisturizer that is a LOT less expensive….perhaps 1/10th or even a 100th of the price.”
So, you may feel confident that our creams and moisturizers, which contain all the good things, and none of the bad things…really, really work…as our hundreds of loyal fans prove. As far as “converting resting adult stem cells to newly minted skin cells,” well, we won’t be doing that anytime soon!
Linda Quiring
Founder
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