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An Exciting New Product: Skinceuticals Phloretin CF

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If you read my blog enough, you know that I am a diehard Skinceuticals CE Ferulic junkie. I would probably inject, inhale, and snort the $128 serum if it were possible to do so. (And yes, this is me being sarcastic, haha.)  🙂

So imagine my surprise when I discovered that Skinceuticals has a new serum: Skinceuticals Phloretin CF ($128.00, Skinmedix.com). It’s kind-of like CE Ferulic was a Harvard grad, only to have its baby cousin Phloretin CF emerge and become a Rhodes Scholar: Phloretin CF is just that amazing.  Preliminary research demonstrates that it is basically a super antioxidant that not only fights free radicals, but also protects against DNA damage and penetrates well into the skin.  As said in June 2008 issue of Oprah, “Phloretin, a natural extract that’s been studied as an anticancer agent, is the newest antioxidant available topically; research has shown it can penetrate the skin and provide significant UV protection.”  According to Dr. Brenton B. Koch, M.D., F.A.C.S., SkinCeuticals developed Phloretin CF after five extensive years of research.  Dr. Koch elaborates in his blog, “This powerhouse formulation divides and conquers when it comes to damage at every level.  Phloretin CF protects against not only free radicals, but the range of other reactive molecules known to cause damage and DNA mutations among integral cell types.  In addition, it corrects existing damage by stimulating the synthesis of essential proteins and fibers and accelerating cell turnover.”  Additional research in The Journal of Biological Chemistry shows that phloretin is an inhibitor of sugar transport amongst red blood cells, which holds some level of promise as to the role phloretin may play in AGE formation and the subsequent hardening of the skin’s collagen.

So how does Phloretin CF differ from CE Ferulic?  Basically, Skinceuticals:

  • removed all the vitamin E (1% to 0%) and 5% of the vitamin C from CE Ferulic (from 15% to 10%)
  • kept the same level of ferulic acid as an antioxidant stabilizer (0.5%)
  • added in 2% phloretin (from 0% to 2%)

What is exciting about this is that 2% phloretin reportedly is a very powerful antioxidant, not only fighting free radicals, but also protecting DNA from future damage and penetrating the skin in a way the ingredients in CE Ferulic were not shown to in published research.  What is not exciting is that the product not only contains less vitamin C than CE Ferulic, but took out the vitamin E altogether, and vitamin C and vitamin E in combination have many well-established functions together, including prevention of the formation of carcinogenic nitrosamines and enhancing the photoprotective effects of sunscreen, as vitamin C has been reported to enhance UVA protection, whereas vitamin E is more effective against UVB radiation.  Vitamin C and vitamin E are also two antioxidants that are able to “borrow” an electron to enhance one another.

So which is better?  The word is still out, until some brilliant scientist decides to do a comparison study of 15% L-ascorbic acid and 0.5% vitamin E versus 10% L-ascorbic acid and 2.0% phloretin.  I say, if you are a cautious person, stick to the proven CE Ferulic until more research inevitably surfaces.  (And my own personal experience from doing a switch to Phloretin CF, which will be available on the blog on June 17.  🙂 ) On the other hand, if you are a trendy person who likes to be the first to try new things, then I would try Phloretin CF, because it is likely that 2.0% phloretin is equally or even more effective than 0.5% vitamin E, though one cannot be sure of such a thought.

At any rate, I love Phloretin CF!  Be sure to come back on June 17 (and hopefully before, haha) to get the full scoop on my personal experiences from the switch!  🙂

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