I’m baaack! 🙂 The following is a list of moisturizers recommended by four top dermatologists in the September 2007 issue of Elle magazine:
*DermAvance Hyalogy P-effect night cream
($100, DermAdvance.com and sold in dermatologists’ offices).
What a top derm says: According to Dr. Elizabeth Tanzi, M.D., from Washington, D.C.: “DermAdvance Hyalogy P-effect night cream uses nanotechnology to deliver ceramides, which are skin-firming lipids, and hyaluronic acid, a mega-moisturizer.”
Based on ingredients alone: Hyaluronic acid can bind water up to 1000 times its volume (Baumann). However, regular particles of hyaluronic acid are found in size 3000 to 20000 nm. DermAvance Hyalogy P-effect night cream contains hyaluronic acid in nanospheres of 5 nm that penetrate the skin further. Ceramides are also included in the moisturizer, making it even more hydrating, improving skin-barrier function. This looks like an excellent moisturizer for dry skin in particular!
*Philosophy Help Me Retinol Night Treatment
($45.00, Amazon.com).
What a top derm says: According to Dr. Leslie Baumann, Director of Cosmetic Dermatology at the University of Miami, “Philosophy Help Me retinol night treatment is less potent than a prescription retinoid but can diminish fine lines just as effectively over time.”
Based on ingredients alone: Contains retinol and tocopherol acetate (vitamin E), a potent antioxidant, along with hydrating emulsifying wax, glycerin, and dimethicone. Because the actual concentration of retinol is not disclosed, it is unknown if this product is more effective than a drugstore lotion like Neutrogena Healthy Skin Anti-Wrinkle Cream Original Formula ($14.16, Amazon.com), which, according to dermatologist Mary Lupo in the October 2007 issue of Allure magazine: “With regular use, Neutrogena Healthy Skin Anti-Wrinkle Cream improves skin’s brightness, color, and texture, and softens existing lines and crepiness. If you start using it in your twenties, before you see these changes, you could push them off further.” Therefore, while Philosophy Help Me Retinol Night Treatment is a great way to get the benefits of retinol and antioxidants, so is Neutrogena Healthy Skin Anti-Wrinkle Cream.
Ingredients in Philosophy Help Me Retinol Night Treatment (courtesy Sephora.com): Water, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Emulsfying Wax, Glycerin, C10-30 Cholesterol/Lanosterol Esters, Cetyl Ricinoleate, Cetyl Alcohol, Dimethicone, Benzyl Alcohol, Cyclomethicone, Retinol, Tocopherol Acetate, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Acrylates Copolymer, Stearic Acid, PEG-10 Soya Sterol, Phenoxyethanol, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Methylparaben, Triethanolamine, Disodium EDTA, Bisabolol, BHT. Ingredients in Neutrogena Healthy Skin Anti-Wrinkle Cream: Purified Water, C12-C15 Alkyl Benzoate, Glycerin, Cetyl Alcohol, Cetearyl Alcohol, Camellia Oleifera Extract, Octyl Hydroxystearate, Dimethicone, Retinol, Panthenol, Disodium EDTA, Tocopherol, Cetearyl Glucoside, Tocopheryl Acetate, Polysorbate 20, Triethanolamine, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Diazolidinyl Urea, BHT, Carbomer.
*DermaQuest Peptide Mobilizer Serum
($188, DrSkinSpa.com).
What a top derm says: According to Chicago dermatologist Dr. Steven H. Dayan, “My patients love DermaQuest Peptide Mobilizer. It contains Argireline to lessen muscle contractions and Matrixyl [a peptide] to stimulate collagen.”
Based on ingredients alone: Argireline is said to “act like BotoxTM,” because it prevents neurons from stimulating muscles to contract, giving the skin a smoother appearance. Argireline works on the same muscle-to-nerve connections as BotoxTM. A 2002 study by Blanes-Mira et. al further found that argireline works to reduce the depth of wrinkles by up to 30% with thirty days post-injectable treatment, in a manner similar to botulism toxin. The exciting part of this find was that injected argireline had the effectiveness without the high toxicity of botulism toxin. However, when applied topically, argireline cannot always diffuse through the top layers of skin to reach the crucial muscle-nerve connections. For this reason, some patients report excellent results from products with argireline, while others do not. As for matrixyl, at the 2002 World Congress of Dermatology in Paris, France, it was reported that matrixyl can decrease wrinkle depth by 68% and wrinkle density by 47% over six months. Matrixyl, like argireline, promotes fibroblasts to produce collagen, but has the additional benefit of promoting hyaluronic acid production in the skin. However, Matrixyl must be applied in minimum concentrations of 2%, but ideally between 4 and 8%, in order to be effective.
Ingredients in DermaQuest Peptide Mobilizer Serum: Water Acetyl Hexapeptide-3 (Argireline, Glycerine-Butylene Glycol-Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4 (Matrixyl, Oxido Reductases-Soy Peptides-Hyrolyzed Rice Bran Extract (Regu-Age), Palmitoyl Oligopeptide-Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 (Rigin), Hesperidin Methyl Chalcome-Steareth-20-Dipeptide-2-Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7 (Eyeliss), Macrocystis Pyrifera (Extract)-Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein-PVP, Sodium Hyaluronate, Green Tea Extract, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Butylene Glycol and Centella Asiatica Extract and Echinacea Purpurea Extract (Actifirm TS), Meadowsweet and Hydrocotyl Extract and Amino Acids, Diazolidyl Imperata Cylindrica Extract-Water-Glycerin-PEG 8 Carbomer, Hydroxyethylcellulose.
*L’OrĂ©al Skin Genesis Moisturizer SPF 15
($19.79, Amazon.com).
What a top derm says: According to New York City dermatologist Dr. Macrene Alexiades-Armenakas (whose name I love, by the way, for some reason, haha): “I consult for L’OrĂ©al and recommend their Skin Genesis Moisturizer. I’ve always dreamed of getting hyaluronic acid in the skin without a needle.”
Based on ingredients alone: The research found in L’OrĂ©al Skin Genesis is truly novel because it stimulates the skin to produce more glycoaminoglycans (GAGs), polysaccharide chains composed of repeating disaccharide units linked to a core protein in the dermis. The major purpose of GAGs is to defend against water loss, as they bind large quantities of water, up to 1000 times their volume. For this reason, GAGs are also known as “natural moisturizing factors,” or NMFs. Although topical application of hyaluronic acid to the skin has been shown to moisturize the skin effectively, stimulating aged skin to mimic younger skin with the production of GAGs is a new advancement, as Dr. Debra Jaliman states in the October 2007 Allure magazine: “The research is amazing. It proves that these products produce long-term results by boosting the skin’s production of GAGs, which are crucial in fighting aging.” A full review of this product is available from October 04, 2007 here.
*Ingredients in L’OrĂ©al Skin Genesis Moisturizer SPF 15 (courtesy RevolutionHealthStore.com): Active Ingredients: Ensulizole (1.8%), Octinoxate (7.5%) Inactive Ingredients: Water, Glycerin, Alcohol Denat., Cyclohexasiloxane, Dimethicone, Silica, PEG 20 Methyl Glucose Sesquistearate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Polymethyl Methacrylate, CyclopentaSiloxane, Ammonium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate, Triethanolamine, Hydroxyethylpiperazine Ethane Sulfonic Acid, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), HDI/Trimethol Hexyllactone Crosspolymer, Dimethiconol, Caprylyl Glycol, Titanium Dioxide, Mica, Hydroxypropyl Tetrahydropyrantriol, Divinyldimethicone/Dimethicone Copolymer, Tocopherol, C12-13 Pareth 23, C12-13 Pareth 3, Silica Dimethyl Silylate, Algae Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance
Overall Thoughts?
DermAvance Hyalogy P-effect night cream and L’OrĂ©al Skin Genesis SPF 15 provide novel forms of hydrating the skin with hyaluronic acid: DermAdvance Hyalogy uses microspheres of hyaluronic acid, whereas L’OrĂ©al Skin Genesis stimulates the skin to produce its own natural moisturizing factors. However, DermAvance Hyalogy P-effect night cream is only a night cream, as it does not contain a sunscreen, whereas L’OrĂ©al Skin Genesis SPF 15 does.
The retinol in Philosophy Help Me Retinol Night Treatment is a tremendous anti-ager, though the concentration of retinol is not known and may be similar in drugstore products like Neutrogena Healthy Skin Anti-Wrinkle Cream Original Formula. Due to the lack of sunscreen in this lotion, it is not recommended for daytime use, particularly because retinol may make the skin more sensitive to the sun.
Finally, the amino acids argireline (a muscle relaxer) and matrixyl (a peptide) in DermaQuest Peptide Mobilizer Serum have both been shown to stimulate collagen in the skin. However, the use of argireline in topical formulations as a muscle relaxer has had mixed reviews, despite its similarity to Botox when injected into the skin.
All in all, four great moisturizers to consider, each with a recommendation from one of four top dermatologists. 🙂 Happy shopping!
P.S.
Thank you for all of the nice e-mails wishing me luck for my finals and for the dermatological questions to research. I hope to find a lot of information in textbooks and scientific journals soon. Thank you all! 🙂