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Superfoods – dietary products with the most useful composition – are relevant not only on the plate, but also in skin care. But are they as effective when applied topically as when taken orally? Or is it just a fancy marketing gimmick?
The belief that healthy foods are also good for the skin has taken root in the minds of many. And this is not far from the truth. Various inhabitants of the refrigerator can provide cosmetic assistance. From oatmeal, eggs and cottage cheese to veal chops, which, according to rumors, Catherine II liked to apply to her face. Cosmetology originated in the kitchen and has not gone far from it. Means with “edible” ingredients and now make up the lion’s share of it. Of course, technology has stepped forward, and even innovative components are obtained from familiar products. Apple stem cells, truffle molecules, caviar complexes, soy peptides – familiar names inspire more confidence than “chemical” abbreviations.
Diet products in the cosmetics industry
Cosmetics are increasingly noticed in connection not so much with cooking as with dietetics. Which is logical: in both cases, experts are not interested in taste, but in benefits. All diet rolls have long been reflected in the composition of beauty products. When the world became obsessed with vitamins a couple of decades ago, creams began to have an “alphabetical” composition: A, B, C. But soon the boom ended, and vitamins began to be used in doses, both in medicine and in cosmetology.
Now it’s time for dairy products. Yoghurts were hailed as a panacea, and skin care was taken over by milk proteins. Then came the era of the “French Syndrome”. The media broadcast that red wine prolongs life. In response, an army of products with resveratrol, an antioxidant found in grape skins, has appeared.
Experiments with superfoods in beauty labs
In the late 2000s, “food passions” subsided. Drugs with complex complexes, stem cells, etc. have become topical. But customers, especially young ones, wanted something understandable and at the same time useful. Moreover, the fashion for a healthy lifestyle was gaining momentum, the so-called superfoods became a significant part of it.
Acai and goji berries work in tandem to restore tone and radiance to the skin.
Goji berries, turmeric, chlorella, kombucha – these products remove toxins, energize, increase immunity, improve skin condition. The beauty labs are bustling with work. Superfoods have revealed remarkable dermatological abilities. For example, experts at the Chanel Research Center selected three key ingredients from the diet of centenarians around the world. Green coffee molecules from Costa Rica, olives from the island of Sardinia and mastic tree resin from Greece form the basis of Blue Serum Eye Revitalizing Eye Serum.
goji berries to improve complexion
Another popular superfood – goji berries – is also actively used in cosmetics. As well as its “competitor” – acai. By origin, these berries differ: the first comes from China, the second – from South America. But they affect the body in the same way. Thanks to the huge amount of vitamins, trace elements, flavonoids and amino acids, these babies strengthen our self-defense. As cosmetic ingredients, they act as antioxidants and improve complexion. In the My Payot Sleeping Pack, goji and acai work in tandem to restore skin tone and radiance. Acai is also included in the lip oil Eclat Minute, Clarins.
Tea extracts: rejuvenating effect
The energy drink kombucha filled the refrigerators of fitness centers and health food stores. Scientifically, it is called fermented black tea. Kombucha contains vitamins B, C, D, E, K, about ten enzymes, the same amount of organic acids, polysaccharides and trace elements.
Maybe someone remembers Soviet cans of tea, on top of which floated something resembling an exhibit of the Kunstkamera – Kombucha. The drink that was obtained from this tandem was reminiscent of kvass. Children drank it with pleasure, got sick less often, studied better. And their mothers wiped their faces with a “mushroom”, believing in anti-aging abilities. And not in vain.
Personal experience
I trust the advice of my beautician so much that I don’t even read the composition of the products I buy. I know they are 100% natural. And always effective. The longer I live in the world, the more I like myself. It was especially difficult in childhood – the complexes were terrible. I remember standing at the mirror and complaining to my mother: who did you give birth to, it’s not like that, it’s not like that.
And at the age of 20, I was not delighted with myself. I didn’t play sports, I slouched. Muscles? This is from the realm of fantasy – I have never had them. In general, I absolutely did not like myself. But later she somehow learned to get along with herself, put up with her shortcomings and even tried to turn them into virtues. In part, my mother helped me with this. She always reminded me of her classmate Taechka. According to her mother’s stories, Taechka was thin, awkward, with eternally chapped lips, which she constantly licked. In general, according to the descriptions, an extremely unpleasant character. But Taechka presented herself in such a way, directly “carried” that there was not a single person in the world who would consider her unattractive, for everyone she was special.
Mom for life ran into the memory of how a woman should present herself. She always gave me this Taechka as an example. That’s how it works. If we begin to accept ourselves, love ourselves, then it is quite possible to live comfortably. And in this sense, I am much more comfortable with myself now than in my youth. I feel like I look much better.
Vichy research has proven that kombucha restores elastin and collagen, and gently exfoliates the skin. This ingredient became the basis of the Idéalia line, Vichy, along with another superfood – blueberries, which contain more protective polyphenols than hyped grapes. Continuing the conversation about tea, one cannot ignore its other types. Green tea extract from Uji, a suburb of Kyoto, contained in Future Solution LX, Shiseido Facial Reshaping Serum, prevents cell damage. And the polyphenols of white and green tea in Lift Sculptor, Capture Youth, Dior provide a lifting effect.
Spices for youth
Specialists did not bypass the attention and seasonings. Many of them have been added to food since ancient times, not so much for taste, but because of their benefits. And the main players here are turmeric and ginger. The first contains curcumin – the strongest antiseptic and antioxidant. In addition, it activates the most important functions of the skin to preserve our youth. That’s why turmeric has become the 21st ingredient in the famous Double Serum, Clarins.
Cosmetologists respect ginger for its tonic properties. His extract became the basis of the Roots of Strength line, The Body Shop, and ginger oil is included in the formula of the Mythic Oil nourishing shampoo, L’Oréal Professionnel.
Green coffee, guarana, ginseng, sea buckthorn – the list of superfoods that penetrate into cosmetology is expanding. Does this mean the end of the era of synthetic complexes? By no means! Firstly, superfoods are not included in creams in their pure form. All the same active molecules, oils, extracts are extracted from them. So this is also a kind of “chemistry”, in a good sense of the word. And secondly, they often coexist with other components, enhancing their abilities. The era of “proper nutrition” in cosmetics is just beginning, and brands will still delight us with superfood-based products with phenomenal capabilities.