The age-old dream of keeping our skin looking young and healthy is starting to come true
Standing in front of the mirror gazing at her reflection, she goes on to carry out her daily beauty regime as "cleanse, tone and moisturize" echo within her mind. After twenty years she continues in her attempt to wipe away those fine lines, instil elasticity, illuminate her complexion - this, a means to turn back the hands of time, recapture her youth.
This young lady is not alone. Millions of women (and men!) worldwide, encouraged by the extensive realm of advertising, take those precise steps, longing to lessen the effects of ageing. They've been convinced that 'pentapeptides,' 'Nutrileum' and 'Boswelox' hold the key to all of one's beauty worries. However, there are an equal number of sceptics out there who, to put it politely, consider skin-cream science to be nothing but a load of waffle.
I must admit that I until rather recently sided with the latter group. Seriously, what are these pentapeptides? What can Nutrileum actually do to make me look younger? Will a daily application of Boswelox in truth stimulate Wrinkle De-Crease? Can I really get flawless celebrity skin for 20 pounds or 30 dollars? I mean, it's hardly a celebrity price tag.
It's no wonder that people are cynical of such products after they've been subjected to the excessive overuse of overtly scientific terms. In my opinion, this is where the problem lies. It's the advertising industry's hype of such products that connotes them as lacking a scientific basis.
But as I've looked into the claims, I've found that they are based on pure science. They really are.
The ageing process
The skin is the largest organ of the human body, covering its entire surface area and accounting for around 16% of our body weight. It acts a tough, multiple-layer physical barrier protecting us from damage, infection and drying out. As we age, the number of collagen and elastic fibres, in a layer known as the dermis, decreases; as a result, the skin loses its elasticity and begins to sag and wrinkle. Skin ageing, however, is more than just creases in its surface. Over the years, the skin's colour and texture also alter – deeper signs of the ageing process at work.
Science has provided us with a number of measures that help to halt these changes. These include protecting the skin from the Sun, as its damaging ultraviolet rays are well-known to contribute to severe premature ageing; and to abstain from smoking, which - among a multitude of negative impacts on one's body - also accelerates skin ageing. But science has also provided us with a number of compounds that may lessen the effects associated with getting old. There is in fact much research going on in the field, with a number of scientists devoting their lives to uncovering the secrets behind fine-looking skin.
One such scientist is Dr Paul Matts, a Research Fellow in Research and Development for Health and Beauty Care products at Procter and Gamble, who has been involved in skin-care research and development for the past 17 years. He has worked on fundamental skin research, the development of new methods to measure the characteristics of skin and is currently working closely with development teams to identify new technologies with the eventual aim of bringing technical data to life.
Dr Tony Rawlings, an independent consultant to the cosmetics industry, and recognised as one of the world's leading authorities in skin research, explains: "To meet consumer needs and to deliver perceivable benefits to skin, cosmetic companies engage in scientific activities which are multidisciplinary and - depending upon the precise company - can be extensive. This ranges from the biological understanding of the skin through to formulation science."
More than skin deep
Paul Matts strongly advocates the argument that there is an incredible amount of science behind modern skin care products. He describes the development of Olay Definity, an anti-ageing product that claims to target brown spots and uneven skin tone. "Olay Definity was launched recently claiming to go beyond topographical features such as rough texture, lines and wrinkles, to address the issue of uneven colouration on facial skin."
The project started with a deep dive into understanding and modelling the impact of uneven skin colouration on the perception of age, health and attractiveness. These observations allowed the development of "technology against these new insights thereby breaking the 'anti-ageing equals anti-wrinkle' paradigm," continues Matts. "Behind the short claims on the pack and the television advert, therefore, there is a programme of work that started several years previously, involving hundreds of scientists, thousands of subjects in clinical studies and, often, tens of thousands of consumers involved in our product testing and market research."
Independent consultant Tony Rawlings adds: "One only has to read some of the manuscripts in cosmetic science journals, such as The International Journal Of Cosmetic Science, to appreciate the complexity and extent of the work that is conducted in these areas."
I was intrigued as to what a skin-care scientist may get up to on a daily basis. Apparently this is impossible to deduce. Matts explains how there is no such thing as a typical day in the life of a skin-care scientist. In fact, no one day is the same as any other: he may be working with academics from a scientific background or with beauty journalists; or advancing his research in the laboratory, for ultimately he remains a 'hands-on scientist.' Matts describes how "good time management and inter-personal skills are therefore essential, along with the ability to think laterally and juggle ten balls at a time."
So how do the public or even other scientists view Matts's work? He explains, from personal experience, that "on the whole, the work that I do is accepted very well by the scientific community. I have empirical evidence for this in the form of publications in a range of peer-reviewed journals, invitations to speak at a wide variety of academic, industry and specialist conferences... As with any branch of science, I am not always in agreement with my peers across the globe, nor they with me, but this is part of a normal, healthy scientific process.
"As regards to what the public think of me," Matts continues. "that is another matter! As a skin care 'expert' and with an apparent ability to translate technical jargon into consumer language, I regularly feature in women's periodicals, television and radio shows. I have to say that I enjoy all these very different experiences, as it forces me to be have an extremely clear picture of the work I do and its actual meaning to the lives of real people, as well as its significance in a scientific context."
Back to the crux of the problem. To me any negative feelings towards such research and ultimately such products, stem from the way in which they are portrayed by the advertising industry on the television, magazines and any such campaigns. In Matts's opinion, "The best technology in the world is meaningless if it does not make it to the consumer's hands. The world of marketing and advertising, therefore, plays a vital role in connecting with the consumer in an exciting and appealing way. Our challenge is ensuring that we do not compromise the quantity and quality of science behind our products with this communication, something which, in my opinion, we manage effectively for Procter and Gamble's skin care brands."
This may be the case for Matts's company; however, I feel a number of other companies still have a million miles to go in order to depict the real science behind the products they bring to market, and to eliminate the unnecessary use of airy-fairy scientific jargon.
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