A medical student’s perspective on the scams of the beauty industry. Learn what to spend your money on and where to save. I am not a doctor yet, and I am no dermatologist by any means. But I have learned a lot of dermatology pharmacology and which ingredients in all these beauty supply products make them work. Here you will find a list of what is actually used to treat what you are trying to fix. Many beauty supply products will claim to have all of these other miraculous ingredients and charge a ton of money, but most of those haven’t actually been proven to work. If you can find a credible published study to back up their claims, then by all means go for it. Otherwise, you are probably wasting your money. Eye Lash Growth Bimatoprost – This is the ingredient that actually stimulates eye lash growth. The only product that I have come across that actually contains bimatoprost is Latisse (which is why they can charge so much money). Any other eye lash serum that you buy might have analogs of bimatoprost, but for some reason we can’t absorb or use it as well as actual bimatoprost, so it really won’t work. Other eye lash serums might have a bunch of nutrients that will create the proper environment for eye lashes to grow, but unless you are deficient in nutrients, you won’t see a difference. So if you actually want to see results, you are going to need to spend the big bucks on Latisse. Acne Benzoyl peroxide – This drug breaks down to release free radicals that kill the bacteria causing acne. It is used as a topical treatment and is often combined with antibiotics for severe acne cases. This is definitely one of those products that you don’t have to spend a fortune on. Retinoic Acid – This molecule seems to pop up everywhere in the treatment of skin conditions. All it is is a derivative of vitamin A. It is directly involved in cell growth, especially epidermal cell growth. This increases cell turnover, which essential for preventing acne as well as wrinkles. Getting a moisturizer with retinoic acid or some derivative of it (such as isotretinoin) is important. Salicylic Acid – This is actually a keratolytic agent rather than an acne medication directly. A keratolytic agent literally just softens the keratin (the outer layer of your skin) to open your pores and allow you to get a deeper clean. You want your facial cleanser to contain salicylic acid if you are trying to treat or prevent acne. Aging Retinoic Acid – (see description above!) Glycolic acid – This molecule reacts with the outer layer of your skin to weaken the lipids that are holding your dead skin cells together. This exfoliating property increases cell turnover, which is essential to maintaining young healthy skin. Wrinkles are produced when the skin becomes thin and less elastic, so if we can maintain a healthy cell turnover, we can prevent part of the natural wrinkle process. Sunscreen + Tanning Terms: Melanin – This is the molecule that our bodies produce to protect DNA from UV radiation. So the color that you see is not actually damage in and of itself. All it is is the visible manifestation of a pigment that is designed to protect us. UVB rays – stronger than UVA but do not penetrate the skin as deep – causes sunburn, aging, and cancer UVA rays – weaker than UVB but can penetrate deeper into the skin – causes tanning, aging, and contributes to cancer SPF – (sun protection factor) the ratio of minimal erythema dose with sunscreen to the minimal erythema dose without sunscreen “water resistant” – lasts for 40 to 80 minutes while swimming or sweating (must specify) Ingredients to look for: para aninobenzoic acid (PABA) – UVB protection benzophenoes – broader UVB protection dibenzoylmethanes – UVA protection titanium dioxide – sunshade Source
