put directly into a jar—and, in another common misunderstanding, you can’t slather stem cells directly onto your skin. Instead, when companies say they’re using products from stem cells, they usually mean ingredients derived from stem cells, says Zoe Diana Draelos, M.D., consulting professor in dermatology at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. Most stem cells actually need to be purified, which requires them to be grown in Petri dishes in laboratories where they’re fed a diet high in proteins, amino acids, and glucose. When they have cell-to-cell contact, as they do in a Petri dish, they begin communicating with each other. As a result, released proteins called growth factors signal other cells and cause growth or changes to occur in your body, Gonzalez says. The end result is a cultured media, a sort of broth in a sense, that gets added to skin-care products.
Some stem cells are derived from plants and flowers for skin-care products.
ighting the effects of aging, especially on your face, is no easy task. The hands of time, after all, are master sculptors of laugh lines and crow’s feet, and they’re often stubborn about changing their works of art. Stem cells have become a buzzword in the skin-care industry for one, simple fact: They work. Yet not all stem cells are created equal. First, stem cells are derived from several sources. And while they’re all used in skin-care products, they don’t all work the same way—which is why you need to get educated about them so you can make wise buying decisions for your epidermis.
THE NATURE OF STEM CELLS ➜ No doubt you’re familiar with stem cells for their contribution to the medical field, as stem
cells can regenerate and form different cells, which can then aid in counteracting numerous diseases. One stem cell, for instance, could turn into new tissue for the knee or the heart, depending on
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what signals it’s receiving from the body, says Rafael Gonzalez, Ph.D., vice president of research and development with DaVinci Biosciences in Yorba Linda, California. So why add them to skin-care products? Anti-aging properties. “Just as conditions like heart disease are caused by inflammation in the body, so, too, is aging skin,” says John Sanderson, M.D., C.E.O. and chief science officer with Cellese Regenerative Therapeutics in Newport Beach, California, adding that this process has its own name: Inflammaging. Sun exposure, environmental toxins like smoking, gravity, and repetitive facial expressions all take their toll on facial skin, contributing to inflammaging. “Yet by using growth factors and compounds called cytokines from stem cells,” he says, “you can create an anti-inflammatory cocktail that helps repair aging skin and creates healthier, younger-looking skin.” Stem cells on their own, though, aren’t shelf stable, meaning that they can’t be
THE PROOF IS IN THE PUDDING ➜ While stem cell-derived ingredients in skin-care products might sound like a marketing gimmick, there’s emerging proof they
work. One of the most cited studies involves application of a topical skincare product with growth factors in which over 78 percent of individuals with sun-damaged skin showed improvements after 60 days. The topical also increased new formation of collagen, which gives skin its strength and structure, and thickens the epidermis, the skin’s outermost layer. The evidence is so convincing, in fact, that just as there’s a food pyramid to help you select the healthiest foods for your body, there’s now a Skin Health and Beauty Pyramid, according to the Journal of Drugs in Dermatology. The pyramid consists of three layers, starting with a base of necessities for protection and repair (think SPF and antioxidants); a middle layer to help moisturize, exfoli-
