You hope you skin care product is ‘dermatologically approved’…but is it really?

You hope you skin care product is ‘dermatologically approved’…but is it really?

New skin care brands are popping up in the market at a breakneck rate, many of which claim to be ‘clinically tested’, while promising ‘proven’ dramatic results. So, how can you, as the unsuspecting consumer, know if these claims are valid and not just marketing mumbo-jumbo?

Any skin care product claiming to be ‘clinically tested’ or ‘dermatologically tested’ must have published evidence to back up these claims, as well as peer reviews.

So says Wayne La Grange, CEO of the Africa division of Beauté Pacifique Medical Aesthetics, a Danish pharmaceutical skin care line that is supported by 40 years of medical heritage.

“If you launch a skin care product and there is no evidentiary proof that the ingredients presented actually penetrate into the dermis of the skin, AND that it changes the structure of the skin, then you cannot say the product has any clinical effect. If you do so, you are misleading consumers and selling an unachievable dream,” states La Grange.

He continues: “We’ve found particularly in the last 2 years, new skin care product lines from individuals with no pharmaceutical background launching products that make claims that are completely unfounded and have never been proven at all. We have noticed individuals with IT backgrounds, who use ineffective carrier bases on which to stack a few “on-trend ingredients” (like bakuchiol for example) and ‘create’ a cream which is sold at exorbitant prices. We’ve come across products that are marketed as having been developed along a ‘clinical thought path’ but that show no signs of having undergone any actual clinical trials. In my opinion in such cases, consumers are sadly being misled for enormous profits.”

“There are social media skin care sites where you find so many testimonials from people who have bought such products and ended up with adverse reactions or with no effect at all, and are disappointed. They then resell this at a fraction of the price to get rid of it, and reclaim some of their wasted hard earned money. Another issue is the multitude of social media posts from people who have desk-top researched ingredients and write about them with no educational foundation in pharmaceutics. In other words, marketing people (and not skin experts) are giving consumers ‘advice’ on how to care for their skin and on what products they should buy, using phrases like ‘I’m no dermatologist, but that looks like contact dermatitis’. This practice, without any medical background, is NOT sound medicine or aesthetics, and obviously dangerous and harmful.”

He notes that the reason many cosmetic companies don’t conduct clinical trials is because they are not forced to do so, as they are not regulated medicines, with trials that are extremely expensive (as they are required to follow strict medical protocols that need to be published for medical peer reviews).

White labelling

La Grange is concerned that consumers are being caught unaware for profit by misleading operators as the cosmetic industry is not regulated like the pharmaceutical industry is. Consumer are being taken for a ride by clever marketeers. He says: “White labelling is rife at the moment – this is where products are sold by retailers with their own branding and logo but are bulk manufactured by a third party. So, you have people with no medical background launching white label products without any testing or published results at enormous profits.

“If you want to take your skin health seriously, like me and millions of people around the world who really do care who makes their skin care and if it really works or provides you with what you pay for – you want to know where the product comes from, and whether it has really been trialed and approved by dermatologists,” he notes.

Due diligence

Beauté Pacifique medical aesthetic products are made in the same pharmaceutical laboratory as the medicines we produce, and according to strict EU medical regulations, not unregulated cosmetic guidelines.

Says La Grange: “Beauté Pacifique’s published clinical trials prove that the  creams they produce penetrate through the epidermis and create real and visible structural dermal improvements. The benefits of Beauté Pacifique formulations for skin have been documented by MD. Uffe Gjede – Registered Specialist in Dermatology – Denmark and Sweden – President of Practical Dermatologists – Western Denmark and Professor Peter Bjerring, MD, Dr.Sci. – Medical Director and Head of the Department of Dermatology at Molholm Hospital, Vejle, Denmark. Honorary Professor at Swansea University, Wales, UK. Professor Bjerring has published more than 250 scientific papers and has given more than 500 lectures at dermatology congresses and scientific meetings. He is the past President of ESLD, Past Vice President of ESLAS and Fellow of AAD, EADV and ASLMS. (Topical Retinoid Penetrates Intact Human Epidermis – A Suction Blister Experiment – European Dermatology Journal – Volume 3)

“We are always keen to present our clinical trial evidence to make sure our skin health clinics and their valued clients are getting value for their money.”

An important component of Beauté Pacifique’s evidentiary proof is use of the DermaValidator Ultrasound Skin Scanning technology in its clinics, which generates cross-sectional skin images of clients’ skins right down through all layers of the skin – similar to an X-Ray for skin.

The DermaValidator skin experience is offered free to discerning clients on a quarterly basis worldwide, and monitors the progress of their skin under the skilled hands of Beauté Pacifique practitioners. In Southern Africa alone, the brand has captured 5,000 before and after images of clients’ skin improving under treatment. Globally, there are over 2 million scans – the largest base of dermatological study globally.

La Grange points out that Beauté Pacifique includes a money back guarantee if clients do not see a change in their skin, and to date, no one has ever needed to claim their money back.

“I know of no other skin care company that would risk offering this promise, and none of our clients have ever asked for their money back since we launched in South Africa in 2018. They can see the improvement on their own skin through the objective DermaValidator medical scans and this is free to any consumer in South Africa” he concludes.

Ends

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For more information about Beauté Pacifique please visit www.beaute-pacifique.com or julia@blueskyinternational.co.za for free expert aesthetic consultation and referral to your nearest skin care practice.