Carol’s Question…My Mario Badescu skin lotion says it protects against environmental damage and pollution. This sounds like Marketing hype to me. What sayeth the Brains?

The Left Brain’s Reply:
We all know that certain environmental factors, such as the ultraviolet radiation in sunlight, can cause skin damage. But what about air pollution – is it bad for your skin? To answer that question we refer you to a study recently published in the International Journal of Cosmetic Science (2006. 28. 349-357) entitled Effects of Environmentally Realistic Levels of Ozone on Stratum Corneum Function.

Testing pollution on human skin

Using a specially designed environmental chamber, researchers exposed panelists’ skin to ozone, which is the primary oxidant in photochemical smog. They found that ozone does have some effect: not only does it reduce the level of vitamin E in skin but it also kills off some of the normal skin bacteria. However, these effects were small and did not have a significant impact on any of the enzymatic processes that really control skin health.

Pollution effect is minimal

They theorize that the effect of pollution is minimal because of one of three reasons:

1. Skin’s natural anti-oxidant defense system protects the skin
2. Conditions aren’t right for ozone reactions that would cause more damage
3. Ozone just isn’t able to penetrate deep enough into skin to cause any real problems

UV is much worse than pollution

Regardless of the reason the researchers conclude that at best ozone exposure only induces a moderate level of oxidative stress on skin and doesn’t produce any measurable clinical response. (That means that instruments may be able to detect differences but you couldn’t see or feel them.) In the opinion of the researchers, exposure to UV radiation is much more damaging to skin than ozone pollution.

The Brains Bottom Line:

While the data does show a minor effect from pollution, it’s not really a significant problem. Until someone presents data that contradicts this study, it looks like any lotion claiming to protect your skin from pollution is just marketing hype.

Have you bought a pollution protection product? What was it and did you think it worked? Leave a comment below.

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