How do you stabilize the raw materials in formulation and maintain their effectiveness over time?

Stabilization is dependent on the ingredient, the formula, the container and the environment in which the product will be used and sold. If you have a question about a specific ingredient, please let me know.

EUK-134, 0.05% material to the cell: straight material or in a solution?

Material as it’s supplied by Atrium Biotechnologies.

Will you have any of these ingredients in the products you sell?

We are currently working with them in our laboratory, but do not offer products that feature any of these ingredients.

Will these new antioxidants make the "old" antioxidant sources obsolete?

No, they will be used in addition to existing antioxidants.

Please explain your comments on vitamin C producing cancer cells?

I believe I said direct antioxidants are thought to inflict genetic damage that can increase the risk of cancer when they convert to their radical states. Vitamin C is both a direct and indirect antioxidant. Ultimately, it will convert to its radical state. However, since it is a weak radical, it does not pose much risk of genetic damage.

What products are available in this country commercially that contain these new products?

The best way to find products with these ingredients is to search for the ingredient on Google. Companies selling products containing these ingredients will be identified in the search list.

What is the best ingredient to treat postinflammatory hyperpigmentation or hyperpigmentation besides hydroquinone?

Since post inflammatory hyperpigmentation and hyperpigmentation are due to chemical cascades and multi-phasic processes in the skin, it has been my experience that no one ingredient is a reliable treatment for these disorders. This includes hydroquionone.

Recently I have heard that each cell can only undergo so many exfoliation treatments before the process "kills" the cell.  Is there any truth to that?

Not to my knowledge. Cells undergoing exfoliation in the stratum corneum are considered dead already. They are removed from the skin’s surface during the exfoliation process, so they undergo only one exfoliation treatment before leaving the skin.

Would any these ingredients be appropriate to treat eczema or psoriasis?

Eczema and psoriasis are medical disorders and should be treated by established drug therapies.

Can too many topical direct antioxidants be harmful?

Theoretically, yes. However, I have not reviewed any studies showing this is so.

Some of these sound like drugs...are they? And if not, why not?

There are two ways an ingredient can be classified as a drug:
a) It is listed as a drug ingredient in an FDA drug monograph.
b) The FDA deems the claims made by the product marketer qualify as drug claims.
Unless a marketer makes drug claims for the ingredients I discussed in the webinar, and the FDA recognizes them as drug claims, they are not drugs.

Do you believe that oxygen-infused directly on the skin containing enzymes, vitamins and minerals is helpful to the repair of the skin in skin care treatments performed by an esthetician?

Not if the skin’s barrier is intact.

Did you say that apoptosis happens, so cancer will not happen?

No. Apoptosis may be a method cells use to prevent mutations from being passed on to future generations of cells.

How do you feel about LED treatments? Do you feel that they are effective?

Yes, I think they’re effective. Since LED appears to trigger collagen synthesis, I would recommend following LED exposure with topical ingredients that enhance collagen synthesis.

What are some more common antioxidants that you would recommend that are indirect?

Venuceane is the most effective indirect antioxidant I’ve seen to date. Since this concept is relatively new, ingredient suppliers are still developing materials that function in this manner.

Idebenone is a synthetic analog (variant) of one of life's most essential biochemicals, coenzyme Q10 (Co Q10). What about the ingredient idebenone that is also mitochondia-targeted?

I have not seen any studies indicating either ingredient, when topically applied to intact skin, has any benefit within the mitochondria.

Do these ingredients get where they need to go without the use of nanotechnology?

This depends on the ingredient, the formula of the product in which they’re contained, the nature of the skin’s barrier, and several other things. If the question is asking if ingredients must be in a nanoparticle state to penetrate the skin, the answer is no.

How do explain the difference then between the benefit of chemical peels and overdoing it with sunburn?

Are you suggesting a similarity between chemical peels and the peeling experienced with sunburn? If so, the peeling mechanism of chemical peels featuring AHAs – the most popular peels used in the professional industry – is the disruption of desmosomal links between cells in the stratum corneum and lower in the epidermis. The peeling that occurs from sunburn is due to the inflammation cascade that occurs when skin is exposed to UV light. This may lead to widespread apoptotic cells in the epidermis that leads to peeling several days after UV exposure.

There are a few companies offering DNA products for DNA repair (one using animal DNA). Is there any validity to this? Will any of these products replace the chemical sunscreens?

I have seen no data that supports the use of animal DNA to replace human DNA. None of these ingredients will replace the need for chemical sunscreens. (Remember that all ingredients are chemicals – as is everything in the known universe with the exception of light and electricity.) DNA repair agents are intended to repair damage that takes place even when sunscreens are used. 


Are these ingredients as effective as using organic products?

Organic is an agricultural certification. It is not a statement about ingredient efficacy. In fact, to my knowledge, there are no performance ingredients with clinical testing data that are certified organic according to the USDA’s National Organic Program. So my answer would be these ingredients are most likely more effective than organic ingredients.

Following is a recent Ingredient Review column by Rebecca James Gadberry:
Ingredient Review: The Truth About Chemicals, Mineral Oil, Squalene and Fillers (April 2007)