What is the average age acne clears for males or females?

When did your acne clear (if it has).

I am pretty sure my acne will go away as it began at 16 and none of my family had anything more than a few pimples at a time. (Why me, lol)

I now 18 and am hoping my acne will be cleared up by the time I am 20 if I can not find something to clear me by that point.

Do you think there will ever be a cure for Acne ?

Hi everyone. A good friend of mine told me the Dead Sea minerals found in the Dead Sea salts (Dead Sea is in Israel btw) have attributes that fight acne and face oiliness.

Anyone know anything about this?

Ok, several days ago in that earlier thread ("If you stop washing your skin, do you get LESS oily, or do you get MORE oily??"), I presented the results of my experiment which showed that my own forehead gets MORE OILY as the days go by without washing (for up to 12 full days, anyway). However, that's not quite the same as the general idea put forth in the notorious "feedback theory", so I promised that I would do a more direct test of it myself and post my results. Well, HOORAY, I can finally now do that! It's taken me this long because of the annoying amount of time I've had to spend in "grunge mode" and "intense washing mode". This is basically what I've done:

The first phase was in "grunge mode" again: I spent at least another full week (I think it was actually closer to 10 days) without washing my forehead at all, not even with water. No washing, no wiping (similar to what I did in the previous test). Then after that period of time, I de-fatted my forehead by thoroughly washing with Ivory soap, followed immediately by swabbing with 70% ethyl alcohol. Thereafter, I began a series of 9 Sebutape impressions, one every half-hour, for a total of 4 1/2 hours. I marked each test-strip with a "G", followed by the numbers 1 through 9, to indicate that those were made during the "Grunge" or "Greasy" period! The numbers indicate the amount of time in half-hours following the de-fatting that the impression was made. For example, "G5" is on the strip that was made at the end of the grunge period, 2 1/2 hours after the de-fatting.

The second phase was the period of intense washing: I spent over a full week (about 7 1/2 days) of washing my forehead THOROUGHLY with Ivory soap, 5-6 times per day, evenly scattered throught my waking hours. At the end of that period, I made another set of 9 Sebutape impressions, EXACTLY as I had done earlier: de-fatted my forehead by washing one last time with Ivory soap and swabbing with 70% ethyl alcohol, then made a Sebutape impression every half-hour for 4 1/2 hours. I labeled each test-strip with a "W" (for "Washing"), followed by a number 1 through 9, corresponding to which half-hour after the washing that I made it.

Here's the scan of all 18 Sebutape test-strips, G1-G9 and W1-W9, and I placed them side-by-side for your viewing pleasure and ease of comparison:

http://www.geocities.com/bryan50001/feedback_theory_test.htm

As usual, there's some inevitable fluctuation in those test-strips, even though they were made over a relatively short period of time. During some of those half-hours, the "Grunge" version might seem to be slightly oilier than the "Wash" version, and in other half-hours, the "Wash" version might seem to be slightly oilier than the "Grunge" version. But I think one thing is screamingly obvious: taken as a whole, THERE IS NO SIGNIFICANT OR OBVIOUS DIFFERENCE in the level of sebum production that occurred on my forehead during periods of intense washing, and periods of no washing at all. That's reflected by the fact that my forehead re-fatted itself AT THE SAME RATE after a single de-fatting after those periods. So my own experience with this simple test is right in line with what Kligman and his colleagues found, and what LabGirl81 reported about her company's testing: washing your skin doesn't stimulate it to produce more sebum as a "compensatory" mechanism.

All questions, comments, and flames are welcome!

Bryan

why cant they find a cure for acne?????????

NB: I've posted a thread on this before but it was in the wrong section of the forum. I think it better belongs in here.

http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal...=1&SRETRY=0
http://cat.inist.fr/?aModele=afficheN&cpsidt=16885551
http://www.freshpatents.com/Surfactant-pre...20080027009.php

------------------

To save you from reading through them, I'll just briefly summarise whats been put forward in the studies:

1. Cleansers contain surfactants (particularly the anionic ones like sodium laureth sulphate) may deactivate a number of enzymes responsible for the functions of the skin.

2. It may deactivate the enzyme responsible for the final-stage of desquamation (shedding of the skin). It may promote the build-up of dead skins and may consequently cause acne

3. This applies to most if not all of the commercially used surfactants in face-washes, unless they are somehow formulated to minimise enzyme damage.

---------------------------

I used to wash religiously, twice a day with a cleanser but the areas i tend to pay the most attention is the area that's always been ravaged by acne. The skin on my chin on the other hand is always so supple and relatively acne-free. I then realised that when I wash, I'd always unconsciously miss out on the chin area. I DO NOT wash my chin area AT ALL but it's perfectly clear.

So it make sense on why washing with water/no washing at all worked on some people.

**Hormonal control of sebum**
Sebum production is under the control of sex hormones (androgens). The most active androgens are testosterone, 5-testosterone (DHT) and 5-androstene-317diol. These hormones and others are made by the sex glands (ovary in females, testis in males) and by the adrenal gland. These glands are in turn under the influence of the pituitary gland, located in the brain.

Androgens are made more active by enzymes in the skin and sexual organs. Type 1 5- reductase acts in the skin and Type II 5- reductase acts in the sexual organs. These enzymes convert less active androgens into the active testosterone and 5-testosterone (DHT). These more active androgens stimulate sebaceous gland cells to produce more sebum.

The role of progesterone is unclear. Females produce more sebum in the week before their menstrual period when progesterone levels are higher. But progesterone is known to reduce the activity of the enzyme 5-reductase that one might expect to reduce sebum production.

Go to this link to read the rest : http://dermnetnz.org/acne/sebum.html

Starting from now: I won't mastrubate or think (little harder) on girls for 10 day.

If anyone wants to know the outcome I will let you know.

I have vary oily skin so I should see the results vary well if it works.

Hi, I have an underactive thyroid and have started taking medication for it. (Eltroxin 25mg per day) I have suffered with moderate acne all my life. I'm 21. I eat well and stay away from foods that are likely to induce acne and I recently started taking calendula tincture which has helped.

My question is, will my acne improve because my thyroid will balance my whole bodys hormonal systema sit wasn't performing correctly up until now or will my acne get worse due to taking a medication which is a synthetic hormone to increase thyroid function?

And is it safe to keep taking a herbal remedy with this medication?

Less need for insulin, a surprising effect of phototherapy in insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus.

Melatonin is known to influence insulin, but this is an actual case report of light therapy being used to affect insulin response via (presumably) melatonin.

This makes me happy, because my model of acne says that the primary reason acne is rampant in civilized society is that we do not live 12 hours/day in bright sunlight and sleep >= 9 hours in total darkness. While a case can be made that impaired insulin response could lead to acne, such explanations do little to explain the wild variability in acne from one person to another, or even in the same person across time. My model says that when you are getting sufficient hours of outdoor light exposure (indoor light being neither as bright, nor containing the best parts of the spectrum for suppressing melatonin), eating a high glycemic load diet becomes significantly less likely to induce acne.

This is sort of a follow up to a previous post I made.

I am on a medication that is causing me to break out. I have never broken out in my life and I'm 22 years old. Months after being on my medication, I have been breaking out non stop. I've done everything from taking prescription/over the counter acne treatments, to drinking water, taking fish oil, omega 3, steaming my face, vitamins, eating healthy, having an excellent skin care routine etc. Absolutely NOTHING has gotten rid of my breakouts and it's been happening since May. All because of my meds.

My question is- what causes certain drugs to break you out? Some people say it's due to sweating or being dehydrated from a drug. That's not the case with me since I never sweat, and I drink a ton of water. I know that many drugs have acne as a side effect...and I'm trying to figure out WHAT causes that to happen? And do you think there is any way to stop it, while still be on the medication?

Removing has never been easier. With proper knowledge to equip you with you can erase that bad memory from your skin. Follow the link in this comment to know more, get help and proven tips that yield actual results.

Yo!

Go to pubmed and search for 'nobiletin sebum'. You'll find a paper that talks about nobiletin which is a chemical that comes from a Japanese citrus fruit. It has been discovered that this chemical reduces sebum output - just like isotretinoin - but appears to not have some of the same side effects (it's a completely different chemical and has a different method of action to isotretinoin). This is an animal study so it isn't possible to check all the side effects but it's still promising news.

This paper is 2 years old. There are no products yet that have this ingredient in it in any significant quantity. It may just be a matter of time...

DO YOU ALREADY REMOVE YOUR WISDOM TEETH????

Im doing a research about a relation between acne and wisdom teeth. Thank you guys !!!

Here is the URL if you just want to go straight to the site


Basically, the article in the hyperlink above and pasted below says that researchers have discovered potential use for iPS stem cells from fat cells. These fat cells were discovered for their use from liposuction. The multipurpose stem cells can be utilized to heal scarring.



By Elizabeth Landau
CNN

(CNN) -- You know that fat in your body you wish you didn't have? It turns out those cells could be used to create stem cells that one day may be able to cure disease.
Excess fat may one day be able to help cure disease and regenerate damaged tissue, scientists say.

Excess fat may one day be able to help cure disease and regenerate damaged tissue, scientists say.

Scientists at Stanford University School of Medicine have discovered that the millions of fat cells removed during liposuction can be easily and quickly turned into induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPS cells, more easily than the skin cells that researchers used when the first iPS cells were created in 2007.

These iPS cells, like stem cells derived from embryos, can be turned into many different kinds of cells, and researchers believe they eventually could be used to regenerate tissue for organs and repair damage.

Embryonic stem cells are controversial because the embryos are destroyed when the stem cells are removed for research. The iPS cells, which have many of the same basic properties, do not raise the same ethical questions as embryonic stem cells because they come from skin or now fat cells that have been reprogrammed to go back in time, so to speak, and have the ability to turn into any other kind of cell in the body.

When embryonic stem cells were a highly controversial topic at the beginning of the decade, some companies offered to store fat cells from liposuction for a fee after it was discovered that there were stem cells in the fat, but their practical use had not been established. Now, the Stanford study has shown fat cells can be a player in the quickly evolving area of iPS stem cell research, not because they have their own stem cells but because the fat cells can be turned into iPS cells.

When the first iPS cells were developed two years ago in Japan and the United States, skin cells were reprogrammed to be able to have properties similar to a human embryonic stem cell. That is, the cell could be "coached" into becoming any type of tissue or cell in the body.

It takes about four weeks for a skin cell to be "primed" for reprogramming, and then it takes an additional three to four weeks for iPS colonies to grow, according to Dr. Joseph Wu, study co-author and assistant professor of cardiology and radiology at Stanford's School of Medicine.
Don't Miss


The method that uses fat cells can be as much as six weeks faster, Wu said, because the cells retrieved through liposuction are so plentiful, they can start reprogramming right away and have iPS cells in about two weeks.

"We've been focused -- Dr. Wu's Lab and my lab -- on fat because there's just so much of it," said study co-author Dr. Michael Longaker, a plastic surgeon and stem cell biologist at Stanford. "Unfortunately, it's a great resource in America."

These fat-derived cells used in the research are probably smooth muscle cells, not the actual blubber within a fat cell, Longaker said. The doctors' study was published online Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Although the average amount of fat removed for liposuction is 2 to 3 quarts, not much is required for stem cell research purposes -- less than half the volume of a can of Diet Coke, Longaker said.
Health Library


One application of this research would be for helping heart attack patients. The goal is to take a person's fat to make iPS cells, which are then coached to become heart cells. Then they could be injected directly into the heart to regenerate heart muscle. Learn more about the potential of stem cells to help heart patients

Potentially, iPS cells, which can in theory become any type of tissue, also could help stroke patients and people who have large scars or skeletal defects, Longaker said.

Dr. Timothy Kamp, professor of medicine and stem cell researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, who was not involved in this research, said it's a big leap forward that researchers were able to show that fat cells can be turned into cells that have the potential to become any tissue in the body. "This is another proof of principle ... another way to get stem cells," Kamp said.

Another issue is that liposuction is a more involved procedure than a blood test, or even a skin biopsy, Kamp said.

To what extent the human body would reject iPS cells from other donors remains unknown. The researchers in this study posit that one day iPS cells could be standardized according to different immune properties, and there could be a bank where patients would be matched with one of perhaps 200 varieties. These would be the 200 most common types of cells, to limit the amount of rejection.

Both Wu and Longaker are practicing physicians and are eager to make their research translate into clinical applications for their patients.

Still, the field of stem cell research is constantly evolving, and researchers said it's impossible to know how many years it will take before the fat removed from one person by liposuction could lead to the repair of scarred heart tissue in someone else.




Thoughts?

In random reading of these forums, a thought occurred: Can Aluminum Chloride help acne? Aluminum Chloride is currently used as a strong antiperspirant that closes up pores. I thought, well, why not if used with the proper disinfecting agents and other products? So I searched for it.

I came across Patent EP0281812 at a free patent site. It incorporates the idea of using a solution that includes a keratolytic agent, an astringent, and an anti-inflammatory agent. The keratolytic agent they preferred was a stronger concentration of salicylic acid than currently available in most OTC products for acne, with benzoyl peroxide being considered. The astringent of choice was zinc oxide, although aluminum chloride was considered. The anti-inflammatory agent of choice was glucosamine or cysteine.

The way it is supposed to work is the following:
*Keratolytic agent will pull the plug out of the comodone and bring the skin level down to the follicle.
*The astringent will restrict the wall of the follicle, making it too narrow for bacteria to thrive. (?)
*The anti-inflammatory agent will slow down the body's reaction to the inflammation inducing substance that is in and comes out of the pore.

The way it is explained in the patent, it sounds like it could work. They had a very, very small study on people of various degrees of acne that tested out the product. They all had success. You can find the patent easily with a search if curious. It is a somewhat long read.

Everything about it sounds good, like it would be on the market somehow. Problem? It's from 1988, and I can not think of a single product that is like that. Was it just ultimately a failure or turned down outright by companies?

Is anyone aware of a product, past or present, like this? It has seriously piqued my curiousity. Thanks ahead of time.

I think when a topical cream comes along which reduces sebum output it will be GAME OVER for EVERYTHING else. Everything. All other creams, bars, soaps, healthy lifestyles (harhar), holistic madness, keeping your hair out of your face, standing on your head, drinking fifteen thousand pints of water a minute, and what have you.

I came across this patent application from 1983, excerpt:



http://www.freepatentsonline.com/4588750.html

Also check out this thread I posted a couple of years ago about a topical called TU-2100 Sebum Reducer, which, for completely unknown reasons, will never be on sale....

http://www.acne.org/messageboard/TU-2100-Sebum-Reducer-t160866.html

Why don't we have a cream which can reduce sebum output?

Not in the interests of corporations? ($$$) Or scientific impossibility? What has happened to the above two inventions? The one filed in 1983 got the assignee: Hoffmann-La Roche Inc. (Nutley, NJ).

Roche. Who make Accutane.

Why don't we have a cream which can reduce sebum output?

Hello,

I can nowhere find a document/chart that treats the frequency of acne incidences by years.

How many acne treatmens were carried over 100 years ago in comparison to nowadays - this kind of stuff...

Maybe there is a medicine student here that has access to some scientific medical database?



Any help much appreciated!

Activity of herbal extracts on the control of sebum secretion.Accession number;04A0230063
Title;Activity of herbal extracts on the control of sebum secretion.
Author;UCHIUMI YOICHIRO(Maruzen Pharm. Co., Ltd., JPN) YAMAMOTO SUSUMU(Maruzen Pharm. Co., Ltd., JPN) MIZUTANI KENJI(Maruzen Pharm. Co., Ltd., JPN)
Journal Title;Fragr J

Journal Code:G0987B

ISSN:0288-9803

VOL.32;NO.3;PAGE.53-57(2004)
Figure&Table&Reference;TBL.4, REF.13
Pub. Country;Japan
Language;Japanese
Abstract;Potential activity of herbal extracts onapl sebum secretion was studied. Among the herbal extracts tested, polyol-soluble licorice extract P-U (product name) derived from Glycyrrhiza inflata showed the most potent testosterone 5 .ALPHA.-reductase inhibition, androgen receptor binding inhibition and antimicrobial activities, which are closely related to sebum secretion. In addition to the findings on polyol-soluble licorice extract P-U, clove extract and peppermint extract showed testosterone 5 .ALPHA.-reductase inhibition, arnica extract and rose fruit extract showed androgen receptor binding inhibition, alpinia speciosa root extract and scutellaria root extract showed estrogen receptor agonists, and sophora root extract showed antimicrobial activity. (author abst.)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I decided to experiment with peppermint oil, since it is really easy to acquire at any place that sells aromatherapy oils. I was afraid of systemic absorption with licorice (which looks more promising in some respects) which can do all sorts of nasty things.

Well to put it succinctly, I diluted peppermint essential oil with distilled water 1:5, shake just prior to application (as invariably they will separate somewhat) and rub a few drops into my skin after showering. This is done twice daily. It has been a week now, and there is a marked decrease in sebum secretion. only the slightest trace of oil can be seen after 12 hours or so. I have a few acne lesions which have "dried up" and appear to be going away. I also have not had any new lesions form. I didn't have a lot of acne to begin with, but oily skin that would result in at least a few pimples, that seems to be largely taken care of now.

The smell is a bit strong, and your eyes might start watering upon application. Also the addition of extra water to the skin after application will make your skin tingle to the point where it's painful. I'm not sure if a weaker solution will have the same effect.

So if your willing to shed a few tears and come away smelling like a breath mint, this could be a solution to oily skin.

Take care.

has anyone research on what happens to us when we finally grow out of acne, what triggers that stop?

This site claims that acne is inherited and it is a "dominant" gene. Does that mean if 1 parent has acne and the other doesn't have acne, the kids will have acne 100% But I know of cases in my family itself where 1 sibling has acne and the other doesn't and 1 of the parent had acne.
Anyone know anything about this dominant gene theory about acne?
I pray that my kids dont get this disease or hopefully there is some safe cure by then.




http://www.zerozits.com/Articles/acne4ltr.htm

The Two Basic Causes of Acne

1. Acne is Inherited

The gene which gives one acne is autosomal, or a dominant characteristic gene. If a brown and blue eyed couple had a child, the baby would have brown eyes because brown is the dominant characteristic or autosomal gene. If you want to blame someone for your acne, blame your parents because they gave it to you. You did not get it from eating too many fast food hamburgers with french fries, drinking too many sodas, eating chocolate, thinking about sex, having sex, or not washing your face.

I found the info randomly while surfin tha web ... duno if its usefull or not i havnt really read it but its about sebum production etc.

Demonstrating effects of zinc PCA

November 2006
Naoko Mikami and Naoya Yamato - Ajinomoto Co Inc, Japan In recent years, there has been a growing demand for a means to suppress sebum secretion and keep skin clean in young people, and exert anti-ageing effects in adults, as well as to suppress body odour in people of all ages.

Zinc compounds have been reported to be effective as sebum inhibitors, odour absorbers, and so on. We have recently shown that zinc PCA can produce these effects and also inhibit AP-1 – a promoter of collagenase production, which is responsible for the appearance of skin wrinkles.

In this study we demonstrate the effects of zinc PCA; namely, sebum inhibition, inhibition of bacterial growth and suppression of AP-1. Ajidew ZN-100 is a brand name of Ajinomoto Company Inc. for zinc PCA.

What is zinc?

Zinc is one of the essential trace elements for any living body.1 Fish and shellfish are naturally rich in zinc. Zinc deficiency in humans is unlikely to occur with a balanced diet. However, an unbalanced diet is known to cause dysgeusia, reproductive dysfunction, skin roughness, hair loss and so on. In elderly people, similar unbalanced diets can lead to a compromised immune function.2

In the field of cosmetic and toiletry products, zinc is known to form nonvolatile salts with fatty acids and other substances, and exert antibacterial activity. Zinc is also used as an ingredient of baby powders, shaving powders, anhidrotic agents, creams and so on.

Sebum inhibiting activity

Dihydrotestosterone (DHT), a metabolic product of testosterone, produced by the action of the enzyme 5 a-reductase, stimulates sebaceous glands to produce and secrete sebum. Zinc inhibits 5 a-reductase activity.4,5

Odour-absorbing activity

If zinc forms salts with short-chain fatty acids that cause body odour, the characteristic odour disappears as shown in Figure 3. In this connection, zinc PCA, which is a zinc compound, is expected to suppress body odour by forming nonvolatile salts with short-chain fatty acids in the skin.6

What is zinc PCA?
As described above, zinc inhibits sebum secretion and body odour. However, the solubility of zinc salts is usually low, making it difficult to add zinc compounds to cosmetics, and difficult for the effects of zinc compounds to manifest. We paid close attention to pyrrolidone carboxylic acid (PCA), which is an organic acid, as a counter for the formation of zinc salts, and evaluated its functions.

PCA is the predominant component of NMF (Natural Moisturising Factor) and is known to play important roles. PCA originates from glutamic acid abundantly contained in the living body. Glutamic acid, which is biosynthesised by hydrolysis of filaggrin (a protein) during the course of skin keratinisation, is hydrolysed and cyclised with skin enzymes (g-glutamyl-AA synthetase and g-glutamyl cyclotransferase),7 to yield PCA. Usually, PCA is found in the skin in the form of salts (Na salt, K salt, etc.) and it is abundantly contained in NMF.8 PCA, assuming the form of salt, is known to serve as a moisturiser which keeps the skin soft and to exert excellent conditioning effects on the hair.

Characteristics

The following effects of zinc PCA have been confirmed in our study:

Reduction of unwanted sebum.

Inhibition of activator protein-1 production.

In addition, effects on microorganisms were measured.

Reduction of unwanted Sebum

Zinc PCA gives freshness to the skin. Figure 6 shows changes in skin sebum level observed after repeated applications. One per cent zinc PCA solution has been shown to significantly decrease sebum levels on the treated skin at week four, compared to initial value. On the other hand, treatment with water or zinc gluconate does not result in any significant difference to initial value. These results suggest that zinc PCA can be expected to show a promising effect as cosmetic for oily skin.

Procedure
The subjects were asked to apply 1% zinc PCA solution, 1% zinc gluconate and water to the one side of the face, morning and evening, for four weeks. Secreted sebum was measured by sebumeter measurements (SM 810 PC, Courage and Khazaka, Electronic GmbH) and the measurement on the treated skin after three hours and four weeks was expressed as a ration of the initial value (before the treatment). All the subjects were required to complete a 30-minute acclimation period in the environmental chamber (22°C, 40% relative humidity), where all sebum measurements were taken.

Results
By application of zinc PCA, statistically significant decrease of the sebum content from the initial value was observed.

Inhibition of activator protein-1

Collagen, which is indispensable for keeping the skin tense and to prevent wrinkle formation, is degraded by collagenase (an enzyme that degrades collagen). Therefore, to suppress wrinkle formation, it is necessary to suppress collagenase production.

It is known that activator protein-1 (AP-1 – a complex protein composed of a few protein units, produced by stimuli such as UV radiation) induces the production of collagenase by binding to DNA in the cell nucleus. This means that AP-1 formation needs to be suppressed to inhibit collagenase production (Fig. 7). We therefore evaluated the effect of zinc PCA in suppressing the production of AP-1. This experiment revealed that treatment with even low levels of this substance suppressed c-FOS (an indicator of AP-1 production) by about 70%. This result suggests that zinc PCA can suppress wrinkle formation.

Mechanism of collagen degradation and wrinkle formation

Procedure
Zinc PCA was added to human fibroblasts and the cells were irradiated with UVA. After the irradiation, the amount of c-FOS (a component of AP-1) was determined.

Calculation method
A: zinc PCA (+), UVA irradiation (+) B: zinc PCA (-), UVA irradiation (+) C: zinc PCA (-), UVA irradiation (-) c-FOS Production inhibition (%) = {1-(A-C)/(B-C)} x 10.
Results (Table 2).

Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC)

Procedure
Agar medium containing zinc PCA at different concentrations was prepared and dispensed on culture plates. Each organism suspended in culture medium was seeded on the agar plate. After incubation, the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) was determined. MIC is the lowest concentration on microorganisms for which there is no visible growth. (Agar plate dilution method) *The concentration indicates that of zinc PCA itself.
Results (Table 3).

Challenge test for zinc PCA

Preservatives-effectiveness tests were performed on 0.1% zinc PCA aqueous solution.

The following strains were used as the test microorganisms.

Escherichia coli ATCC 8739

Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 9027

Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 6538

Candida albicans ATCC 10231

Aspergillus niger ATCC 1644

The cell suspension was inoculated and mixed so that the concentration of viable cells was 105 to 106 cells per ml of product. These containers were incubated at 25°C and the viable cell counts calculated at 7, 14, 21, and 28 days.
Results (Fig. 8).

Formulation

Zinc PCA is expected to be useful not only in ordinary skin care but also to exert the above-mentioned effects more markedly if combined with shampoos, conditioners, and body and facial cleansers.

Augmentation of its effects is expected if the shampoos or conditioners containing this substance are used in combination with other antibacterial agents or anti-acne products (containing zinc pyrithione, piroctone olamine and so on). If combined with substances known to stimulate hair growth (amino acids, blood flow promoting agents (PCA, vitamin E and other various extracts), more efficacy in stimulating hair growth is expected. As stated above, the effect in suppressing AP-1, etc is expected to be augmented if this substance is combined with elements having an anti-oxidative activity (known as antiwrinkle agents).

Application

Skin care: creams, lotions, tonics, shower gels, facial cleanser, etc.

Hair care: shampoos, conditioners, hair tonics, hair creams, etc.

Sun care: pre and post sun care creams, lotions, gels, etc.

Make-up: foundations, lipsticks, etc.

Recommended concentration
Leave-on products: 0.1 ~ 1.0% Rinse-off products: 0.2 ~ 1.0% (as active ingredient)

Conclusion

It has been shown that zinc PCA exerts not only the effects expected from a Zn salt (sebum suppression, body odour reduction, etc.) but also some previously unknown effects (AP-1 inhibition effect, etc). Humans tend to be anxious about oil-producing and odourous areas of the body, even as they get older, and they are highly concerned about skin wrinkles, which increase with ageing. Zinc PCA is expected to be used extensively not only as a means of suppressing sebum and body odour, but also as an ingredient for anti-ageing products.

This information is furnished without warranty, expressed or implied, except that it is accurate to the best knowledge of AJINOMOTO CO. INC. It relates only to the specific material designated herein, and does not relate to use in combination with any other material or in any process. AJINOMOTO CO. INC. assumes no legal responsibility for use of or reliance upon this.

References

1 K., Imahori et al., Seikagakujiten (Biochemical Dictionary), Tokyo Kagaku Dozin, 3 (1987)

2 Y. Kagawa, Standard Tabels of Food Composition in Japan, 371 (2004)

3 Encyclopedia of Cosmetics (ed. Society of Cosmetic Chemists of Japan), 306 (2003)

4 D. Stamatiadis, Marie-Claire Bulteau-Portois and Irene Mowszowicz, British Journal of Dermatology, 119, 627-632 (1988)

5 Yasuro Sugimoto, Irma Lopez-Solache, Fernand Labrie and Van Luu-The, Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 104, 775-778 (1995)

6 Mitsui T, New Cosmetic Science, Elsevier, 467 (1997)

7 P. G. Crounse & S. Rothberg (1961)

8 H.W. Spier, G. Pasher, Hautarzt, 7(12), 1956

Have you guys seen or heard about this? Doesn't look like a cure to me since they say you have to keep going back.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmdN7CYMJS0...player_embedded