8 replies to this topic

[BSider]

A recent 2012 study "Topically applied l-carnitine effectively reduces sebum secretion in human skin" showed that a formulation of 2% L-Carnitine applied to the skin significantly reduced sebum production within 2-3 weeks.

I've been thinking about giving this a try by adding L-Carnitine to my moisturizer.

You can read the full study here:
http://onlinelibrary...11.00597.x/full

[ions]

That is interesting. I just started using L-carnitine in combination with B5 orally. Will you break up the pill and mix it in with your moisturizer?

[BSider]

Yeah, I'm going to mix in some L-Carnitine (from a capsule) with my moisturizer and check if it actually affects my sebum excretion rate or not. According to the study, I should see a measurable affect (via SebuTape) within 2-3 weeks.

That is interesting. I just started using L-carnitine in combination with B5 orally. Will you break up the pill and mix it in with your moisturizer?

[jetaime]

Interested in your results! Keep us posted(:

[BSider]

After 3 weeks of applying topical L-Carnitine with my moisturizer, I didn't really notice any difference in my oiliness I confirmed this observation with Sebutape measurements (attached). Maybe better results could be achieved with a different delivery medium, though the L-Carnitine seemed to get absorbed by my skin pretty well.

Attached Files

•  sebutape_comparison.png   548.43K   5 downloads

Edited by BSider, 11 August 2012 - 03:19 PM.

[bryan]

FANTASTIC!! The first person I've ever seen who used Sebutape Skin Indicators, besides myself!

I'm a little confused, though, about how you did the test: did you wash your skin first, before applying the Skin Indicators after waiting for a while? Did you really wait for an entire HOUR, first? The second one does appear slightly less greasy, although maybe not as much as you had hoped...

[BSider]

I'm a little confused, though, about how you did the test: did you wash your skin first, before applying the Skin Indicators after waiting for a while? Did you really wait for an entire HOUR, first?

Haha, yes I ordered the Sebutape a while back after reading how you measured your sebum excretion during your no-face-washing experiment.

Here's the procedure I used for measuring:

1. Wake up, eat breakfast and wait an hour (to make sure the sebum is flowing)
2. Wash face and wait 5 min to dry
3. Apply isopropyl alcohol to sebum measurement area
4. Set timer for 1hr and wait
5. Apply Sebutape and hold for 5 seconds
6. Blot the area with Gatsby oil blotting sheets to soak up excess oil
7. Repeat (4)-(6) two more times
8. Of the three Sebutape samples, choose the sample that looks closest to the "average" of the three (for me they all looked pretty similar).

The second one does appear slightly less greasy, although maybe not as much as you had hoped...

The 8/11 sample does appear to be slightly less oily -- I tried converting both samples to black and white in Photoshop (via Image->Adjustments->Threshold) and then measured the black:white pixel ratio via the Histogram. The 7/22 sample had a ratio of .109 and the 8/11 sample had a ratio of .104. Unfortunately, only a 5% decrease.

[microbiek]

The only thing i'd suggest is taking multiple samples 3+ before the ALCAR taken at different times then 3+ after at the same times just to be thorough! The 5% difference could be due to so many other factors. Ideally you should fast before taking the measurements so the food you have eaten isnt a variable!

[radikal]

can anyone else attempt to replicate the results of this study? I will do the same when I get more ALCAR.