FEATURE ARTICLES

There have been a number of raw material introductions that have come to my attention during the last half of 2009. These may not be new launches but they are materials that had missed our radar!

Held at the Ricoh Arena, Coventry, England on 18-19 November 2009, SCS Formulate provided the cosmetics industry in Europe with a comprehensive overview of the local and global ingredients marketplace as it turns the corner into a new decade.

The UK Society of Cosmetic Scientists (SCS) announced attendance details from their annual event in the UK last year, which took place at the Ricoh Arena in the heart of the UK in November.

Jojoba (Simmondsia chinensis) is a perennial shrub native to Arizona, California, and north western Mexico.1 The oil from this plant, jojoba seed oil, is a wax ester that has been used in the past as a folk remedy for

Over the past 20 years, colour management has become a prime focus in a growing number of industries.

Aloe vera has become a common additive or enrichment in the cosmetic industry. Where the earliest records on application go back thousands of years, modern day applications in the cosmetic and personal care industry started in the second half of the 1900s.

Today, consumers prefer sunscreens with high protection values. Over the years, the best selling category shifted more and more to even higher SPF numbers. An SPF of 30 is now the standard, but there is also a significant segment in the area of SPF 50 and higher.

Cleopatra VII, Queen of Egypt, was renowned more for her beauty than that of being the last pharaoh of Egypt’s Ptolemaic dynasty. History suggests that her secret to unrivaled beauty was from regularly bathing in milk.

Plants living in climates where very low temperatures (–30°C) periodically coexist with moderate or even high temperatures (30°C), as is the case in some parts of Canada, are subjected to considerable stresses.

Squalane has been used in cosmetic formulations for many years as a highly effective emollient oil. It is derived from the hydrogenation of squalene which was, for many years, extracted from the liver oil of certain species of deep water sharks.

The primary function of the skin is to act as a barrier against unwanted influences from the environment and to protect the body from water loss. This barrier function is ensured mainly by the stratum corneum, the upper layer of the epidermis.

Over the past 20 years in-cosmetics has showcased some of the most innovative and cutting-edge products in the industry and the 2010 event is set to be no different. Visitors can expect to see a whole host of new and exciting developments from the 500+ exhibitors taking part.

Knowledge is power and anyone who wants to stay ahead of the game in the cosmetics, toiletries and personal care industry knows that with new scientific developments constantly emerging and ever-changing regulations, no one in the industry can afford to lag behind.

EurolBT is an active ingredient for cosmetic and cosmeceutical applications that is a 100% natural aqueous extract derived from Olea europaea (olive) tree leaves. EurolBT is endowed with very interesting properties that mainly rely on its free radical scavenging action.1

The many amendments to the Council Directive 76/768/EEC of 27 July 1976 was leading to confusion and different interpretations by some member states. The unification of the regulations should be a good thing and Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 November 2009 on cosmetic products (recast), Official Journal of the European Union L342/59 on 22 December 2009 is the universal hymn sheet from which we should all be singing.

There are many occasions when formulators want to be sure that products they are making contain a discernible level of active material. There are many extracts that are standardised against a particular active component, but at the level used in the formula may be insufficient to satisfy its functional purpose.

Cosmetic formulations consist of complex ingredient mixtures. The nature of these ingredients does not always allow for simple mixing. Oil and water as two phases of an emulsion can be mixed but cannot be kept stable as a mixture without the help of an emulsifier and the right mixing equipment.

In the neurocosmetic field, two complementary ways the targeting modulation of the cutaneous nervous system can be used to promote skin comfort and wellbeing: reduction of unpleasant skin sensations by an endorphin-like approach and skin wellbeing induction by dopamine stimulation.

Compounds that have two or more groups that are insoluble in each other are referred to as amphiphilic materials. It is the presence of these groups that makes a molecule surface active.

With the influence of fashion and media, consumers are searching for the miracle solution to have the perfectly sculpted body figure. Seppic’s recentlydeveloped “SOS Silhouette” programme addresses that demand with curative and preventative slimming ingredients targeting the adipocytes (fat cell storage).