Benefits of tocotrienol/ tocopherol complex

In India alone, the skin whitening products industry was estimated to be worth $400 million (The Wall Street Journal, 11 April 2012 – “Economics Journal: Is Fairer Skin Really ‘Better’?”). In 2009, Global Industry Analysts estimated that 15% of the global population have purchased skin lightening products (“Skin Lighteners: A Global Strategic Business Report”. Global Industry Analysts, July 2009.) Hence, there is now a clamoring of consumers for beauty products that have a skin lightening effect either via topical or oral applications of natural or synthetic ingredients. One of these ingredients is the ubiquitous vitamin E.

What is tocotrienol?

Tocotrienol is a member of the vitamin E family. Natural vitamin E comprises eight chemically distinct compounds: four tocopherols (alpha, beta, gamma, and delta) and four tocotrienols (alpha, beta, gamma, and delta). Tocotrienols are similar in structure to tocopherols except for having an unsaturated side chain. Tocotrienols are sometimes called the ‘unsaturated’ form of vitamin E (Fig. 1). The antioxidant, anti-ageing, moisturising and skin lightening properties of vitamin E have made it a popular natural ingredient in cosmetic and personal care products including skin lightening products. Most of the vitamin E used in cosmetic is mainly the tocopherol form (synthetic and natural forms). Fuelled by the many recent scientific publications on the benefits of tocotrienols in skin nutrition and cosmetic applications, the use of tocotrienol as a more potent antioxidant (40-60 times more potent than the normal alpha-tocopherol vitamin E) has gained tremendous attention in the oral and topical cosmetic and personal care industry, so much so that it has been touted as the ‘super vitamin E’.