History and cosmetic applications of oats

The oldest cultivated oats were found in caves in Switzerland, dating to the Bronze Age, around 3,000 years ago. Some of the most famous ancient authors in the world made references to oats, including Ovid, Pliny the Elder, Hippocrates and Dioscorides. Interestingly, all refer to their medicinal properties, especially in the field of skin care, while only (if at all) making passing references to oats as a food source. Ovid, in Medicamma, strongly recommends the use of oatmeal for skin care, while Pliny advised them as treatment for moles. Dioscorides, the Greek author of Materia Medica, the first to write on medical botany as an applied science, writes extensively on oats as a healing agent.1 Between the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries, oats lost popularity almost everywhere except Scotland and Ireland. They became known more for food than as a medicine, and a boring and tasteless food at that! Samuel Johnson (1709-1791) defined oats in his dictionary as: “Eaten by people in Scotland but fit only for horses in England”. To which his companion and biographer, the Scotsman James Boswell retorted: “That’s why England has such good horses and Scotland has such fine men!” Johnson’s tongue-in-cheek dictionary entry is evidence of the poor reputation oats had developed, and were thought to be fit mainly for the old and infirm. However, even then, oats were often recommended mixed with brandy for all sorts of minor colds and other ailments. Fortunately, more recent evidence and research continues to echo the older trend of oats as having beneficial medicinal and cosmetic properties. During the early 19th century almost all oatmeal available in the UK was imported from Scotland and Canada and sold almost exclusively in pharmacies. In the 1930s, literature on the cosmetic benefits of oatmeal formulated in facial masks and bath oils was published, including information about oatmeal relieving itching, its cleaning action and its function as a skin protectant. By 1945 a ready-to-use colloidal oatmeal became available. This signalled the significant growth of the use of oats in cosmetics, and colloidal oatmeal began to be produced on a more commercial scale.2

Modern times

 In 2003 colloidal oatmeal was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration [FDA] for use as a skin protectant, and it is one of the few botanical ingredients considered as an effective skin protectant by the FDA.3 Today colloidal oatmeal is available in various forms such as bath treatments, cleaning bars, body washes, shampoos, creams, lotions and shaving gels and is a recognised treatment for dermatitis, burns, inflamed, itchy and sensitive skin. By the 1990s, Ceapro scientists had been able to identify the key active ingredients within oatmeal (Fig. 1) which contributed to its effective healing process. Specifically, a unique group of polyphenolics, the avenanthramides, had been identified which were able to protect skin from lipid peroxidation, relieve itching, alleviate redness and reduce inflammation and swelling.4 A long chain polysaccharide, oat beta-glucan, was identified as a deep hydrating agent, capable of reducing fine lines and wrinkles, improving skin elasticity and accelerating tissue healing.5 Oat peptides were also found to give thin film barrier protection, stimulate collagen 1 synthesis and reduce skin roughness.6 In the food sector the consumer now recognises the healthy aspects of oats, and this is reflected in a very rapid increase in sales. A similar opportunity exists to capitalise on the advantages of natural oat ingredients within personal care. Working alongside its Canadian partner, Ceapro Inc, Oat Cosmetics has launched a range of sophisticated oat ingredients which demonstrate measured activity, while retaining the provenance, traceability and safety profile that certified natural products must maintain. Multi-functional ingredients for today’s skin products must perform two key functions. Firstly to heal and repair damaged skin from intrinsic signs of ageing (genetics, chronological ageing), as well as extrinsic signs such as chemical irritants (soaps, chemical peels, dyes) or environmental factors (UV exposure, allergens). Secondly to maintain good skin health through controlling skin hydration, reducing fine lines and wrinkles and improving skin elasticity. Oat ingredients have a good capability to do both.