Dear Valerie: Our marketing department is getting on my case about developing an “immunocosmetics” formula. I don’t know what that means…and neither do they! Have you heard of this before?
—Not Immune to Marketing Pests

Dear Not Immune:
Perhaps due to covid-19, consumers have been left with a keen interest in how cosmetics can regulate their immune system. Fortunately, that’s not possible, but your skin does have its own localized immune system and topical skin care products may play a role.

Immunocosmetics is a term for a skin care product that boosts skin’s natural defense system, promoting healthier-looking skin that is protected from environmental aggressors. Occasionally I’ll see an industry article, cosmetics brand or ingredient purveyor telling us that we should watch out for this newest trend. The trend never materializes as TikTok fodder, yet here we are, talking about it again.

The subject of immune-boosting cosmetics perplexes me a bit; your skin is your first line of defense against invading organisms. If your skin’s barrier is intact and in good shape, your skin has everything it needs to stay healthy, right? And how can a cosmetic regulate our immune system? Wouldn’t that be considered a drug?

Even the healthiest of skins must worry about environmental assault; we are regularly exposed to ultraviolet light, visible light, pollution, water, the ambient atmosphere and even a deluge of cosmetics products such as exfoliating acids and retinols that disrupt our skin’s barrier. Airborne pollutants—like particulate matter—are linked to premature aging of skin due to their ability to induce oxidative stress. Prolonged sun exposure causes (among other things) thymine dimers, a type of DNA mutation that can lead to various skin cancers over time. UV light also damages the protein and collagen that comprise our skin’s integrity. The result can leave skin looking tired, red, inflamed and feeling very sensitive.

If this happens over a long period, we call this barraged condition inflammaging—one of the earliest cringeworthy portmanteaus I can remember in the cosmetics industry. As you may deduce, inflammaging is premature aging that results from exposure to prolonged inflammation, even in small doses! This is arguably well-documented in literature, medical texts and the like. Worse than aging, it can lead to inflammed chronic skin conditions like psoriasis or eczema.

The thought behind immuno-cosmetics is that inflammaging can be combatted by applying a cosmetic ingredient (or product) that will interact with the skin and activate your skin’s immune system by “enhancing the activity of macrophages and other immunocompetent cells to accelerate tissue repair…” (to quote one raw material supplier.) This reduces inflammation, which reduces aging.

Another raw material that came across my lab bench is purported to “activate immunosurveillance pathways,” a requirement for engaging an immune response. It’s more fun to think of this as a Neighborhood Watch, nestled inside your night cream. Exposure to this ingredient is said to release antimicrobial peptides, activate an antiviral response and enforce the skin’s barrier by recruiting immune cells.

There are dozens more ingredients with these types of claims. I urge you to type “immune” into UL Prospector’s search bar; you’ll see a deluge of ingredients purporting to offer skin immune-boosting activity. My favorite is “Bird’s Nest Extract.” I chuckle as I imagine marketing asking me to find out what kind of bird roosted in the nest from which the extract came.

All kidding aside, the principle that your skin’s localized immune system plays a role in inflammation is real.

One 2013 study in Progress In Lipid Research¹ looked at the role of lipids in mediating the cutaneous immune response (and what happens if it’s over responsive). A 2023 publication in Phytomedicine² reviewed various molecules and their respective target receptors, and how those regulated skin immune health.

Of course, while we haven’t even finished exploring the tip of the iceberg on the skin microbiome, we do know that it plays a role with our skin’s immune system. It’s certainly an exciting time for research and I firmly believe more is to come, even if we are not coining it as immunocosmetics.

The challenge is—in today’s regulatory landscape—all the claims descripted in the tidy UL Prospector briefs are not permitted as cosmetic claims in the United States or Canada. Because these ingredients are working at a physiological level, they are therefore drug claims. You can’t really talk about a skin cream regulating your skin’s immune system. However, there are clever ways to address this important topic.

I recommend working with your marketing team and see what problem they are exactly trying to solve for consumers. Is it barrier repair? Overall skin health? A balanced microbiome? Outline the risks of using the term immunocosmetics (from an FDA warning letter to the FTC to consumer litigation) and try to offer a solution of what you might be able to say instead. Perhaps you can present some of your findings to get them excited and steer them in the cautious direction!

References

1. Kendall, Nicolaou. “Bioactive lipid mediators in skin inflammation and immunity.” Progress in Lipid Research, Volume 52, Issue 1 (2013), Pages 141-164
2. Fernandes, Rodrigues, Pintado, Tavaria. “A systematic review of natural products for skin applications: Targeting inflammation, wound healing, and photo-aging.” Phytomedicine, Volume 115 (2023)

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Valerie George
[email protected]
 
Valerie George is a cosmetic chemist, science communicator, educator, leader, and avid proponent of transparency in the beauty industry. She works on the latest research in hair color and hair care at her company, Simply Formulas, and is the co-host of The Beauty Brains podcast. You can find her on Instagram at @cosmetic_chemist or showcasing her favorite ingredients to small brands and home formulators at simply-ingredients.com