These days, the choice of skincare products is greater than ever before. How do you make sense of it all to choose the right ones? Knowing the ingredients on the market is a great start. Here, we'll tell you all about peptides, a type of ingredient with huge potential that more and more skincare companies are offering and that we identified as one of the best anti-aging ingredients since we created the very first Jouviance product. The use of peptides first began in Europe a little over 20 years ago. Jouviance was the first company in North America to introduce peptides into their formulations.
What are peptides?
Everyone knows what proteins are. What everyone doesn’t know is that proteins are made up of amino acids. In fact, peptides are proteins composed of only 2 to 50 amino acids, which allows them to be well absorbed and metabolized by the skin.
Proteins are used to build the cells and tissues of the body, while peptides are messengers that regulate several cellular activities. For example, collagen is the important protein found in the dermisand is responsible for the firmness of the skin; there are peptides that act asstimulators of collagen production, some of which will make them stronger, and others that will protect them from premature degradation. It all comes down to the art of formulation and the purpose of the product.
Why use peptides for the skin?
The great news is that the peptides used in anti-aging skincare products target receptors that are specific to them. These receptors trigger the desired anti-aging reactions. Their small size (2 to 50 amino acids) allows for excellent absorption into the deep layers of the skin.
Peptides are extremely effective ingredients against skin aging, which explains their popularity. Mostly extracted from natural botanical sources or created synthetically, a wide variety exists and science continues to discover new ones. Jouviance favours natural botanical extracts, especially peptides that demonstrate a very high level of effectiveness. Depending on their amino acid composition and the receptors they trigger, peptides can be anti-aging, anti-wrinkle, antioxidant, healing or exfoliating.
How do peptides benefit the skin?
Their common properties are numerous and relate to the essential needs of the skin, such as hydration and protection. They also prevent skin degradation through an antioxidant action and by strengthening blood vessels. Well-protected and well-moisturized skin keeps a uniform and youthful-looking complexion longer.
Anti-aging peptides have the ability to send signals that stimulate the natural processes slowed down by age, lifestyle and external aggressors.
The results: smoother, more radiant-looking skin, fewer deep and long wrinkles, firmer skin and a well-defined facial contour.
The use of peptides in cosmetics
With such great benefits, skincare companies are increasingly using peptides to create effective anti-aging products. Their presence in a serum or cream facilitates superior cellular activity. For example, collagen and hyaluronic acid production in the skin may be increased, improving the appearance of wrinkles and increasing skin firmness.
Some peptides can even help limit muscle contraction and provide a "botox-like" effect, which has a wonderful impact onexpression lines such as frown lines, forehead lines and marionette lines (nasolabial fold).
Other peptides inhibit the enzymes responsible for the breakdown of collagen (which prevents the premature development of wrinkles) or the excessive production of melanins (the pigments of the skin) thus helping to slow down or limit the formation of pigment spots.
You can even find peptides that will promote hydration or reduce skin inflammation, helping to soothe red, sensitive skin.
In short, there’s a peptide for every need! And every peptide delivers more than one benefit!
How to choose your peptide serum?
There are different ways to choose your peptide serum.
First of all, check the INCI list – the list of ingredients that can sometimes be found online and is always on the product packaging.
Next, look for the names of the peptides on the list: most contain the word peptide, such as the popular Palmytoyl-tetrapeptide-7 and its variants. Sometimes they have other names, such as Acetyl GlycylBeta-Alanine, an anti-stain peptide whose trade name is GenoWhite®. In these cases, the information is very easy to find on the internet.
Also look for the product formulation as peptides work well as a team and will create powerful synergies with popular and effective ingredients such as vitamin C (ascorbic acid), vitamin B3 (niacinamide), hyaluronic acid (sodium hyaluronate) and antioxidants (such as green tea and vitamin E/tocopherol).
At Jouviance, we have several great serums. Here are 3 of them that contain peptides that work for your skin:
Our all-new Anti-Age Lift Intense Serum is a concentrated, comprehensive treatment for mature skin. It helps lift, firm and smooth skin in one easy step, while providing unparalleled skin tolerance and a guaranteed pleasure to use. A 3-month laboratory study showed a reduction in the appearance of wrinkles in 100% of participants.
Anti-Wrinkle Serum contains Prolixir S20™ peptide that protects collagen and elastin from premature damage, revitalizes collagen and helps rebuild the cellular matrix, improving the appearance of deep wrinkles and skin firmness as early as 4 weeks of use.
ProCorrect+ Serum is formulated with GenoWhite® peptide and vitamin C to tackle dark spots and dullness on all fronts. It helps reduce the size and intensity of spots after 14 days of use, as well as prevent the signs of hyperpigmentation, enhance skin radiance and protect against photoaging.
Conclusion
As you have seen, peptides have immense potential in the world of beauty and skincare. They are safe, effective and offer almost infinite possibilities for their present and future uses. Jouviance recognized this as soon as they appeared on the market and continues its research every day to develop effective anti-aging skincare products that are suitable for sensitive skin.
