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You have tested 2, 3 or even dozens of serums, creams or masks with hyaluronic acid, but you don't really understand the difference between two hyaluronic acids, or why, for example, one serum sells for 5 times more than another...
You are reading the right article.
At Novexpert, our goal is to give you the keys to being an actor in your health, master of your decisions, by freeing yourself from marketing traps.
With this article, which we hope will help you navigate the jungle of cosmetics to choose your hyaluronic acid serum, we affirm our role as knowledge transmitters.
You know the game where at the end "there will only be one left", we won't go so far as to say that. However, at the end of your reading, believe us, it will be much easier to choose a hyaluronic acid serum.
Tip : If you don't have time to read, but don't want to make a mistake, click directly here .
As an illustration: put two photos of the powder and the gel, and put a big “OR” between the two. As a caption: Powder or gel, that is the question?
The first key to deciphering a hyaluronic acid serum and in particular the percentage displayed, is to know what hyaluronic acid really is.
Really, at the very beginning.
Before it's in a cream or serum, when our researchers receive it in the lab.
It's a powder, a white powder.
To impress your aunt at the next family lunch.
Yes, but not only that.
When we talk about the percentage of pure hyaluronic acid, we are talking about the amount of powder that is added to the formula when creating the product. This is what we claim at Novexpert:
3.2% pure hyaluronic acid, in other words 3.2g of powder per 100g of product .
Some brands sometimes give in to the temptation to display 8 or 10% hyaluronic acid, but in some cases they do not talk about the powder, but about the hyaluronic acid gel.
HYALURONIC ACID GEL = WATER (a lot) + HYALURONIC ACID (a little)
Communicating about 10% hyaluronic acid when you only add 0.1% or 0.5% of pure material in the product, it must be said that it is tempting if you are guided by a financial objective. Tempting but not really honest. It is the technique of fast food restaurants that add 10 ice cubes to your drink to make you believe that you have more. Your drink is simply diluted. Hyaluronic acid too.
When it comes to hyaluronic acid serum, it's not necessarily the one with the highest percentage displayed that is the best.
Firstly, because it is not only the quantity that counts, it is also the size – we explain everything in the following paragraph – but also because too high a percentage of hyaluronic acid brings its share of difficulties and inconveniences.
1st OBSTACLE: GALENIC. The more hyaluronic acid you add, the more it sticks. It seems basic but it's true.
NB: this statement is not true if you only use very low molecular weight (< 20,000 Da) but then there are other issues (see paragraph THE SMALLER THE CUTTER)
2nd OBSTACLE: TOLERANCE . A percentage of hyaluronic acid greater than 5% is not compatible with application to the entire face for pregnant women, for example.
3rd OBSTACLE: MUSICAL CHAIRS . This means that if all the space (all the chairs) in the formula is occupied by hyaluronic acid, no other active ingredient can be included in the formula. Its effectiveness will therefore be reduced.
And there is a 4th OBSTACLE , which no one mentions or only half-heartedly: the price . We say it, and write it, hyaluronic acid is one of the most expensive ingredients. On a daily basis, our goal is therefore to find the balance between effectiveness and the right price to make this effectiveness accessible to everyone. Quick to write, but laborious to apply.
NB n°2: this obstacle disappears if you only take very low molecular weight from distant countries… Everyone has their own choices.
One of the Doctors we work with is fond of explaining, “Cooking is chemistry, but chemistry is not cooking.” So remember that you can’t add as much hyaluronic acid as you would with chocolate to make the end result better.
In the hyaluronic acid family, there are different members and each has its role. They are distinguished by their sizes, also called molecular weights. There are 4 groups of molecular weights (unit of measurement of the size of a molecule). As in a family, each has its role and it is the balance of the 2, 3 or 4 that predicts a synergy and therefore an effective treatment. It took more than 18 months for the Novexpert Doctors to find the balance - that is to say the optimum percentage to within 0.1% - between the 4 molecular weights within the Hyaluronic Acid Booster Serum.
COLLAGEN BOOSTER (ANTI-AGING)
The properties of hyaluronic acids are simply explained by their size. The largest remains on the surface of the skin because it cannot pass through the skin layers. It retains water, and forms a protective film that limits dehydration .
Hyaluronic acid can retain up to 1000 times its weight in water . Figuratively speaking, 1g of hyaluronic acid can retain a 1L bottle. Yes, you will also think of us when you do your shopping.
The smallest one sneaks into the dermis – the second layer of the skin – to stimulate the synthesis of collagen, the springs responsible for the firmness and elasticity of the skin. Double anti-aging benefit for the hyaluronic acid serum that contains it!
BELIEVING ONLY WHAT YOU SEE HAS NEVER BEEN SO TRUE
For the record, we have analyzed dozens of hyaluronic acids received from suppliers. Surprisingly, many hyaluronic acids (often the cheapest) were found to be non-compliant with the molecular weights indicated by the supplier ... These analyses allowed us to choose the right hyaluronic acids, namely those that respect the announced molecular weights. To our knowledge, few (if any...) brands carry out such tests. They are expensive, not mandatory and often make you choose the most expensive hyaluronic acid... .
You probably noticed that in our previous paragraph, we did not talk about hyaluronic acid below 20,000 Da.
This is not an oversight.
We will never include very low molecular weight hyaluronic acid (<20,000 Da) in our treatments . The reason is simple: some scientific publications mention a pro-inflammatory effect of these hyaluronic acids.
This is not a surprise because in the skin, aging hyaluronic acids, of very low molecular weights are destroyed in order to preserve the cells and the integrity of the skin barrier. Elimination carried out by the famous hyaluronidases that some brands wish to destroy while they are essential to the skin balance…
HOW DO YOU KNOW IF A BRAND IS ADDING A LOT OF VERY LOW MOLECULAR WEIGHT HYALURONIC ACID TO INFLATE THE DISPLAYED PERCENTAGE?
You can't know that.
This is probably not the answer you were expecting, but it's true.
Within the INCI list (list of ingredients) of a hyaluronic acid serum, many molecular weights can be hidden behind the terms “SODIUM HYALURONATE” or “HYDROLYZED HYALURONIC ACID”, very high weights as well as very small ones…
As far as we are concerned, we certify that we do not use hyaluronic acids lower than 20,000 Da.
But then why do some brands still use them? Probably through ignorance. To reduce the sticky side of their hyaluronic acid serum, certainly.
We started to mention it in the "GO HIGHER" section: a cream, serum or treatment cannot be reduced to a single active ingredient, no matter how concentrated it may be. To act in the short and long term, the hyaluronic acid serum must be thought of as a whole and offer active ingredients that act in synergy.
Within the hyaluronic acid serum from Novexpert for example, there are more than 25% of active ingredients (in quantity not in number of course). 3.2% of pure hyaluronic acid grouping the 4 molecular weights but also other anti-aging and moisturizing active ingredients such as:
As you now know:
For all these reasons, it is essential to test the effectiveness of the finished product, the hyaluronic acid serum as it is on the market, in order to ensure the benefits. And here again, there are very large disparities, several states of mind clash.
The RUSHED, who want to launch as quickly as possible.
Strategy : do not perform any efficacy tests on the finished product. Daring but sometimes profitable. This allows you to reduce the price, but, in our opinion, an ineffective product will always be too expensive.
MALINS, which use laboratory studies carried out by the active supplier.
Strategy : no new studies to do, just recycle the data sent by the hyaluronic acid supplier for example. To understand this, let's take a culinary image. Choosing this approach is to affirm that to make an excellent chocolate cake, you just need to buy good chocolate. That would be far too simple. A combination of ingredients - in cooking as in cosmetics - requires trials and tests to confirm the real effectiveness of the whole.
The CRAZY ones who are satisfied with a satisfaction test but communicate about it as an efficiency test.
Strategy : Give products to customers and ask them if they are satisfied after one or two months. No instrumental measurement or intervention by a doctor/dermatologist. It is useful but not sufficient. This type of test must be supplemented by a study under medical supervision to be rigorous.
The INTRANSIGENTS, who test the effectiveness of the finished product.
Strategy : Send the hyaluronic acid serum to an independent laboratory to evaluate the effectiveness over several weeks or even months. Volunteers go to the laboratory, the measurements/evaluations are made by machines and dermatologists.
This is the highest level of proof of effectiveness.
This is the demanding approach chosen by Novexpert Laboratories.
The next time you are in your pharmacy, your favorite organic store, your computer screen, and you have to choose a hyaluronic acid serum. Remember this article but above all…
Remember that yes, when it comes to hyaluronic acid, size does matter, so probe, question, and leave no room for doubt.
Remember that the highest concentration is not necessarily the best one for you.
Remember that if the price you're asking for is suspiciously low, you may sometimes be compromising on quality or effectiveness.
Remember that behind a product, there is not only one active ingredient. Other ingredients act in the shadow of it and in the best case, rigorous (but expensive) tests are carried out to validate the effectiveness and safety of the treatment.
Finally, remember a little... our serum .
Beautiful skin comes before
all healthy skin.
Creating another way of creating beauty is a necessity. For 15 years, Novexpert has been committed to demanding cosmetics based on science and facts. They are researchers fascinated by science, passionate about skin and health.
And here's what we do.
Explain, transmit and learn: how the body works, how the skin works.
Formulate, without compromising: 100% healthy products, because they are 100% of natural origin, highly concentrated active ingredients.
Test, study, adjust, for care with clinically proven effectiveness.
Support, provide what is missing from a serum, a food supplement or a treatment: nutrition, sleep, daily advice and recommendations.
Create a new type of treatment to take care of your skin.
