Health and wellness brand Ritual has completed clinical trials for its daily skin support supplement HyaCera. This ingestible beauty supplement was the subject of his 12-week study on the supplement’s effectiveness in reducing wrinkles and increasing skin smoothness.
The results of this study were promising. “Participants reported improvements in skin elasticity, radiance/radiance, fine lines and wrinkles, and common signs of aging,” said Mastaneh Sharafi, Ph.D., Ritual’s Vice President of Scientific and Clinical Affairs. I did.
Learn more about the R&D process behind the development and launch of HyaCera, why the brand chose to conduct clinical trials on the supplement’s effectiveness, and Ritual’s plans for further innovation and development in the ingestible beauty space. To find out, we spoke to Dr. Sharafi. her insight.
Dr. Sharafi is a registered dietitian with a Ph.D. He holds a PhD in Nutritional Science and his industry experience includes nutrition-related product innovation (i.e. ingestible beauty products), cosmetic ingredient evaluation, partnerships with skin researchers, and clinical trials. and so on.
Research and development/development process
Dr. Sharafi said, “The ingestible beauty category is one of the fastest growing supplement categories, predicted to reach 9.2 billion by 2031.” Ritual’s research and development team initially had some concerns about the formulation of the brand’s skin care supplements.
“Despite rapid growth, we were very skeptical about creating a product for this category,” she explained. [as] We looked at a large number of ingredients and found ingredients that either had insufficient clinical research or no clinical support at all. ”
She continued that the initial research and development process was difficult because “it was hard to find anything that was truly validated by our standards.” However, the team ultimately lived up to Ritual’s high expectations for effectiveness and performance. “After extensive research, she chose Ceratiq, a wheat oil extract, and Hyabest, a low molecular weight hyaluronic acid,” she explained.
These ingredients were chosen because they “have human clinical evidence supporting their efficacy, meet our traceability standards, and can be confidently tested in our own clinical trials,” she says. said.
After selecting the formulation ingredients for a skin care supplement, the research and development team needed to find the best solution for the supplement’s delivery format, ultimately creating a “2-in-capsule” that would help maintain the integrity of the ingredients. We have arrived at the designed capsule-in-capsule technology. “We achieved one formula by acting as a barrier system that separates the dry ingredients on the inside from the oils on the outside,” she explained.
The research and development team initially considered gummy options, but “that proved difficult because we were working with low molecular weight, hygroscopic HA,” Dr. Sharafi said. Instead, the researchers ultimately pivoted to using a capsule technique that protects both components. [and was] It’s a win-win for consumers and stability,” she said, and the result was HyaCera.
clinical research
For Ritual, “choosing evidence-based ingredients has always been a top priority.” [the brand]That’s why each of our ingredients has its own clinical research and is separated within the capsule to ensure its integrity,” said Dr. Sharafi. But in the case of HyaCera, “we take that effort one step further by conducting gold-standard clinical trials on HyaCera’s finished formula,” she continued.
Dr. Sharafi explained that this clinical study not only reaffirms “our commitment to producing high-quality products,” but also “ensures that our customers can rely on the proven benefits of HyaCera.” .
Additionally, the clinical study “provides solid scientific evidence for the efficacy of skin supplements, a category that has previously had limited clinical support,” and “our commitment to conducting gold-standard human clinical trials is significant.” “This is a new step in our efforts,” he added. By 2030, we will partner with leading universities and research institutes around the world for all of our products. ”
“This is not a requirement for this category,” she clarified, but “it is something we believe is important to ensure our customers are confident in the effectiveness of the product.”
The study itself was a “randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled design (widely recognized as the gold standard for human research).” [which] The period lasted 12 weeks,” Dr. Sharafi explained. Participants consisted of “63 healthy women and men between the ages of 26 and 64,” who reported “several skin-related symptoms at baseline, 4 weeks, 8 weeks, and 12 weeks after starting the supplementation protocol. An evaluation was done,” she said. .
In addition to an overall improvement in skin elasticity, radiance/radiance, fine lines, wrinkles, and common signs of recurrence, Dr. Sharafi says the result was a “356% reduction in crow’s feet and 290% increase in crow’s feet wrinkles.” said. Facial skin smoothness improved within 90 days when compared to placebo. ”
She added that Ritual researchers are “preparing a manuscript based on the clinical study results for submission to a peer-reviewed journal.”
Following positive results from HyaCera clinical studies, Ritual’s plans for growth in the ingestible beauty space include “innovative products that address consumers’ most pressing needs…with traceable science and This includes sourcing and creating innovative products that meet the uncompromising standards that Ritual has become known for. ” concluded Dr. Sharafi.
