How can the skin manage water?

1. Maintenance of skin barrier integrity
2. Prevention of skin evaporation
3. Accumulation of water in the skin

Skin is dynamically involved in the management of internal water levels (Elias, 2004).

Lamellar bodies are synthesized in the stratum granulosum and become organized into the stratum corneum as bilayer lipid lamellae between keratinocytes. Keratinocytes and the intercellular lipid lamellae have primordial roles in the skin barrier function. Lipids of the bilayer lamellae can be organized in liquid-crystal structures.

Desquamation disturbs the integrity of the lamellar lipid barrier integrity forming micropores through which water can escape. Fatty acids, produced by sebum, intermingle with the lipids of the stratum corneum to “repair” the lipid matrix. Sebum-derived fatty acids and the crystalline lipid lamellae ensure an optimal barrier function preventing excessive water loss.

How can Olivem^®1000 Crystal Skin™ manage water?

• Physiological penetration
• Increased barrier integrity
• Functional hydration

Click on image to view Flash animated Mechanism

Olivem®1000 Crystal Skin™ generates skin-compatible liquid crystals  that mimic both the skin surface lipid composition and the molecular organization of the stratum corneum intercellualr lipid lamellae. Olivem®1000 Crystal Skin™ has the property to physiologically integrate into the skin lipid barrier. Liquid crystals act as biomimetic restructuring agents and restore the optimal integrity of the skin barrier function. The dermatological compatibility of Olivem®1000 Crystal Skin™ makes it a key ingredient in formulating products that respect the chemical and structural homeostasis of the skin lipid barrier and it thus highly physiologically suited.