I wrote this investigative piece on the potentially dangerous side-effects of AHA\’s (alpha-hydroxy acids) which had just gained prevalence in the cosmetics marketplace.
2. A REPORT:
WHATYOU
DON'TKNOW-
BUTSHOULD-ABOUTAHAS
INCI'THEYMAI]ETHEIIt the U.S. [ixrtl anrl Drug Atlnrinistraliorr. Y o r k C i t y , l h e A t l A l e v e l s i r r so r n e( 'o r .n -
ov er-the- r 'ount erdebut As a result, llailey says,the l'l)A is "t'ur- lranies'prorlucts so low that tlre prorl-
ale
in Avon's Anew Perf'ect- r ent l y ev al ua t i n g t h e C I l l s t u t l y a n t l i s uct hastew AHA benefits. rl in rareirr- An
ing Cornplex five years pur s ui ng adr l i t i o r r a l s l u t l i e s " o n A f {A s t a n ( 'e s , a ( 'o r n [ ) a n y r n a y n o t w a l l t l ( )
ago, alpha hydroxy a<'irls saf'ety. rnain conr:erns'/
Its AHAs' poten- r e v e a lr l u e s t i o n a l r l yr i g h l e ve l s.
I
( AllAs ) h av e s paw neda t i al li r r bur ni n g t h e s k i n . a r r r l l e a r l h a t Wa r n i n g s a l r o u t s u r r se r r si l i r i l v u r e
t h rivin g , rnu ltinrillion-rl oll ar i ndus t r y . I or r g- t t r r nr t r r l i g h t n r a k e u s e r s n r o r e
us also absent.lf a <'ornparry knows througlr
'['l'u,y'rcin virtually every skin-r:are protl- v ul ner al r l e l o t h e s u r r a n t l t h e r c f o r e t o i t s o w n e v a l u a t i o n s t h a t a p r o r l r r <'ti s
uct f rorn fa<'e<'reanrs [<rot
to scrubs to eye skin r:an<'er. strongenoughto increasetht'risk of sLrn
gels.'fhisingrerlienl has marlethe cosmet- r l a n r a g e . h e C I l t r e c o r n n r e n r l sh a t l h i s
t t
ics intltrstryrich anrl the consunrer happy CONFUSION AT THE COUNTER lre rroterl the Jrxrrluct's
on lalrel.Horvt'ver'.
lre ca u seit <loe swhat women and m any P ic k uJ r any t l r u g o l r l e p a r t r n e n ts I o r e rnost<'ornpanies rlon't yet rkr this.
ntett want: reducesvisible signs of aging A HA pr ot l uc t a n r l l o o k a t t h e l a l x r l . Y o u
anrl sun rlarnage.Flnthusiasrn inr:reasetl as will finrl a list of ingretlients,requiletl by RISKS IN THE SALON
publishedme<lit,al studiesshowedAHAs l aw, l r ut no n r e n l i o n o f p e r <'e n t a g e s r o "Nrxrntimepeels" have lret:orne lx)l)r.l-
as
to lxr elfer:tiveat sloughing tlearl <'ellsantl pH lt,vels. 'l'he (illl
lar as rnanicrrres rnanysalons.
in
lrrnnxrtingthe growth of healthy new ones. Why? Sorne r:onrparries t:lainrthat list- ret,orrtttrerttls thesenonrrretlit'al
that 1x't'ls
It wasn'tuntil thesear:irls a<:hieverl wide- ini ; thes e r l et a i l s w i l l r : o n {'u s eh e <r o n -
t r : o r r l a i nn o n l o r e t h a n i l O u e r t 'e r r tA Il As
spreatl usage that a few complaints anrl surner."'l'he averaf{eperson rloesn'[know w i t l r a p l I o l r u rl e s st l r a r r l . ( I - r r r r , l i r ti r r ,l r
i
('on('ernslrgan to srrr{a<:e. Now, recent re- wlrat pH levelsnrean.She nrightnot real- s t r o n g r l o s e . 'l 'h e s ef i r l n r u l a s a l e s tr o n l {
lx)rts suggestthat AHAs may somelimes ize thal tlre forrnulanratters just as rnuch. enoughlo l'enlove the outer'layt'r of skin,
rleliverl<xr rnuchof a grxxlthing antl might 'f he nunr l r t : t 's nl r e r n i s l t 'a <l i n g . " a y s
<'a s (if
anrl il'userlirllrrrrperly thr:1r'r'lis lcli orr
in some instances even be harmlul. JaniceTeal, I'h.l), vit'e presirlent of'Avon l r x r L r n go r t h e p r t x l u <'t t s e l f i s u r r sta l r l e )
i
Skin Care l,alxrratories. lxrseseriousrisks. Nightrrrare lelxrr'lsfirr'
A CLOSER LOOK AT AHAs In sorrrc(:ases,a ('ornl)arry nray httve Itigltt:r-<'on<'t:r'rtlation inr'lurlelrrrrrr-lrels
I'iveryone wants to love AHAs. Hanl st,i- s onr et hi ngt o h i r l e . A <'<'o r t l i n t o l ) i a n e
g i n g . 1 r e l r t t i t r t r ,lrrt,lr l r r r . s s .i g r r r r . r r l l r .g r r -
p ir
t'trcehas proven that they work. But there B er son, M . l ) . , a r l e r n r a t o l o g i s ti r r N e w larities arrrlst'alrirrg.llow- (Otntitttrul)
are <questions. What are the lorrg-terrn ef-
fe t:ts o f th e b urning and i ll it at i on? Do
they skrugh trxr rnur:hol'the skin's outer
layr.r,lt,avingit vulnerableto su1 damage what labels tellyou
the don't
anrl inler:tion?' Somecompaniesprovide information percentages
specific about and
In responseto these (ioncems,the Cos- pHlevels phone youask.Here's short onwho's
by if the list telling
what.
nretic IngrerlientReview (CIll), an ann of
l. ltPlll llY0R0l( is oneof thefewcompanies hasalways
This that listedAHApercentages.
tht' Cosrnetir', 'liriletrv and h'ragrant'e
Thenumbers: Sensitive Creme: percent
Skin 5 glycolic; RegularCreme Lotion: per-
and 8
Assor:iation (C1'1.'A),
launched an in<lepth
cent;Enhanced Creme Extra
and Strength Oil-Free Formula: percent;
10 Deep Therapy Foot
s tu rly la st yea r. In J une, t he C TI 'A an-
Creme: percent.
12 (While company's cream
the foot contains percent
12 AHAits highpH
notrncerl the Clll's Irnrlings: glycolit,and
buffers strength. 80G552-5742 questions information
the Call for or aboutpH levels,which
lat'tic a<'ids(the lrost comlnoll AHAs) are
arebetween and4.5percent.)
4
salein <,osnretir.prrxluctslongas they're
as
userl in concentrations no higher than
of
2. llE0SIRlIl Although company
this doesn't percentages labels itsExuviance
list on of line,
l0 per<'ent, with a pH level of no lessthan it doeshave hotline(80G22t9411) willgiveyouthese
a that facts: Exuviance RegularFor-
3.5. Although the report saysthat thesetwo mula(creams fluids): percent
and 8 glycolic acid;Sensitive Formula: percent
4 gluconolac-
a cid s rlo no t signific antly inc r eas e t he (an
tone AHA formula with
made alpha beta and hydroxy acids);Essential Lightener
Skin Gel:
potential for sun damage,it strongly urges 10percent glycolic acid.These products pH
have levels 3.8.of
martufar:turerc put wamings on labels if
to 8. A|.|.mGfil callto thetoll-free
A number (888-727-63251yields thefollowing details
about
their parlir:ular prorluct does. thiscompany's AquaGlycolic
line: Facial Cleanser: percent
12 glycolic;AquaGlycolic
Many experts are unsatisfietlwith the Shampoo BodyCleanser: percent
& 14 glycolic compound; AquaGlycolic Face Cream: 10
CIR' s rep ort anrl rec on r m endat ions . percent glycoliccompound; AquaGlycolic Hand BodyLotion: percent. pH levels
& 14 (All
" T o o tn a ny q ues tions hav e ler nai ned are4.4-high enough buffer higher
to the percentages AHAs.
of These productshave been
unansweretl,"says John Bailey, director on themarket fiveyears areoftenrecommended dermatologists.)
for and by
of the Offi<:eof Cosrnetics and Colors trt
I l.l. N or er t t l rr l (I )i . (, i rrrrrrrrr
3. AHAs, it's up to you to be a vigilantcon-
sumer. You needto consider theseissues
and risks:
(Continuecl) ever, salons are not regulated '1.Increased sensitivity
sun There is grow-
oor-r-l
lr-nq9
by the FDA, and while cosmetologists ing evidencethat most AHA products
have lo be licensed by their state,require- make usersmore vulnerableto sun dam-
rnentsvary greatly,saysthe FDA's Bailey. age."If you'reusing AHAs, weara sun-
Scary but possible: A hairstylist might screen with SPFl5 or higherdaily---€ven
perforrn your glycolic peel. Skin-care if you haven'tappliedthe productthat
NOXI rnanufar:turersare attempting to reduce
the likelihoorl of this by offering training
anrl guidelines, but countless salons slip
through the <'racks.
moming,"saysBailey.
2. P regnancy' oN o studi e s have been
done on whetherAHAs poseany dan-
ger to pregnant women.We don't know
lnor-ttl whetherthe chemicals themselves can
An ent:ouragingdevelopment: Some
salonsare asking clients to fill out assess- affect the fetus," says Lynn D rake,
nrent lbrnrs before booking AHA treat- M.D ., chai r of the departm ent der -
of
nrcnts. lirr now, answering the questions matol ogyat the U ni versi t y of Okla-
Youn
Guide Nightmarereports higher-concentratio
on
toHoliday
wow! peels
include permanent
burning, redness,
High-impact
hair
anomaKeup pigment
irregularities scarring.
and
Fashion that
finds flatter
lnalanf al. naa h orr lhe {irrrnsis lhe besl way of ensuring homaHealth Scienr:es Centerin Okla-
r r Drar rLoLr ;oo-l)U S Ie fS
t
y our s al et y . H e r e 's w h a t a n y r e p u t a b l e homaCity."For now,if you'repregnant,
andhappiness-boosters s alon s houl r l {l n d o u t f r o m y o u : avoidthem."
lrresistible
food, O l)o you always burn, never tan'/ (If so, 3, Non-Caucasian skin No researchhas
the sakrn shoulcl do a gentler peel.) beenpublishedaboutrisk levelslor var-
cocktails gifts
and o Have you harl allergic reactions? (lf ious ethnic skin types.Lawrence Moy,
yuu've hatl reactionsto skin care,the salon M.D ., a dermatol ogi stn M anhat t an
i
nray re{useto do the peel.)o Are you preg- Beach,California, formulates different
Guys Honest
Get nant'/ O I)o you have heart, hormonal or products Asian skins.Somederma-
for
you
7things shouldnever lhyrnirl lrrrrblerrrs; skin (:an(,er; diabetesor
high o r l ow bl <x r dp r e s s u r e ?( T h e s a l o n
tologistscaution againstdeep peels for
darkerskins of all ethnicities.If you are
dotoa man bed
in nray have you <'heckwith a doctor.)o Are unsure,test AHA productson your arm
y ou t a k i ng an y n r e <l i t : a t i o n s , c : l u d i n g
in or checkwith your doctor.
lr ir t h <'ont r olp i l l s , A <: r : u t . a no r t o p i c a l
e 4. Medi cati ons o researchhas been
N
Readens
Rate r r r et lir : at i ons '/ l f y o u a r e t a k i n g s u n -
( doneon how A H A s reactw i t h cer t ain
theTnends sensitizingnredir:ations, salon won't do
the peel.)o Have you ever had an adverse
the drugs.Nonetheless, of AHAs may
use
be contraindicated you'reusing any
if
Theyear's
best/worst reat:tiunto a cosmetic product? (The s:rlon drug that sensi ti zes your s ki n t o sun-
nray perlirrnra gentler peel.) "These forms Ii ght. B i oMedi c,a compa nyt hat sup-
fashion,
beauty, are userl [o assessrisks so the esthetician pl i es A H A productsto do ct or s,cau-
rnen,
celebs,
everything knows whether to do a weaker exfolia- ti ons agai nstusi ng A H A s w i t h "any
tion-or none at all," says Barbara Sa- knownsensitizing oral and topicalpre-
lornone,C llO o{'Bioelements. scriptionproducts"(suchas Accutane,
WomentheYean
of I t ' s al s o i r n p o r t a n t t h a t y o u a s k t h e
s alon' s s t af f q u e s t i o n s , i n c l u d i n g :
tetracycl i ne)becausethese m edica-
tions in combination with AHAs exac-
Doers darers
and to O What per(:enta€le level are you recom- erbateyour sensitivityto the sun. Call
insnire t-cnonSOfed
/ot
il r vlJil v J/ vu uvv nren<ling my face, and why? o What
for your doctorif you'reunsureaboutcom-
s it le el l er : t s or i r r i t a t i o n c a n I e x p e c t ? bi nati ons.(For B i oMedi c' s l i st , call
bvdiet
Coke O What is your training? How often have 800-736-515s.)
you perlbrrned this treatment? o How 5. AHAoverload How much is too much?
thedecember has t hi s pr odu c t b e e n t e s t e d ? O C a n I
test it on my arm first?
There is no consensus about the cumu-
lative effect of using creams,peels and
issue sale
on lf the salon does not ask you questions
or cannot answer yours, exit quickly.
w ashes.S o don' t aband on comm on
sensein excitement over the real, dra-
matic resultswe know AHAs can offer.
november 18- FOR NOW: A SAFE APPROACH
TO THE UNKNOWN
Stick with reputablecompanies, less-
is-more regimen-and don't put your
a
miss
don't it! Until the cosmeticsand medical commu-
nities come up with clearer answersabout
face in the handsof an AHA "exDert"
who really isn't one.
November 1997, Glamour