Botulinum toxin VS hyaluronic acid: why choose nutricosmetics?

Although botulinum toxin injections were long the preserve of celebrities, for almost two decades they have become a solution available to almost everyone to get rid of wrinkles and fine lines.

However, this approach is not without risk.

Partial paralysis of the face over a more or less long period of time, persistent pain, anaphylactic reaction… In addition to the skin trauma caused by the injection, there is also the trauma caused by the substance produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum.

However, it seems difficult to find such efficiency in the accompaniment of ageing, hence the choice that many make to continue to resort to this type of procedure.

But what if there was a less invasive approach, more respectful of your health in the long term, with surprising effectiveness and exceptional comfort?

This is the problem that many nutricosmetic brands such as MyPureSkin are addressing and offering answers of sometimes unprecedented relevance, such as the MyCollagenLift dietary supplement.

The secret of their success? The use of active ingredients that act from within your body and whose properties directly meet the specifications of ageing skin.

Among these, the star of the cures has made a name for itself, as well known as that of the much appreciated bacterial toxin: it is called “hyaluronic acid”.

Botulinum toxin: why do we take it?

The reason why botulinum toxin has been so successful so far is that from the very beginning of its use, it has offered indisputably effective results.

Botulinum toxin: freezing muscles to limit movement

The effects of this molecule were first studied in the context of conventional medicine for therapeutic purposes.

The bacterium Clostridium botulinum was the subject of numerous studies during the 19th century, and it was the Belgian Academy of Medicine professor Van Ermengen who discovered the cause of botulism in 1897: botulinum toxin.

It was not until almost 50 years later that the English pharmacologist Arnold Burgen demonstrated the mechanisms (taking place at the neuro-muscular junction) that lead to the blocking of the signal sent to the muscles to ensure motor control.

From botulinum toxin to "botox": the therapeutic beginnings of a solution that has become aesthetic

It was in the 1970s that the first botulinum toxin treatments were developed for therapeutic use in humans.

From the outset, this approach was so successful that it was used to treat numerous muscular disorders, including in children aged 2 and over, as shown by the systematic resolution of strabismus, blepharospasm and facial hemipasms.

The trend is becoming more and more pronounced and the standardisation of the packaging of botulinum toxin for therapeutic uses allows safe and simple use by practitioners, as shown by the entry into everyday language of the term “botox” (trade name registered in 1993 by Allergan laboratories).

Increasingly aesthetic use

Given that many facial wrinkles are the result of the repeated muscular contractions generated by the expressions adopted by the face, some practitioners asked themselves the question that would propel botulinum toxin to the rank of a solution to ageing: “Can we reduce the frequency and intensity of facial contractions?

It was in the 2000s that the way opened up for the implementation of an actionable aesthetic solution, targeting expression lines.

Increasing the number of marketing authorisations, many Swiss and French laboratories (and European laboratories in general) are offering products that enable certain signs of ageing to be reduced locally and rapidly.

Wrinkles known as “lion’s wrinkles”, “crow’s feet” or “jugal wrinkles” are all skin problems that can now be treated with aesthetic medicine solutions based on botulinum toxin.

An undeniable effectiveness... but limited?

Invasive, uncomfortable or even risky: the terms sometimes used to describe botulinum toxin injections are not always reassuring.

The very principle of the injection already poses two problems that may prove prohibitive for people seeking to combat the signs of ageing:

  • The risk of infection inherent in the insertion of a needle into the skin, when the tools and environment are not sterile;
  • The discomfort and even pain of the procedure.

Fortunately, the risks of allergies are usually excluded from this list, as the practitioner usually carries out preventive work before the procedure to avoid any surprises in this respect.

 

Similarly, the risk of infection is normally minimised as the injection is carried out by a health professional whose practice has been proven through years of training and experience.

 

However, it is mainly the scope of the procedure that makes it an imperfect solution, because beyond the quality of the results, one must keep in mind that :

  • The only benefit of botulinum toxin is to limit the degrees of freedom of the facial muscles to prevent the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles (which means that this solution does not in any way promote your skin health);
  • Botulinum toxin injections are a local treatment only (which means that it is necessary to repeat the operation on each of the areas in which you wish to reduce your wrinkles, increasing the discomfort and duration of the procedure).

The key arguments for botulinum toxin injections have evolved from “quick and effective” to “superficial and limited”.

Hyaluronic acid: a much better alternative

The corollary of the properties of botulinum toxin is directly related to the main reasons for using nutritional solutions incorporating active principles such as hyaluronic acid.

This molecule fulfils the specifications of its bacterial counterpart without the risks and discomfort decried by the detractors of “botox”.

A molecule naturally present in your body

The first argument in favour of hyaluronic acid is the role it plays in your body.

Produced naturally by certain cells in your dermis (fibroblasts), hyaluronic acid is one of the main ingredients of the ECM (ExtraCellular Matrix) of which it is composed.

In a recent article published on our blog, we explain in detail the importance of the ECM and its constituents for the health of your dermis. We also recall the role they play in the appearance of your skin.

What we need to remember is that these qualities make ageing supplements perfect solutions to the shortcomings of botulinum toxin.

To understand this, let’s briefly examine the effects of hyaluronic acid.

Hyaluronic acid: hydrating molecule, synergistic vessel

Three key elements allow us to understand the evidence that the choice of hyaluronic acid constitutes:

  • The hydration function that this molecule provides;
  • The exacerbation of its properties when it enters into synergy with other active principles (also naturally present in your skin, such as collagen);
  • The role of molecular transporter that hyaluronic acid can play.

Although hyaluronic acid is now recognised as a very effective molecule for moisturising the skin (since it can also be used in injections and creams), it is much less well known for its other two properties.

 

However, it is precisely these two characteristics that make it an unavoidable choice for the most effective nutricosmetics on the market: those that can “replace” botulinum toxin injections in some way, such as MyCollagenLift.

The hyaluronic acid – collagen synergy: when human genius enhances your skin mechanisms

The ECM is the medium in which the cells of your dermis bathe. This medium is of vital importance both for the health of your skin and for its natural beauty, since it is what allows it to maintain its firmness, elasticity and level of hydration. This ECM is composed of three main elements:

  • Collagen (macro protein that allows skin firmness);
  • Elastin (a protein that ensures skin elasticity);
  • Hyaluronic acid (a molecule capable of carrying, storing, moving and delivering nearly 1000 times its weight in water).

In a very recent study published in 2021 by the team of researcher Anca Maria Juncan¹, we find confirmation of discoveries made several years ago.

 

Indeed, it is through a rigorous and systematic clinical study that this member of the scientific community was able to highlight the following two key points:

  • One of the major roles of hyaluronic acid is to produce the necessary viscosity in the ECM to allow collagen and elastin to develop correctly;
  • Hyaluronic acid is essential to the formation and maintenance of collagen in that it acts as a vessel for the hydration factor, thus delivering “on demand” to the fibroblasts (collagen producing cells) the water required for their metabolic reactions;

Since collagen and elastin are the two “ingredients” naturally produced and used by your skin to maintain its mechanical properties (the very ones that make your skin “young” to the naked eye), nutricosmetic synergies associating hyaluronic acid with collagen offer an alternative to botulinum toxin injections that is :

  • As effective as it is comfortable;
  • Respectful of your skin’s health in the short and long term;
  • Can be used throughout your entire body to provide many other health/beauty benefits.

MyCollagenLift: Crystallising your skincare hopes in a unique cosmeceutical

It is thanks to a fine mastery of the mechanisms linking hyaluronic acid and collagen that the collaborators of the MyPureSkin laboratories have been able to sublimate the results offered by the anti-ageing nutricosmetic industry.

By creating an exclusive formula made from 100% natural ingredients, MyPureSkin puts MyCollagenLift in your hands, a non-invasive cosmeceutical solution that can be integrated into your daily beauty routine to allow you to take care of your skin.

To achieve this, MyCollagenLift optimises the properties of ingredients such as

  • Highly bio-available marine collagen bio peptides;
  • Hyaluronic acid to help you achieve a good level of hydration;
  • Wheat oil ceramides to complete the moisture maintenance effort for your skin;
  • Vitamin C from acerola fruit to help protect your cells from oxidative stress;
  • Vitamin E also acts as an antioxidant;
  • Organic silicon to structure your skin while increasing your defences against the harmful effect of free electrons;
  • SOD to complete this arsenal of antioxidant defences.

Ready to make a choice that will change the life of your skin? Start a first 3-month treatment with MyCollagenLift to benefit from visible effects in just 4 weeks!

  1. Study conducted in 2021 by the team of researcher Anca Maria Juncan on the effects of the synergies at work in the combinations of hyaluronic acid, collagens and other active ingredients used by certain cosmeceutical products: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8347214/