TESTING 25
In-house tests complement CRO final product testing
n Diana Khazaka, Christiane Uhl – Courage + Khazaka, Germany
Figure 1: Claims can be found on the products and in advertisements.
Before a cosmetic product is offered on the market, final tests are obligatory for the manufacturer to prove its safety and to substantiate the various claims on the products, e.g. reduces wrinkles up to 20%, increases skin hydration for 24 h. There are no limits to modern claims. All over the world, contract research organizations (CROs) varying from small laboratories to vast multinational institutes offer their services to the cosmetic manufacturers to perform all kind of tests and compile the final necessary product documentation. But what is happening between the very
first formulation and giving out the product for the final (external) tests? Is it a black box only based on the product information and claims of the respective raw materials? These days are long gone.
It is so easy to conduct in-house tests at all stages of product development in your own facilities. This way, you will get a clear idea on the performance of your formulation at all stages of development.
March 2020 In the 1980s, the first devices for the
measurement of skin were offered on the market for dermatological and cosmetic research. They enabled the scientists to gain objective data on skin properties, such as hydration, sebum, elasticity skin color and many more. For the first time, it was possible to compare the results of different treatments and evaluate products at different testing centres, using identical methods.
Often, such techniques are fitted into
probes that just need to touch the skin to measure different parameters. Further information on the skin can be gleaned from image analysis of high resolution pictures taken of the skin. Today, a wide array of instruments, also for hair - and, very recently, for nail parameters are available. These devices are easy to use and very economical in costs and allow quick and easy screening of a cosmetic product in all phases of the development.
If a cosmetic company wants to get started with in-house efficacy testing, a typical basic set of parameters normally consists of the following probes/devices: l Skin hydration measurement - as the moisture content of the skin surface is important for almost all cosmetic products.
l Transepidermal Waterloss (TEWL) - the evaporation rate from the skin is an indicator for the quality of its barrier function and as such a basic measurement in product safety and tolerance. Any topically applied product should at least if not improve the skin barrier, at least maintain its quality.
l Skin sebum content: depending on the skin type – oily, normal, dry or combination skin - basic skin care is developed. Sebum is also interesting for testing acne products.
l Colour of the skin, mainly melanin and erythema level, as they are the two main color-giving components of the skin –
PERSONAL CARE NORTH AMERICA
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