Can Ceramide be a hit in cosmetics?

Ceramide? It doesn’t sound like something you’d put in your cosmetics kit. It’s actually a lipid molecule that is a major component of your cell membrane. It is a part of the stratum corneum (See The Human Skin: Basics) and functions as a skin barrier. People with psoriasis and eczema have actually been found to have a deficiency in a few or all types of ceramides in their skin (there are 9 types).

There are only few ceramide products for the skin out there including Elizabeth Arden, Han Skin, Triceram, Atopiclair, etc. Other ceramide products are used for the hair. As I’ve only tried one ceramide essence (Han Skin) which is actually called ‘Lipomide’; I feel that it’s the only one I can comment on. To start, when looking for a good quality product, it should have no unnecessary ingredients in it; meaning it doesn’t need to cover for flaws. Certain ingredients I’m talking about are paraben, alcohol, and fragrance. It means it’s less irritating and does not have preservatives nor does it add excess oil that you obviously don’t need. The product I used advertises Lipomide as liposome plus ceramide; its delivery system as an essence involves liposome capsules with ceramide molecules embedded in it. Then it permeates down to the skin and is absorbed completely. It is pretty expensive and it’s too early to tell if it did me any good. But for now, all I can say is it feels kind of sticky at the start but when completely absorbed, my skin felt a little plumper. There are other cosmetic products other than creams and essences that has ceramide; ceramide lipstick, concealer and blush are also available from Elizabeth Arden.

Trivia! Did you know that ceramide has an apoptotic role in skin? It’s called a tumor suppressor lipid because it induced cell death in cancer cells. It is needed for maintenance of cellular homeostasis through its regulation of cell death, response to stress, cell growth arrest, differentiation, etc…So next time you see ceramide in cosmetics, at least you know what it can do for you. Hopefully more women can try it so it could be better evaluated.