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NEW YORK - Spend a fortune on anti-wrinkle creams? Don't bother, says a US study released this week.
Luxury-price products don't work any better than drugstore brands, according to the study by Consumer Reports magazine, which ranked Olay Regenerist, priced at about US$19 ($28), as the most effective in reducing wrinkles.
But none of these products made a significant difference in the skin's appearance.
Researchers found that after 12 weeks the top-rated products smoothed out some fine lines and wrinkles, but even the best performers reduced the average depth of wrinkles by less than 10 per cent, a change barely visible to the naked eye.
"The tests revealed that, on average, these products made little difference in the skin's appearance and there's no correlation between price and effectiveness," a spokeswoman for the magazine said.
Americans spend over US$1 billion a year on anti-wrinkle creams.
Consumer Reports, published by nonprofit consumer research group Consumer Union, chose a sample of top-selling mass-market lines for its study. The products were purchased in retail stores for between US$19 and US$355. Each cream was tested by 17 to 23 women, aged between 30 and 70.
The women used a test product on one side of their face and the lab's standard moisturiser on the other side. A high-tech optical device was used to detect changes in wrinkle depth and skin roughness. Results varied among the women, the study said.
Dr Tina Alster, a dermatologic laser surgeon from Georgetown University Medical Centre in Washington, DC, and a member of the American Academy of Dermatologists, said it was overly simplistic to conclude from such a limited study that these products did not work.
"People would love to believe that cheap products are the same as the more expensive ones, and I may pooh-pooh someone paying US$500 for a cream, but I do see the value of some of the luxury brands which are science-based," she said. "But it is a cautionary tale that people should be looking at the ingredients rather than just at the packaging."
Despite the study's findings, some women said they would continue to use anti-wrinkle cream.
"I've never really believed these creams would stop wrinkles, but they make me feel and smell good," said Amira Thoron, a 36-year-old New York teacher.
- REUTERS
