Psychodermatology: the mind-skin connection in cosmetics

When we're stressed, our bodies pump out a hormone called cortisol. Long, long time ago, our ancestors needed cortisol to hunt their food or escape predators, but nowadays, our work and life stressors have us producing way too much of it. This overload of cortisol affects our mental health and our skin in various ways. A study has shown that around 40% of people with skin disorders also have related mental health issues?

Excessive, prolonged stress can wreak havoc on our skin's natural barrier, disrupting its function, regeneration, and defense mechanisms while ramping up inflammation. This means our skin loses moisture fast, becomes redder, more painful, and sensitive. Plus, it triggers an increase in nitric oxide, causing oxidative damage. The result? Dry, dull skin with more fine lines and wrinkles, general redness, sensitivity, irritation, acne, and eczema.

And it doesn't stop there. It also messes with our scalp and hair. Chronic stress can push hair follicles into a resting phase, leading to hair loss. The same inflammation and sensitivity that affect our skin can hit our scalp, causing dryness, flakiness, and overall dull hair. Not fun, right?

How targeted skin care can reduce the impact of stress.

Cosmetic ingredients can help ease the effects of stress, not just by making your skin feel better, but by addressing the hormones, neuropeptides, and oxidative stress affecting your skin and hair on a cellular level. This can boost skin hydration and suppleness, and reduce oxidative damage. The benefits? Better mental health, improved well-being, and a noticeable glow-up for your skin. 

With this ultimate wellness idea in mind we've created Yoga Skin Wellness Cream, that offers 4 major benefits that contribute to your ultimate glow: Daily antioxidant protection, Stress reduction, Skin Oxygenation and Lifting and Firming effect. You know, that feeling when you've just left your Yoga session. 

To achieve that happy skin-mind connection we incorporated ingredient called TiMood by Mibelle Biochemistry. It's an extract derived from Timut Pepper (Zanthoxylum Alatum Fruit Extract), a spice plant from the Himalayas, It can improve neuronal function in the skin and thereby increase skin homogeneity. Moreover, it can positively influence one’s mood and emotional well being. Skin that feels good can boost one’s mood; not only consciously due to a visible improvement of the facial appearance but also unconsciously via the skin-brain axis. This link between the skin and brain is achieved by signaling via released molecules as well as through the direct connection by nerve cells.

In a co-culture model combining sensory neurons and keratinocytes, timut pepper extract was found to enhance neuron survival and neurite growth, along with promoting keratinocyte proliferation and dopamine release. These results highlight TiMOOD™'s potential to safeguard the dense network of neurons in the skin, which often becomes compromised with aging.

Timut pepper (Zanthoxylum alatum / armatum), which is also known as Nepalese pepper, is a member of the citrus family (Rutaceae) and is native to the southern parts of the Himalayas, especially Nepal. The fruit has a characteristic grapefruit-like taste and a tongue-tingling sensation like the closely related Sichuan pepper, although it is not a real pepper. Timut pepper is one of the most important spices in Nepalese, Bhutanese, and Tibetan cuisine, as only a few spices can be grown in the high altitudes of the Himalayas. 

The bark, seeds, and fruits of timut pepper have a long history as sources of medicinal treatments, particularly in Chinese, Nepalese, and Ayurvedic medicine. Applications include the treatment of depression, gastrointestinal and digestive disorders, and the topical treatment of tooth-ache, skin irritation, and wounds. Timut pepper has a complex phytochemistry with different chemical compounds such as flavonoids, terpenoids, and phenols, which are present in different parts of the plants, contributing to biological activities like antiviral, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant effects.

Fruits of wild timut pepper plants are sustainably harvested in rural areas of Nepal. To produce TiMOOD, dried fruits are extracted with water and glycerol to maximize extractables followed by filtration. TiMOOD supports a healthy and homogenous skin complexion and balanced emotional wellbeing by improving neuronal function in the skin.