Are Plant Stem Cells Effective in Skincare?

Many popular skin care brands have recently been touting the benefits of plant stem cells in skincare. The regenerative properties of plants and the restrictions on the use of animals and humans in cosmetics has grabbed the interest of dermatology researchers and the cosmetics industry.

However, almost all cosmetic companies advertising to contain plant stem cells in their products actually contain stem cell extracts and not the live stem cells.

A lot of research has been done on plant stem cells and their efficacy as anti-aging treatments, but the stem cells that are packaged up and sold in cosmetic formulations are already dead. As a result, the stem cells will not act the same way as live stem cells. Any benefits that the cosmetic companies are touting are from the antioxidants and other active extracts from the stem cells. For plant stem cells to be effective in skin care formulations, they need to be alive and should remain alive while in the serum or cream.

Dr. Christopher Calapai, a stem cell expert highlights this and has said that for stem cells to be effective in skin care, “they’ll need to be from a human who is preferably the one seeking the treatment, alive, and delivered directly to the skin (most likely with an injection).”

Researchers are already on the path of making these types of treatments available. Scientists have developed an autologous cell therapy from a type of fibroblast cell found in the hair follicle called non-bulbar dermal sheath cells. They isolated these cells from the follicle, cultured them to provide a sufficient supply, and then reintroduced them into problem areas. Once reintroduced, there was an increase in the expression of genes that drive collagen synthesis leading to wrinkle reduction. 

Overall, plant stem cells may have some potential to help aging skin indirectly through cell extracts but any cosmetics claiming to contain full plant stem cells may not be as effective. However, there are massive potential benefits to using your own human stem cells for skin rejuvenation - especially your younger cells. Banking your own young cells is something you can actually do today to help ensure you have younger cells available for these future stem cell based skin treatments. Learn more here.