Sacrè Bleu! Ashland Moves Skin Protection to New Wavelengths

  According to a 2013 paper by Dayan, et al., the industry and public are highly educated about the dangers associated with excessive exposure to UVA and UVB. More recent findings reveal that the full spectrum of benefits and harm related to sun exposure are yet to be explored. One of the more striking discoveries is that while UVA and UVB are responsible for skin damage, high energy visible light, i.e., in the violet and blue range, may cause as much damage.

  Ashland Specialty Ingredients has responded with Blumilight (INCI: Water (aqua) (and) Butylene Glycol (and) Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Seed Extract). According to the company, this biofunctional addresses the skin-damaging effects of blue light pollution emanating from cell phones, computer screens and natural sources.

  Derived from sustainable extracts of cocoa peptides and polyphenols, Blumilight works by improving the presence of blue light-sensitive opsins, the photorec­eptors that mediate the conversion of a photon of light into an electroc­hemical signal in the skin. Blue light is known to induce mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS) and free radical production in epidermal cells; this ingredient has been shown in vitro to significantly reduce them.