09.29.08
Un-bee-lievably Radiant Skin
Jafra reformulates its signature Royal Jelly Collection and boosts the anti-wrinkle quotient with new ingredients.
By Joanna Cosgrove
Online Editor
Royal jelly, produced by young bees to nourish and prolong the life of their queen bee, is an entirely unique, rich source of proteins, carbohydrates, essential lipids, fatty acids and vitamins. When Jafra Cosmetics International, of Westlake Village, CA, reformulated its Royal Jelly Collection of face and body skincare products, it complemented the regenerative abilities of royal jelly with the addition of two new key components: Sirtuin Activators and Cellspan Complex.
The Royal Jelly line, which has been has been Jafra’s core brand since the company’s inception in 1956, spans five products formulated to “prolong skin vitality, reduce the appearance of wrinkles and help skin retain its soft and youthful look.” Although the products have “stood the test of time” in terms of being excellent skin moisturizers, Jafra’s Gladis Issaei, senior manager, worldwide product marketing for Royal Jelly, said advances in skincare technology encouraged the company to foray into revamping all of its Royal Jelly skincare formulations. The reformulation process spanned approximately two years.
Royal Jelly Milk Balm Advanced ($70 for 1 fl. oz.) is the “hero” product in the line. “While the original Royal Jelly Milk Balm was a good basic moisturizing product, it lacked all the latest state of the art ingredients that really make it potent and make a big difference in the skin,” she said.
The reformulation of Royal Jelly was two years in the making. |
The Sirtuin Activators used in Jafra’s Royal Jelly Milk Balm Advanced are an amalgam of proprietary ingredients unique to Jafra. The company said its Sirtuin Activators are naturally derived from rice peptides, royal jelly and a honey-based derivative.
Royal Jelly Milk Balm Advanced ($70) is complemented by Royal Jelly Lift Concentrate ($45). The Concentrate is sold as a set of seven small glass vials filled with the gel-like serum, which contains a concentration of royal jelly liposomes, a mixture of amino acids and vitamins and a proprietary Cellspan Complex. Four drops of the serum are applied to the skin both in the morning and the evening. The company said that within 14 days of continued use, the skin “will appear smoother, with an immediate lifted effect.” In addition, the Concentrate is formulated to increase skin’s moisture, refine pores and fade wrinkles as “cell turnover increases.”
Cellspan Complex is Jafra’s proprietary formula that’s said to help to enrich the benefits of royal jelly. Cellspan Complex not only contains Royal Jelly, but also “cell energizing ingredients” such as sunflower sprouts, Ayurvedic extracts and myrtle extract to help “sustain cell longevity.”
Jafra said that exclusive research in Europe showed that after 28 days of use, Cellspan Complex helped “skin maintain its viability and a visibly improved appearance,” resulting in skin that’s more radiant, moisturized and smooth.
For the body, there is Royal Jelly Milk Bath ($45) and Royal Jelly Body Complex ($60). The Milk Bath is a luxurious bath and shower wash enriched with Cellspan Complex. The creamy foam generated by the Bath is meant to not only cleanse the skin but also leave it feeling conditioned. For optimum skin hydration, the Bath should be followed with an application of Royal Jelly Body Complex and emollient Cellspan Complex-enriched, all-over moisturizing cream that imparts soft, silky skim for up to 24 hours.
And finally, to complete the beauty treatment from the inside, the company also offers Royal Jelly Vitamin Tablets, a dietary supplement ($20 for 60 tablets, a 60 day supply). Each tablet contains 200mg of royal jelly, multi-vitamins, B-complex and “other essential vitamins and nutrients that help strengthen the body’s immune system.”
“Jafra’s new collection of Royal Jelly products has again embraced its traditional, time-tested star ingredient - Royal Jelly - and brought it into today’s technologically savvy, scientifically substantiated highly effective formulas,” concluded Jafra’s Pragna Chakravarti, chief scientific officer and vice president, Worldwide Research & Development. “We have again drawn our inspiration and formulation approach from nature as we continue to explore ‘The Science of Beauty naturally.’”