Honey may have been used for wound dressing in many cultures, but not every type is suitable as a qualitative cosmetic active ingredient. “Repair activity on the skin largely depends on the genetics of the bees, their resilience, and the diversity of the foraged flora,” explains Dr Frédéric Bonté, Guerlain’s director of scientific communication and inventor of more than 50 patents.
Hence, Guerlain only uses honey made by bees that best adapt to their ecosystem. The formulations of its two new skincare products—Honey Treatment Day Cream and the Honey Treatment Night Cream—combine Black Bee honey from Ouessant Island in France that is rich in precious polyphenols and amino acids with another honey from Ikaria Island in the Aegean Sea, a stimulant for epidermal skin regeneration.
Despite their different molecular compositions and biological activities, both types support collagen fibre microtears and dermal weaknesses. The creams also utilise Guerlain’s Dynamic Black Bee Repair technology to improve the connection between epidermal nerve cells and skin cells, crucial to wound healing and repair.
Several clinical studies have shown that this technology triples the connections between cells at a rate that is 47 percent more efficient within 24 hours, says Dr Bonté. It also stimulates the synthesis of Type I collagen by 158 percent, and Type III collagen by 77 percent.
The day cream compensates for the natural decrease in collagen when the sun is out while the night cream boosts collagen synthesis during sleep. Together, they delay signs of ageing, reduce wrinkles and plump up skin.
In Dr Bonté’s opinion, the future of innovation in skincare requires association and dialogue between sciences, including phytochemistry, physico-chemistry, cell biology, formulation expertise, and human sciences. It’s all for the greater good. “Our main goal is delivering innovative products with beauty, elegance and respect. Beauty for the women, elegance in the formulas, and respect for the skin’s complexity and nature,” he muses.
