MAUI, HAWAII — A novel skin product whose
active ingredient is an extract of unripe coffee berries has shown preliminary evidence of
clinical efficacy for treatment of photoaging, Dr. Joel L. Cohen said at the annual Hawaii
Dermatology Seminar sponsored by Skin Disease Education Foundation. The nonprescription
three-step topical therapy is being launched into the marketplace this spring by Stiefel
Laboratories under the trade name RevaleSkin.
It consists of a 1.0% coffee-berry day cream, a 1.0% night cream, and a 0.1% facial
cleanser. The company describes it as more than a cosmeceutical or nutriceutical, but as
something new: an organiceutical backed by scientific data.
In addition to the evidence of safety and efficacy
provided by the randomized double-blind trials, further support comes from positive
pathologic and in vitro studies showing enhanced collagen production by fibroblasts.
Moreover, there is a biologically plausible mechanism of action based upon coffee berry
extract's uniquely potent antioxidant effects, added Dr. Cohen, an Englewood, Colo.,
dermatologist and president of the Colorado Dermatologic Society.
The coffee berry—that is, the fruit of the
coffee plant, including bean, hull, and pulp—is at least 15-fold richer in
antioxidants than are green tea, fruits, or vegetables by the Oxygen Radical Absorbance
Capacity assay developed by the Department of Agriculture. The polyphenol antioxidants in
which it is exceptionally rich are chlorogenic acid, quinic acid, ferulic acid, and
condensed proanthocyanidins.
Dr. Cohen presented a 6-week double-blind clinical
trial involving 30 women with moderate photoaging, none of whom were permitted to use any
topical products except those provided for the study. Twenty applied the coffee berry
products full-face. The other 10 used them on one side of the face and the vehicle on the
other. The regimen consisted of once-daily use of the day and night creams and twice-daily
application of the cleanser.
Blinded expert grading at 6 weeks in the split-face
cohort showed a mean 30% global improvement on the coffee berry-treated side and 7%
improvement on the control side. A 25% improvement in fine lines and wrinkles was seen on
the active-treatment side, compared with less than 3% on the opposite side. The 15%
improvement in photoaging-induced pigmentary changes was threefold greater than on control
skin. There were no significant differences in skin roughness and dryness. In the 20
patients treated full-face, the blinded evaluators scored standardized photographs as 30%
improved over baseline both globally and in pigmentary changes, 20% improved in fine lines
and wrinkles, and 15% improved in roughness and dryness.
Biopsies and polymerase chain reaction studies at 6
weeks showed significantly less fibroblast matrix metalloproteinase-1 and collagenase
activity and increased collagen production, compared with baseline. Side effects were
limited to mild short-term redness and
burning. Dr. Cohen also provided the interim 6-week results of an ongoing 12-week
randomized double-blind clinical trial led by Dr. Zoe Draelos of Wake Forest University,
Winston-Salem, N.C. In that study, 50 women with moderate photoaging were assigned to use
the coffee-berry products or Johnson & Johnson's Purpose skin moisturizing products as
a control.
At 6 weeks, patients in the coffee-berry arm showed
significantly less transepidermal water loss and erythema than did controls. The
coffee-berry group also displayed significantly less skin roughness/dryness and more skin
hydration, compared with baseline. How does Dr. Cohen see coffee berry extract fitting
into clinical practice? By far the single most important measure patients can take to
protect against photoaging, he stressed, is scrupulous use of sunscreens. The next tier is
topical retinoid therapy. “Retinoids are clearly the mainstay of our armamentarium
and will continue to be so for some time in terms of treating photodamage. We've got 2
decades of data on the effects of the retinoids. But for patients who want to use
something extra in terms of antioxidants and natural components, coffee-berry extract
appears to be very promising,” he said.
For patients who want to use something
extra, coffee-berry extract appears to be promising. DR. COHEN
Dr. Cohen is on the speakers' bureau for and a
consultant to Stiefel.
Botanical Products Move to Front of Cosmeceuticals Class SkinandAllergynews.com article.... Volume 39, Issue
2, Page 33 (February 2008)
LAS VEGAS — Botanicals have become the
new hot commodity in cosmeceuticals, as part of a larger trend that has consumers searching for natural
ingredients in all kinds of products. “Natural ingredients have become popular
again,” Dr. Diane Berson said at the annual meeting of the American Society of
Cosmetic Dermatology and Aesthetic Surgery. “They have always been popular, but they
definitely are having a renaissance.”
“Part of this is consumer driven. Patients want
things that are natural, so they want botanicals,” she added. It is estimated that
40%–50% of new skin care products include a botanical agent, said Dr. Berson, who is
with the department of dermatology at Cornell University, New York.
** Coffeeberry. The extract of the husk
around the coffee cherry contains quite powerful antioxidants. According to Stiefel
Laboratories Inc., the company that makes the product (Revaléskin), its antioxidants have
a free radical-absorbing capacity that is 10 times greater than those in green tea.
In a trial of 10 women treated in a split-face
fashion for 6 weeks, the coffeeberry extract produced a 30% global improvement on the
treated sides, versus 7% improvement on the control sides (“Novel Antioxidant Shows
Promise as Photoaging Topical,” April 2007, p. 1). The problem is that the study
involved only 10 patients, Dr. Berson noted.... Even so, “I think we are going to be
hearing more about this extract,” she said.
Revaleskin with antioxidant CoffeeBerry plays the
major role in revolutionizing the skincare industry. View why the media and face skin
experts are talking about the results from using the world's strongest natural
anti-oxidant in a skin cream. You can now purchase Revaleskin right
here!
Volume 38,
Issue
5, Page 25 (May 2007) by Dr. LESLIE
S. BAUMANN, M.D. director of cosmetic dermatology at the University of Miami
ARTICLE: Coffea arabica and
CoffeeBerry Extract
The coffee plant Coffea arabica is cultivated
worldwide and is, of course, a source of the wildly popular beverage. In spite of its
name, C. arabica actually comes from Ethiopia and is thought to have been introduced into Arabia before the
1400s, Java before 1700, and the West Indies and Central and South America in the 1700s
(Morton, J.F. “Major Medicinal Plants.” Springfield, Ill.: Thomas, 1977).
Extracts of the coffee plant have been shown to
exhibit antioxidant activity. Two recent studies, for example, point to the antioxidant
properties of roasted C. arabica. In one, researchers prepared coffee model systems
from combinations of compounds, including chlorogenic acid, sucrose, and cellulose. Tests
revealed that antioxidant activity exhibited a positive, nonlinear relationship with the
level of chlorogenic acid, a known antioxidant, after roasting (J. Agric. Food Chem.
2002;50:3751–6).
In the other study, C. arabica and C.
robusta (C. canephora) revealed potent activity against the hydroxyl radical in
an in vitro assay, and ex vivo in IMR32 cells. The investigators concluded that both green
and roasted coffee exhibit antiradical activity, with 5-O-caffeoylquinic acid as
the most active constituent, and that the roasting process stimulates
high-molecular-weight components to display antiradical activity in coffee. The authors
speculated that these findings could account for the neuroprotective effects associated
with coffee consumption in recent epidemiologic studies (J. Agric. Food Chem.
2004;52:1700–4). In fact, three recent epidemiologic studies have provided evidence
linking regular coffee and caffeine consumption with a lower incidence or reduced risk of
developing Parkinson's disease (J. Neurosci. 2001;21:1–6; Ann. Neurol.
2001;50:56–63; JAMA 2000;283:2674–9).
Coffee Berry Discovery:
Although much attention has been focused on
coffee beans, particularly roasted beans, the fruit of the coffee plant has long been
ignored because it decays rapidly....
Coffee berry, the fruit that grows on C. arabica,
is suffused with polyphenols, especially chlorogenic acid, condensed proanthocyanidins,
quinic acid, and ferulic acid. Coffee berry is believed to exhibit higher antioxidant
activity than do green tea, white tea, pomegranates, blueberries, strawberries, and
raspberries. Polyphenols, which are secondary metabolites in plants, play an integral role
in a healthful diet and are key constituents of fruits, vegetables, grains, coffee beans,
and green and black tea (Annu. Rev. Nutr. 2002;22:19–34; Nutr. Cancer
1993;20:21–9; Pharmacol. Ther. 2001;90:157–77; Am. J. Med. 2002;113 (suppl.
2):71–88; Pol. J. Pharmacol. 1996;48:555–64; J. Sci. Food Agric.
1999;79:362–72; Free Radic. Biol. Med. 2001;30:1213–22; Biomed. Papers
2003;147:137–45).
Copious research during the past several years has
shown that polyphenols represent a wealth of potential health benefits, typically related
to anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Consequently,
pharmaceutical and cosmeceutical manufacturers have targeted the activity of polyphenols
for medical and cosmetic applications. A method of translating the claimed prodigious
properties of the coffee-berry fruit has reportedly been developed. In fact, the extract
of the fruit was acknowledged as a suitable ingredient for dermatologic application at the
February 2007 meeting of the American Academy of Dermatology.
RevaléSkin was the first skin care product
line based on the purported antioxidant capacity of coffee-berry polyphenols.
Stiefel Laboratories, the manufacturer, claims that this line of products is indicated for
antiaging treatment. Specifically, the product line is said to confer antioxidant activity
and protection against UVA and UVB radiation (SKIN & ALLERGY NEWS, April 2007, p. 1).
The primary active ingredient in these products is
CoffeeBerry extract (a registered trademark of VDF FutureCeuticals). In proprietary
research, CoffeeBerry extract exhibited 10 times as much antioxidant capacity as green tea
did in the oxygen radical absorbance capacity assay. In addition, Stiefel claims that a
test of the RevaléSkin formulation over a 6-week period resulted in improvement in
hyperpigmentation, fine lines and wrinkles, and overall appearance. According to Stiefel,
there were no reports of irritation by patients with sensitive skin. The products in the
RevaléSkin line (a cleanser, day cream, and night cream), which contain 1% CoffeeBerry
extract, have been available to patients through medical aesthetic professionals since
spring 2007. Before CoffeeBerry extract was used in RevaléSkin products, it had been
employed in dietary supplements and food products.
Sövage Instant Lip Plumper, a new serum
manufactured by Sövage Dermatologic Laboratories, is another product that contains C.
arabica as an active ingredient, although CoffeeBerry extract is not included.
According to the manufacturer, this formulation hydrates and protects the lips, and can
alter the appearance of lip contour, size, and color. The C. arabica plant is also
used in some botanical formulations intended to treat cellulite. The caffeine in these
other products is extracted from the leaves rather than the berries (Dermatol. Surg.
2005;31:866–72). Topical products that contain C. arabica—and CoffeeBerry
extract in particular—are generally regarded as safe for all skin types.
Conclusions by Dr. LESLIE S. BAUMANN, M.D
Given the widespread use of the C. arabica
plant, and growing scientific interest in exploring and expanding its use, it would
certainly be convenient and cost effective if companies that harvested the plant also used
its fruit in some capacity. Preliminary evidence suggests that coffee berry warrants
consideration for its strong antioxidant potential. However, claims that it improves
wrinkles likely stem from a moisturizing effect, as we all know now that antioxidants
prevent wrinkles but do not treat wrinkles. The therapeutic effects seen on
hyperpigmentation make sense because antioxidants play a role in the pigmentation process.
short-term redness and
burning. Dr. Cohen also provided the interim 6-week results of an ongoing 12-week
randomized double-blind clinical trial led by Dr. Zoe Draelos of Wake Forest University,
Winston-Salem, N.C. In that study, 50 women with moderate photoaging were assigned to use
the coffee-berry products or Johnson & Johnson's Purpose skin moisturizing products as
a control.
consumers searching for natural
ingredients in all kinds of products. “Natural ingredients have become popular
again,” Dr. Diane Berson said at the annual meeting of the American Society of
Cosmetic Dermatology and Aesthetic Surgery. “They have always been popular, but they
definitely are having a renaissance.”
been introduced into Arabia before the
1400s, Java before 1700, and the West Indies and Central and South America in the 1700s
(Morton, J.F. “Major Medicinal Plants.” Springfield, Ill.: Thomas, 1977).
properties. Consequently,
pharmaceutical and cosmeceutical manufacturers have targeted the activity of polyphenols
for medical and cosmetic applications. A method of translating the claimed prodigious
properties of the coffee-berry fruit has reportedly been developed. In fact, the extract
of the fruit was acknowledged as a suitable ingredient for dermatologic application at the
February 2007 meeting of the American Academy of Dermatology.
