One of the newer skin 'stimulants' that have come onto the scene recently are peptides. These are small proteins that help stimulate collagen production in the deep layers of the skin, thus having an anti-aging effect. There has been a buzz about these proteins and they are now becoming prevalent in many topical skin preparations. What are they and how do they work?

These peptides are numerous and some of the more prominent names include Argireline (acetyl hexapeptide), GABA (gamma amino butyric acid), Biopeptide CL, Pentapeptide (Levuphase), Heptapeptide (snap 7), palmitoyl tripeptide-3, and copper complex, to name just a few. Some of these peptides like Argireline have a very mild muscle-relaxing effect (saying it is similar to Botox is a stretch) by blocking the release of chemicals that stimulate muscles. I use topicals that contain this in my patients that get Botox as a supplement to it. Other peptides are more like traditional growth factors which may increase the production of collagen through fibroblast stimulation and helping decrease wrinkle formation by this approach.

One of the real problems with the peptide formulations is their inherent instability and whether they can actually penetrate into the deeper layers of the skin. While they are becoming popular and skin preparations that contain them are expensive, I am not quite ready to endorse them as living up to their hype just yet. More clinical evidence needs to come forth to determine their potential effectiveness. In addition, where in one's skin care regimen do they fit? And how do they compare to the anti-oxidants? Or is an alchemy of everything, a skin cream stew so to speak, the best approach? The hype and the price are unproven at this point.