You’ve Been Had By the Exosome Product Boom
So what does that mean for your skin-care routine outside of a doctor’s office? Most products that tout exosomes as an active ingredient are focused on rejuvenation and regeneration, claiming to address visible signs of aging such as fine lines, wrinkles, and skin laxity, but the science to back up these claims is currently lacking, plus there’s no industry standardization or regulation for sourcing or manufacturing exosomes for cosmetic use.
And yet, the hype only continues to grow. So does any of this stuff actually work? Should we be concerned about product safety? And where are companies getting all these exosomes from anyway? We asked dermatologists and cosmetic chemists for their thoughts. Below are our eight biggest takeaways.
1. Ask 13 dermatologists and chemists about the benefits of exosome skin-care products and you’ll get 13 different answers.
When we first started reporting on the role exosomes play in skin care, we received responses couched with phrases like, “They might do this,” or, “I guess, theoretically, they may…”
Dr. Nussbaum hopes that exosomes will enhance the skin repair process. Compared to other topical skin-care ingredients, Dr. Marmur says exosomes might be able to survive longer in the skin’s defensive environment due to their protective structures. Corey L. Hartman, MD, a board-certified dermatologist in Birmingham, Alabama, is less convinced of their abilities. “I don’t even think that exosomes penetrate deep enough to be effective,” he says.
2. One thing many of them can agree on: Exosome products hit the market way too quickly.
Let’s get this out of the way: No one we spoke to could definitively say that exosome skin-care products work. Dr. Schlesinger says that there are too many unknowns to confidently attribute the benefits seen during use to exosomes in over-the-counter topical skin care. “Everyone in clinical dermatology and research dermatology is saying the same thing: We need the science,” he says. “We’re looking to these companies to produce the data.”
Dr. Marmur agrees. “On one hand, exosomes do represent a novel and promising approach to skin regeneration,” she says. On the other hand, these launches “have outpaced the science.” She continues, “I’d say it feels like the hype outweighs the proven results—maybe about 70% hype and 30% science.”
3. The exosomes in your products are typically from three organic sources.
Humans
Some products are infused with exosomes created from human stem cells or platelets from blood. Dr. Marmur explains that in theory, “human exosomes ‘speak the same language’ as our own cells, making it easier for them to deliver their message and trigger changes like increased collagen or healing.” However, the materials inside exosomes derived from organic sources (like human stem cells) vary depending on the exact source.
