Trans-resveratrol reduces visible signs of skin ageing in healthy adult females over 40: an 8-week randomized placebo-controlled trial

Rao S

Published in Frontiers in Aging

Methodology

Double-blind randomised placebo-controlled four-arm trial (ACTRN12621000709842) in healthy women aged 40+, allocated to oral placebo plus topical placebo, oral trans-resveratrol 75 mg plus topical placebo, oral placebo plus topical 1.5% trans-resveratrol cream, or both actives, twice daily for 8 weeks; outcomes included wrinkle scores, skin age, pore size, specific facial lines, pigmentation, sebum, moisture, elasticity, self-assessment, serum trans-resveratrol and safety.

Key Findings

This four-arm trial enrolled 134 healthy women aged 40 and over, 122 of whom completed, assigned to oral trans-resveratrol 75 mg and/or topical 1.5% cream twice daily for 8 weeks against matched placebos. Only the group receiving both oral and topical resveratrol showed significantly reduced wrinkle scores versus double placebo at week 8. Topical resveratrol groups had significantly higher U-zone sebum than topical placebo groups. No significant differences appeared in skin age, temperature, pore size, forehead, glabellar, crow's feet or nasolabial lines, pigmentation, moisture or elasticity, and serum resveratrol conjugates rose in the oral groups, confirming absorption. Products were safe, with only mild adverse events.

Conclusions

Combined oral and topical trans-resveratrol improved some skin health parameters; most other measures were unchanged.

Limitations

One positive result out of more than a dozen skin measures across four arms of roughly 30 people each, over only 8 weeks; the study was run by a contract research organisation with authors employed by Lallemand Bio-Ingredients and Evolva, the companies that make and sell the ingredient.