Peptides are an important ingredient in many skincare products, and are very popular right now.
But what exactly are they and how do they help your skin? It can overwhelming to choose the right product and understand what it does for our skin when there are a lot of products and technical words thrown around.
What Are Peptides?
Going back to some high school chemistry – Peptides are small chains of amino acids, which are the building blocks of proteins. In skincare, peptides can help improve your skin by signaling it to perform specific functions, like producing more collagen. Peptides in skincare have become increasingly popular these days and can be found in most anti-aging skincare products.
How Do Peptides Work in Skincare?
Peptides send messages to your skin cells, telling them to produce more collagen, repair damage, and reduce pigmentation of photo-damaged skin. This can lead to smoother, firmer, and more youthful-looking skin by lessening fine lines and wrinkles. For cosmetic uses, 4 different broad categories of peptides are used such as signal peptides, carrier peptides, neurotransmitter-affecting peptides, and enzyme inhibitor peptides. Each category serves its own function.
Best Peptides for Skin and Their Benefits
Peptides are really good for your skin, but there are many different types. How do you know which is right for your skin. For those of you (like us), who really want to get into the in-depth knowledge about peptides, here’s a list 🙂.
Peptides That Trigger the Signaling Cascade
These peptides signal your skin to produce more collagen and other important proteins, leading to healthier, younger-looking skin.
1. Carnosine and N-Acetylcarnosine
This peptide helps in healing and protecting the skin from damage. By boosting collagen and elastin production in the skin, carnosine and N-acetylcarnosine, reduce wrinkles and promote skin firmness. Because it is a water-soluble peptide, it doesn’t have the ability to penetrate the skin beyond the first layer.
2. Trifluoroacetyl-Tripeptide-2
With the trademark name Progeline™, this peptide helps firm up the skin and reduce sagging. This peptide does wonders if your goal is to firm up your jawline. A skincare product containing Progeline™ could do wonders for sagging skin.
3. Tripeptide-10 Citrulline
This peptide is best at improving skin texture and suppleness by ensuring even collagen distribution. It is often marketed under the trademark name Decorinyl™.
4. Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1
Also called as PAL-GHK, palmitoyl tripeptide-1 signals the skin to renew collagen, thereby reducing wrinkles and strengthening the skin without irritation.
Palmitoyl Tripeptide-1 is often compared to retinoic acid in its activity. This peptide is combined with another peptide (pal-GQPR tetrapepide) to make Matrixyl™3000 which is now a very popular peptide used in many anti-aging, anti-wrinkle skincare products.
5. Palmitoyl Tripeptide-3/5
Also known by the trademark name, SYN®-COLL, palmitoyl tripeptide-3/5 mimics a protein that helps in skin repair. This peptide functions by promoting collagen production as well as preventing collagen breakdown. Palmitoyl tripeptide-3/5 is shown in studies to reduce wrinkles 3.5x more than placebo.
6. Palmitoyl Tripeptide-38
This peptide is known for regenerating skin layers. The studies that uses this peptide to analyze its efficacy have combined palmitoyl tripeptide-38 with other actives such as apple stem cell extract, urea, Astragalus membranaceus root extract and others.
7. Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4
Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4 is the popular Matrixyl®. Matrixyl® stimulates the production of essential skin proteins like elastin, fibronectin, glucosaminoglycan and collagens. By doing so, it reduces fine lines, wrinkles and improves skin texture, wrinkle volume and wrinkle depth.
8. Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7
Palmitoyl Tetrapeptide-7, otherwise known as Rigin™, reduces inflammation, enhances skin structure and reduces wrinkle over consistent, long-term usage.
9. Palmitoyl Hexapeptide-12
The function of palmitoyl hexapeptide-12 (Biopeptide-EL™) is to stimulate collagen and elastin which helps to improve skin elasticity and reduce signs of fatigue.
10. Acetyl Tetrapeptide-9/11
Known by two trademark names, Dermican™ (Acetyl Tetrapeptide-9), Syniorage™ (Acetyl Tetrapeptide-11), this peptide makes skin thicker and firmer fighting the common cause of aging i.e., thinning of skin.
11. Tetrapeptide-21
Also called GEKG, this peptide improves skin elasticity and reduces wrinkles.
12. Tetrapeptide PKEK
Compared to all the other above mentioned peptides whose main functions are fighting against fine lines and wrinkles, Tetrapeptide PKEK helps to lighten and brighten skin by reducing hyperpigmentation. It is also known to reduce inflammation.
13. Hexapeptide-11
Hexapeptide-11 is originally isolated from the ferment of Saccharomyces yeast. Skincare products containing “fermented” ingredients are really popular now, especially in Korean skincare. Part of the efficacy of these products can be attributed to the peptide hexapeptide-11.
14. Hexapeptide-14
Perfect for those with sensitive skin and those new to peptides, hexapeptide-14 might be the one to try. This peptide helps to reduce fine lines and wrinkles without irritation.
Carrier Peptides
Carrier peptides help deliver essential minerals like copper and manganese to the skin, which are necessary for various skin functions. Here’s a list of different kinds of carrier peptides.
1. Copper Tripeptide (Cu-GHK)
With the trademark name, Lamin®, copper tripeptide is one of the widely studied copper peptides. This peptide delivers copper to the skin which is necessary for wound healing. Copper peptides are used in anti-aging, anti-wrinkle, after-sun, skin renewal, skin moisturizer, and even hair growth stimulating products.
2. Manganese Tripeptide-1
By delivering manganese to the skin, manganese tripeptide-1 reduces signs of skin damage and improves skin appearance. According to a clinical study conducted for a 12 week period, manganese tripeptide-1 also helps with hyperpigmentation
Neurotransmitter Inhibiting Peptides
Neurotransmitter inhibiting peptides relax facial muscles to reduce the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines. Here are some of the peptides that fall under this category
1. Acetylhexapeptide-3
Acetylhexapeptide-3, otherwise known as Argireline®, is a popular peptide commonly dubbed as “botox in a bottle”. By relaxing facial muscles, Argireline® reduces wrinkles and smooths skin, similar to botox.
2. Pentapeptide-3
Otherwise known as Vialox®, pentapeptide-3 is derived from snake venom and is known to block nerve signals to muscles. Clinical studies demonstrated a reduction of wrinkles by 49%, and lesser skin roughness (47%) after a treatment of 28 days with pentapeptide-3.
3. Pentapeptide-18
Pentapeptide-18 (Leuphasyl®) reduces fine lines and wrinkles, inhibits neuron activity especially when combined with other peptides.
4. Tripeptide-3
Similar to pentapeptide-3, SYN®-AKE or tripeptide-3 also mimics snake venom. It reduces wrinkles by relaxing facial muscles.
Enzyme Inhibitor Peptides
Enzyme inhibitor peptides prevent the breakdown of collagen and other skin proteins, helping to maintain that youthful look.
1. Soybean Peptides
Peptides derived from soybean helps to protect skin against UV and sun damage.
2. Silk Fibroin Peptide
Silk Fibroin peptide is known to reduce inflammation, enhance skin hydration and reduce signs of irritation. Silk Fibroin Protein has also shown antioxidant activity in mouse model.
3. Rice Peptides
Rice peptides work by inhibiting the activity of enzymes that break down skin structure. They also help to improve skin texture and reduce signs of aging.
By incorporating these peptides into your skincare routine, you can address various skin concerns, from wrinkles and fine lines to improving overall skin texture and firmness. Often peptide products that are available in the market in the form of serums, ampoules or moisturizers usually have multiple types of peptides available that enhance the efficiency of the product.
How to Use Peptides in Your Skincare Routine
Having an understanding of skin type and skin needs will help to really narrow down how to incorporate peptides in your skincare routine.
Choose the right product. Look for serums and moisturizers that list peptides as their main ingredient. Most serums available in the market usually have a good mix and match of many different peptides.
Be consistent. Use peptide products regularly to see the best results. Most studies show results after a consistent usage of at least 4 weeks and in some cases, more.
Layer correctly with the right ingredients. Peptides work well with ingredients like hyaluronic acid, vitamin c, retinol, niacinamide. Avoid mixing peptide products with hydroxy acids such as salicylic acid, and glycolic acid. The reason why peptides and salicylic acid and peptides and glycolic acid don’t mix well together is that these acids break down the peptides and lower efficacy.
Common Myths About Peptides
Myth – Peptides Replace Botox: While peptides can reduce wrinkles, they are not a direct substitute for Botox.
Myth- All Peptides are the Same: Different peptides have different functions, so it’s important to choose the right ones for your needs.
Myth- Peptides Work Overnight: It can take several weeks to see visible results from peptides, so patience is key.
Peptides are a powerful addition to your skincare routine, offering a range of benefits from anti-aging to hydration. By understanding what peptides are and how they work, you can make better choices for your skincare needs.
We hope you enjoyed reading this very lengthy article and comes from it wiser. Happy skincare journey -peptide edition 🙂