Our facial skin is our business card and not an experimental lab. As such, we want to expose it only to substances that have been clinically tested as safe for the skin and have been scientifically proven to have significant functionality in improving the health and appearance of the skin. And as we know – no one person is the same as the other, and our skin as well – needs a professional diagnosis and personal adjustment of the products that are right for it. Personalization leads to a better tailored and results-driven skin care.
In the MAHUT product series you will not find promises for "glowing and tight skin", "erasing pigmentation", "deflating puffy eyes", and a variety of promises for results that are neither scientifically proven nor documented. You will also not find a diamond dust scrub or a golden nourishing mask. This is due to the fact that none of these ingredients have been scientifically proven as effective, and although the user experience is also important (and a gold mask gets far more likes on Instagram than a simple white or clear mask), our facial skin is our business card – not an experimental lab.
MAHUT is the little boy in an enthusiastic crowd who shouts "The king is naked!!". No longer an aggressive consumption driven by trends and exotic materials, but an educated consumption, based on a deep understanding of the ingredients of cosmetic products, and their adaptation to personal needs. Knowledge is power.
In general, cosmetic products consist of 3 types of ingredients:
In simple terms – the active ingredients are responsible for the purpose for which the product was created (moisturizing, treatment of pigmentation, acne, etc.). The base materials are responsible for the texture of the product – whether it is rich or light, with a gel or oil texture, etc. Finally, the additives are responsible for the color and smell of the product. In fact, the additives do not affect the activity of the product or its level of absorption, only its "packaging".
Take a look at the list of ingredients in the cosmetic product you are using. Chances are you will find well over 25 components, possibly up to about 50 different components. As with any other product – the more ingredients in the cosmetic product, the more likely it is to find more allergens and with them the chance of suffering from an allergic reaction to the product.
"Sigal, who was diagnosed with sensitive skin, came to me after deciding that the solution for her sensitive skin was cosmetics based on natural ingredients. Unfortunately, even though she tried dozens of natural ingredients products, her skin would still react to them with redness and a burning sensation." says Dr. Marina Landau.
“The solution I offered her was simpler than she could have expected. Look for a cosmetic product with the shortest list of ingredients you can find. That product was actually sold over the counter in the pharma stores and was not actually based on natural ingredients, but it contained 14 ingredients. It contained about 40% of the ingredients in the natural product she was using. We combined this product with a soothing aloe vera solution, and within a few days, Sigal noticed a significant reduction in redness of the skin and a complete disappearance of the burning sensation."
Sigal is not alone. In fact, today, about 20% of the population identify themselves as having sensitive skin. This is about 1 in five people. Therefore, the importance of reducing the amount of ingredients in any cosmetic product only to the minimum necessary to achieve the desired result – becomes even more important.
Following this belief, MAHUT products do not contain additives such as perfumes and color, and the ingredient list of the series includes only active ingredients and basic ingredients – and these are limited to the minimum required to achieve the expected desired of the product.
In general, cosmetics describe 5 types of skin: oily, dry, normal, mixed and sensitive.
Each of these skin types has unique characteristics, and therefore the cosmetics have been developed to suit these 5 different skin types. Tell me what type of skin you have, and I will tell you what cosmetic product you should use. Simple.
If it's that simple, then why is it so complicated?
Because like everything else in life, even in skin types, we are human beings. We are not one-dimensional beings. Some people suffer from dry skin that is also sensitive. There are those who deal with oily skin (identified with younger skin) but also suffer from wrinkles (more common in perimenopausal and mature skin). Some have normal skins, which due to hormonal cycles, develop pigmentation and / or acne. There are countless other such combinations.
For men, for example, the skin is usually oilier than for women. The range of oils in their skin is higher and their skin produces increased levels of sebum, compared to women’s skin. While older male demonstrates lower levels of oil compared to younger male skin, it will still be less likely to suffer from skin dryness than and loss of moisture than female skin.
For women (as always) the story is more complicated.
In women, we are looking at 3 skin groups: (a) young skin, (b) perimenopausal skin, (c) mature skin.
Generally, younger skin is characterized by a higher level of oiliness and a tendency to acne. Mature skin is characterized by a high level of dryness and a tendency to wrinkles. Perimenopausal skin is the same skin attributed to the age group of 35-50, and is particularly challenging, since due to hormonal imbalance and significant hormonal changes, it can produce symptoms that characterize different skin types that were not present in the same female skin before the perimenopause, such as pigmentation or acne.
What is the perimenopause phenomenon?
Perimenopause is a period that begins several years before menopause, in which the ovaries gradually begin to produce less estrogen. These are usually women in their early forties, but this stage can begin as early as in a woman’s thirties. The perimenopause period generally lasts an average of 4 years, but for some women the period can end within a few months, while for others it can last a decade long. The official end of this period is when a woman goes through 12 months without getting her period.
Diagnosing the skin type and its subtypes has a decisive effect on the way it is treated, and therefore customizing the skin care product according to the age and characteristics of the skin, requires an accurate diagnosis and a deep understanding of the basic chemical and biological processes in the skin.
According to Dr. Marina Landau’s philosophy, the way the patient experiences her skin has a significant part in its diagnosis and definition. However, it is not exclusive. Usually, a patient will not know how to describe her skin type with a direct question, so we developed the SKINALYZER self-diagnosis quiz, which together with professional eyes, who have undergone the right training and certification – can produce optimal accuracy skin diagnosis.
By now, we already understand that skin type is not the end of the story. Different skin types and different specific indications can exist in one patient. After the professional diagnosis has been made, it is time to adjust the care product.
"False matching of a cosmetic product, even after a correct and professional diagnosis, can bring with it devastating results," says Dr. Marina Landau. Hila, a 36-year-old patient, came to me due to a massive outbreak of acne. When I asked her if anything had changed in her daily skin-care routine, she told me she had started using a rich and thick "anti-aging" night cream. "I have reached the age to begin anti-ageing" she testified. What she did not know was that although her skin type was originally normal, that is, skin whose oily-dryness levels were relatively balanced, the hormonal cycle she experienced caused her skin to develop acne at a relatively negligible level, but the use of the night cream rich with skin butters, only worsened the situation. "She switched to a lighter, gel-based night cream, and I gave her a dedicated acne treatment. Within 3 months, Hila's skin returned to its original appearance and the acne outbreak remained a bitter but distant memory”
In fact, the combinations of skin types: oily / mixed / dry / normal, along with its level of sensitivity: sensitive / resistant with specific indications for treatment: acne / anti-aging / pigmentation, etc … – they are endless.
Imagine a three-dimensional matrix (skin type, sensitivity level and indication) within which a combination of each parameter within the same dimension is possible with any other parameter in each of the other two dimensions, and also with both. Confused?
It gets even more complicated… Skin can suffer from more than one indication, that is – suffer from wrinkles that require anti-aging treatments but also from pigmentation that requires a dedicated treatment. What is the solution?
Modular cosmetics
When we have a sore throat and also a fever, we know how to take antibiotics alongside paracetamol. We do this because we know that the body, and in particular – the digestive system has the ability to absorb both drugs and allow each of them to do what it is designed for. It would not have occurred to us to look for antibiotics that also lower fever, or vice versa, a paracetamol pill that also knows how to treat bacterial sore throats.
So why do we do this in cosmetics?
Our skin, just like the digestive system, has the ability to absorb product over product into the epidermis, and let each product fulfill its purpose, without compromising its effectiveness. This is how modular cosmetics was born: a variety of cosmetic products, with each product dedicated to a specific skin indication, and the combination between them provides the answer to the personal needs of a specific patient.
Thus, moisturizers (morning cream, night, etc.) will be adapted to the skin type – oily / dry, etc., but the treatment will be completed using specific serums: anti-aging, acne prevention, pigmentation prevention, etc. – which will be applied (as needed) as a base layer, under the moisturizers.
This method allows each patient to achieve maximum care, without compromising the quality of the results due to a "conflict" between different and various cosmetic products.
The skin is the main line of defense against environmental conditions, such as: moisture levels, temperature, sunlight, harmful microorganisms, etc.
Although environmental conditions change all the time, conditions within the body generally remain stable, thanks to the epidermal barrier.
The epidermal barrier is the outermost layer of the skin, which in the past was thought to consist of purposeless dead skin cells. In recent years, new scientific discoveries indicate that the components of these cells and the substances surrounding them (fatty molecules – lipids, the main of which – ceramides) together make up the reverse line of defense of the skin – that is, act as a buffer and prevent the "escape" of essential substances from the body out.
In various situations the activity of the epidermal barrier is disrupted and as a result the function and appearance of the skin is impaired.
What can cause damage to the epidermal barrier?
The most immediate and noticeable effect of damage to the function of the epidermal barrier is manifested in the loss of moisture, or the inability of the skin to preserve moisture within it. As a result, the level of inflammation of the skin increases and it becomes irritated, sensitive, red, loses its elasticity, volume, and radiance.
Furthermore, even when there are no visible skin effects, recent innovative studies have shown that in a state of decreased function of the epidermal barrier, high levels of inflammation were measured in the blood circulation itself. That is, the health of the epidermal barrier has a general effect on the health of the skin and body as a whole.
How to maintain or repair the epidermal barrier?
In order for the epidermal barrier to function properly, the level of moisture and fatty components which comprise it are important. About 50% of the fatty components are molecules called ceramides. That is, the essence of healthy skin is to maintain enough ceramides and moisture.
MAHUT is a series of cosmetic products whose primary purpose is to repair the epidermal barrier and regain its optimal function, with the understanding that a normal epidermal barrier is also a precondition for treatments of other cosmetic indications of the skin (such as acne pigmentation, wrinkles, etc. – caused from processes in the deeper layers of the skin).
As such, the MAHUT series is built around the SUPCERAT™ complex, which Dr. Landau has developed exclusively in cutting edge laboratories in the south of France, where it was also clinically tested on skin samples. SUPCERAT™ contains ceramides, a unique energizing peptide and a powerful antioxidant from the Camu Camu extract (super fruit from the Amazonian forests).
Read more about SUPCERAT™.
