NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - September 7, 2010) - Thousands of anti-aging products crowd drugstore shelves and department store counters, but do any of them really erase fine lines and wrinkles, or give women the more youthful appearance they are searching for? To help readers find out, Good Housekeeping performed the first -- and largest -- scientific study comparing products making anti-aging claims in a dozen categories. The magazine's First Annual Anti-Aging Awards are revealed in the October issue, on sale September 14.
The scientists at the Good Housekeeping Research Institute evaluated 90 products in 12 categories, conducting 3,000 lab tests and 5,600 before and after photos on 820 volunteers, ages 35 and older, over the course of 18 months. The 14 winning treatments and 12 honorable mentions received the highest rankings in lab and consumer tests and will offer readers guidance to make the smartest investments in products that actually work.
"Anti-aging claims are everywhere, and it's frustrating to buy a product -- often an expensive one -- and find that it doesn't perform," says Rosemary Ellis, editor-in-chief of Good Housekeeping. "We weren't sure if anything we tested would really work -- but some did, and the best performers weren't always the most expensive ones." Ellis points out, "In the Good Housekeeping Research Institute, we have the in-house ability to evaluate products based on science and experimentation. So we can make recommendations our readers can really trust."
Before-and-after evaluations were conducted on the Research Institute's state-of-the-art equipment, which includes a Visia Complexion Analyzer, to examine skin's texture, expose UV damage before it appears on the skin's surface, and electronically count wrinkles and age spots; a Cutometer, to measure skin's firmness; a Chroma Meter, to read the color of age spots, dark circles, and red patches; and a Corneometer, to measure skin hydration. These tests, combined with the feedback and evaluations of the 820 participating women, determined the rankings. The winners range in price from $10 to $150, and from prestige, department store-only brands, to niche boutique lines, to products found in drugstore chains around the country.
To provide insight and valuable expertise about the anti-aging category and effective ingredients before testing began, Good Housekeeping created its own Anti-Aging Awards Advisory Board with some of the leading dermatologists in the country: Diane S. Berson, M.D.; Doris Day, M.D.; Jeanine Downie, M.D.; Zoe Diana Draelos, M.D.; and Ellen Marmur, M.D.
Good Housekeeping's 2010 Anti-Aging Award Winners are:
Best Facial Moisturizer with SPF 15+:
- Chanel Ultra Correction Lift Lifting Firming Day Cream SPF 15: $150
Best Eye Cream:
- Olay Pro-X Eye Restoration Complex: $42
Best Night Cream (tie):
- L'Oréal Paris Advanced RevitaLift Deep-Set Wrinkle Repair Night Creme: $20
- Vichy Lift-Activ Retinol HA Night: $42
Best Anti-Aging Serum:
- Boots No7 Protect & Perfect Intense Beauty Serum: $23
Best Body Lotion:
- Fresh Sugar Açai Age-Delay Body Cream: $65
Best Hand Cream with SPF 15+:
- Dior Capture Totale Multi-Perfection Hand Repair Creme SPF 15: $56
Best Instant Wrinkle Smoother (tie):
- Boots No7 Intensive Line Filler: $18
- Olay Regenerist Filling + Sealing Wrinkle Treatment: $19
Best At-Home Peel:
- Boots No7 Advanced Renewal Anti-ageing Glycolic Peel Kit: $25
Best Facial Firmer:
- Peter Thomas Roth Firmx Growth Factor Extreme Neuropeptide Serum: $150
Best Age-Spot Fader:
- Roc Multi Correxion Tone Perfecting Treatment: $13.80
Best Instant Redness Reducer:
- Clinique Redness Solutions Instant Relief Mineral Powder: $32.50
Best Body Sunscreen with SPF 30+:
- Banana Boat Ultra Defense SPF 50 Lotion: $10
For the complete results of Good Housekeeping's Anti-Aging Awards, including the 12 honorable mentions, visit www.goodhousekeeping.com/antiagingtips.
Product photos for Good Housekeeping's Anti-Aging Awards are available upon request.
About Good Housekeeping
Founded in 1885, Good Housekeeping (www.goodhousekeeping.com) magazine reaches 25 million readers each month. In addition to the print title, there is The Good Housekeeping Research Institute, the consumer product evaluation laboratory of Good Housekeeping magazine. Founded in 1900 and continuing today with the same mission, the Research Institute is dedicated to improving the lives of consumers and their families through education and product evaluation. Only products evaluated by the Good Housekeeping Research Institute can be accepted for advertising in the magazine, and thereby become eligible to display the Good Housekeeping Seal, the hallmark that provides assurance to readers that the products advertised in the magazine are backed by a two-year limited warranty against being defective, with specified exceptions. Readers can also interact with the brand on the digital front, with Good Housekeeping mobile (m.goodhousekeeping.com). In addition to its U.S. flagship, Good Housekeeping publishes 15 editions around the world. Good Housekeeping is published by Hearst Magazines, a unit of Hearst Corporation (www.hearst.com) and one of the world's largest publishers of monthly magazines, with more than 200 editions around the world, including 14 U.S. titles and 20 magazines in the United Kingdom, published through its wholly owned subsidiary, The National Magazine Company Limited. Hearst reaches more adults than any other publisher of monthly magazines (73.8 million total adults, according to MRI, Fall 2009).
Contact Information:
Media Contacts:
Kelly Carone Abdo
212.649.2321
kcaroneabdo@hearst.com
Alexandra Carlin
212.649.2573
acarlin@hearst.com