Thoraiya DyerSnail Slime for Curing Acne
April 26th 2008 23:43
Following on from the wrinkle cream debacle, I’ve had a debunking request from a reader who came across the following product: “Bioskinforte” from Acnebalm, http://www.acnebalm.com/
On closer inspection, there are dozens of pimple creams out there containing slime from the garden snail, Helix aspersa muller. Who would have guessed?
From exzemaconcerns.com: “Helix Aspersa Muller Glycoconjugates functions as a natural treatment for scars when applied to the skin. What this complex compound does is send a dispatch to your body to regenerate itself from within. The glycoconjugates activate the natural skin growth factors inside your body. They are a completely natural skin treatment product.”
There is general agreement from Wikipedia: “The idea behind biological treatment of acne scarring is that old, damaged tissues and scars are replaced by new cells. Some topical treatments contain ingredients that start this chain of events, which is mucin from the snail Helix Aspersa Müller. The secretion from the Helix Aspersa Müller regulates the skin healing and scar formation process. These topical treatments focus on the creation of healthy skin cells instead of aggravating the body´s inflammatory immune system response. The natural ingredients can saturate deep into the skin and promote cellular turnover.”
Their quoted wikisource is skincarephysicians.com, a site bearing the stamp of approval of the American Academy of Dermatology. However, if you actually visit the site, there is no mention of snail slime treatment. Instead, there is this:
““Herbal,” “organic” and "natural" products:
Over-the-counter products labeled “herbal,” "organic" or "natural" are marketed as acne treatments but their effectiveness has rarely been tested in clinical trials. The value of such treatments is generally unknown.”
What they do list, for mild to moderate acne, are over-the-counter medications with proven efficacy, ie those containing alcohol/acetone, benzoyl peroxide, resorcinol/sulfur, and salicylic acid.
They also list the following prescription medications: Corticosteroid injections, isotretinoin (oral), oral antibiotics, topical antibiotics and topical retinoids (vitamin A derivatives) .
They recommend any and all products be used under a dermatologist’s supervision, and if the medications are insufficient, they have a whole horde of surgical and laser treatments on offer.
A skeptical person might argue that the dermatologists have a vested interest in getting clients through the door for expensive treatments that aren’t necessary.
Personally, I would trust a dermatologist over the granny next door that tells you Every Kid Gets Acne, You’ll Grow Out Of It.
But let’s stay focused on the evidence.
One site that goes into a more in-depth explanation is Biobodyshape.com, website here .
“The Helix Aspersa Müller Glycoconjugates Have Fibroblast Growth Factor Activity.”
At last, we begin to get an inkling of how snail slime could work.
What is a fibroblast growth factor?
Dr Michael Lam, M.D., M.P.H., A.B.A.A.M., a specialist in Preventive and Anti-Aging Medicine, writes that FGFs are, “a group of growth factors that act on the fibroblast within the body. Fibroblasts are basic building blocks of fibrous tissue, including the brain, nervous system, eye, blood vessels, heart, stomach, skin, liver, kidney, muscle and bone. In fact, most cells within these organs possess receptors for FGF and therefore are susceptible to its biological effect.”
According to Dr Lam, studies on FGFs have shown that the epidermis, dermis, and underlying blood supply to the skin all respond to FGF therapy.
But then we run into an all-too-familiar stumbling block.
The FGF therapy in his cited studies involved giving the stuff as an oral supplement, not as a topical cream.
“Commercially available FGF is of very low dosage and classified as a food supplement under FDA regulations. Side effects have not been reported. Due to its stimulatory effect on fibrous tissues, active cancer or pregnant patients should avoid taking this as a food supplement unless cleared by a physician.”
Plus, in an RnD Systems article (here) with a list of references longer than the Great Wall Of China, we discover that,
“To date, 22 human FGFs have been identified, including FGF-1 through 14 plus 16 through 23.”
And, that although “Human FGF-18 shares 99% aa identity with both mouse and rat FGF-18,” “Human FGF-21 demonstrates only 75% aa identity with mouse FGF-21” and “FGF-19 is only known in human”.
You mean that human FGFs are different to mouse (and therefore, potentially snail) FGFs?
Now, not only do I have to find evidence that snail FGFs and/or glycoconjugates work on human skin, but I have to find out if just whacking it on is enough to permit the complex molecules to reach FGF receptors in the deeper layers of the skin.
Going back to the Biobodyshape article, we find further explanations, along with a reference:
“Fibroblast growth factors …have been shown to be more than growth factors: they can protect epithelial cells from damaging effects induced, for example, by radiation and oxidative stress. Therefore, they are currently in clinical trials for the treatment of oral mucositis.
Reference: “Fibroblast growth factors in epithelial repair and cytoprotection”. Susanne Braun, Ulrich auf dem Keller, Heike Steiling and Sabine Werner Institute of Cell Biology, Department of Biology, ETH Zurich, Honggerberg, CH-8093 Zurich, Switzerland. April 2004.”
I checked, and yes, that is a direct quote from the article extract. But the authors did not test snail slime. What they did was review the current literature, which includes studies showing FGF receptor mutations cause disease in humans, that FGF-7 and FGF-10 switch certain genes on and off in mice, and that FGF levels are higher in regenerating tissue.
Other studies found FGF-22 on the surfaces of certain cells in adult and embryonic mice, concluding that it had a role in skin development and repair.
Searching the Medical Journals database, PubMed, for “Helix Aspersa Muller” I find lots of articles on heavy metal accumulation in snails and how you can use them for ground contamination risk assessments, using snail slime to make futuristic glue - even one about teaching snails to lower their tentacles on command (hahaha) but nothing about their use as an acne treatment.
The best I can do is quote a study on a different snail, Cryptomphalus aspera, which showed that the glycoproteins present in this snail’s slime was effective in improving the treatment of acute radiodermatitis (here ).
Radiocare products are recommended for radiation burns, such as those associated with cancer treatment (not acne). Sadly, it doesn’t really answer whether the snail slime is absorbed through the skin or not, as these patients have open wounds.
Still, there is nothing to disprove the theory, either. It’s possible that snail glycoconjugates can penetrate through all the dead skin cells to reach living cells.
It’s possible that they can’t.
Why don’t these bloody salespeople wait for the evidence before they start plugging something as proven? That’s what really ticks me off. I stop caring whether the slime works or not – what I care about is the promotion of a product while the jury is still out. Why don’t you peel some dollars away from your stupid, misleading advertising budget and pay for a clinical trial instead?
But I’m an old grouch, and normal people probably shouldn’t listen to me. Go ahead, be optimistic! Give snail slime a go.
On closer inspection, there are dozens of pimple creams out there containing slime from the garden snail, Helix aspersa muller. Who would have guessed?
From exzemaconcerns.com: “Helix Aspersa Muller Glycoconjugates functions as a natural treatment for scars when applied to the skin. What this complex compound does is send a dispatch to your body to regenerate itself from within. The glycoconjugates activate the natural skin growth factors inside your body. They are a completely natural skin treatment product.”
There is general agreement from Wikipedia: “The idea behind biological treatment of acne scarring is that old, damaged tissues and scars are replaced by new cells. Some topical treatments contain ingredients that start this chain of events, which is mucin from the snail Helix Aspersa Müller. The secretion from the Helix Aspersa Müller regulates the skin healing and scar formation process. These topical treatments focus on the creation of healthy skin cells instead of aggravating the body´s inflammatory immune system response. The natural ingredients can saturate deep into the skin and promote cellular turnover.”
Their quoted wikisource is skincarephysicians.com, a site bearing the stamp of approval of the American Academy of Dermatology. However, if you actually visit the site, there is no mention of snail slime treatment. Instead, there is this:
““Herbal,” “organic” and "natural" products:
Over-the-counter products labeled “herbal,” "organic" or "natural" are marketed as acne treatments but their effectiveness has rarely been tested in clinical trials. The value of such treatments is generally unknown.”
What they do list, for mild to moderate acne, are over-the-counter medications with proven efficacy, ie those containing alcohol/acetone, benzoyl peroxide, resorcinol/sulfur, and salicylic acid.
They also list the following prescription medications: Corticosteroid injections, isotretinoin (oral), oral antibiotics, topical antibiotics and topical retinoids (vitamin A derivatives) .
They recommend any and all products be used under a dermatologist’s supervision, and if the medications are insufficient, they have a whole horde of surgical and laser treatments on offer.
A skeptical person might argue that the dermatologists have a vested interest in getting clients through the door for expensive treatments that aren’t necessary.
Personally, I would trust a dermatologist over the granny next door that tells you Every Kid Gets Acne, You’ll Grow Out Of It.
But let’s stay focused on the evidence.
One site that goes into a more in-depth explanation is Biobodyshape.com, website here .
“The Helix Aspersa Müller Glycoconjugates Have Fibroblast Growth Factor Activity.”
At last, we begin to get an inkling of how snail slime could work.
What is a fibroblast growth factor?
Dr Michael Lam, M.D., M.P.H., A.B.A.A.M., a specialist in Preventive and Anti-Aging Medicine, writes that FGFs are, “a group of growth factors that act on the fibroblast within the body. Fibroblasts are basic building blocks of fibrous tissue, including the brain, nervous system, eye, blood vessels, heart, stomach, skin, liver, kidney, muscle and bone. In fact, most cells within these organs possess receptors for FGF and therefore are susceptible to its biological effect.”
According to Dr Lam, studies on FGFs have shown that the epidermis, dermis, and underlying blood supply to the skin all respond to FGF therapy.
But then we run into an all-too-familiar stumbling block.
The FGF therapy in his cited studies involved giving the stuff as an oral supplement, not as a topical cream.
“Commercially available FGF is of very low dosage and classified as a food supplement under FDA regulations. Side effects have not been reported. Due to its stimulatory effect on fibrous tissues, active cancer or pregnant patients should avoid taking this as a food supplement unless cleared by a physician.”
Plus, in an RnD Systems article (here) with a list of references longer than the Great Wall Of China, we discover that,
“To date, 22 human FGFs have been identified, including FGF-1 through 14 plus 16 through 23.”
And, that although “Human FGF-18 shares 99% aa identity with both mouse and rat FGF-18,” “Human FGF-21 demonstrates only 75% aa identity with mouse FGF-21” and “FGF-19 is only known in human”.
You mean that human FGFs are different to mouse (and therefore, potentially snail) FGFs?
Now, not only do I have to find evidence that snail FGFs and/or glycoconjugates work on human skin, but I have to find out if just whacking it on is enough to permit the complex molecules to reach FGF receptors in the deeper layers of the skin.
Going back to the Biobodyshape article, we find further explanations, along with a reference:
“Fibroblast growth factors …have been shown to be more than growth factors: they can protect epithelial cells from damaging effects induced, for example, by radiation and oxidative stress. Therefore, they are currently in clinical trials for the treatment of oral mucositis.
Reference: “Fibroblast growth factors in epithelial repair and cytoprotection”. Susanne Braun, Ulrich auf dem Keller, Heike Steiling and Sabine Werner Institute of Cell Biology, Department of Biology, ETH Zurich, Honggerberg, CH-8093 Zurich, Switzerland. April 2004.”
I checked, and yes, that is a direct quote from the article extract. But the authors did not test snail slime. What they did was review the current literature, which includes studies showing FGF receptor mutations cause disease in humans, that FGF-7 and FGF-10 switch certain genes on and off in mice, and that FGF levels are higher in regenerating tissue.
Other studies found FGF-22 on the surfaces of certain cells in adult and embryonic mice, concluding that it had a role in skin development and repair.
Searching the Medical Journals database, PubMed, for “Helix Aspersa Muller” I find lots of articles on heavy metal accumulation in snails and how you can use them for ground contamination risk assessments, using snail slime to make futuristic glue - even one about teaching snails to lower their tentacles on command (hahaha) but nothing about their use as an acne treatment.
The best I can do is quote a study on a different snail, Cryptomphalus aspera, which showed that the glycoproteins present in this snail’s slime was effective in improving the treatment of acute radiodermatitis (here ).
Radiocare products are recommended for radiation burns, such as those associated with cancer treatment (not acne). Sadly, it doesn’t really answer whether the snail slime is absorbed through the skin or not, as these patients have open wounds.
Still, there is nothing to disprove the theory, either. It’s possible that snail glycoconjugates can penetrate through all the dead skin cells to reach living cells.
It’s possible that they can’t.
Why don’t these bloody salespeople wait for the evidence before they start plugging something as proven? That’s what really ticks me off. I stop caring whether the slime works or not – what I care about is the promotion of a product while the jury is still out. Why don’t you peel some dollars away from your stupid, misleading advertising budget and pay for a clinical trial instead?
But I’m an old grouch, and normal people probably shouldn’t listen to me. Go ahead, be optimistic! Give snail slime a go.
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