How to Reverse Skin Aging (2025)

[starspawn0]

I don’t think that actually works – maybe very mild. Increasing collagen doesn’t address the cross-linking problem. I guess the hope is that the body would fix this on its own, if you increase the supply of collagen; but it’s not a given.

Anyways, I personally don’t have much to worry about at the moment; but in 5 to 10 years… I’m not so sure (given what I see the typical skin of people in their 60s looks like).

Addendum; A paper on the effects of Tannic acid on cross-linking in sheep skin:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0142961296002025

The degree of cross-linking was proportional to the uptake of tannic acid, which varied between 6 and 35 wt%.

Also, I asked Google’s Gemini 2.5 Pro to confirm my suspicions about the necessity of cross-linking for firm skin:

‎Gemini - Collagen Crosslinking and Skin Laxity

You are correct. A lack of normal, healthy collagen crosslinking is a key reason for skin becoming loose, fragile, and overly stretchy.

This process is central to the structure and integrity of your skin. Here’s a detailed breakdown of why this happens.

[RapAdmin]

What Are Exosomes, The Lastest Skincare Ingredient Exciting Dermatologists?

Experts are whispering that this could be skincare’s newest fountain of youth.

Dermatologists Are Buzzing About A New Ingredient That Can Reverse Nearly...

The long and the short of it is…no. We don’t yet have enough scientific evidence to say with confidence that exosomes can significantly benefit the appearance of the skin. And there’s not yet a consensus on which sources of exosomes are best for which cosmetic outcomes, Dr. Eber says.

Here’s why there’s still lots of uncertainty: For one, a majority of the research investigating exosomes in cosmetics are animal studies or studies that involve human cells in a petri dish, not real humans. And while the results of those studies are indeed helpful, they’re not enough to confirm how safe and effective exosomes are when people use them, according to that 2025 review. And when it comes to the human studies that do exist, many of them include a small number of participants, which makes it difficult to draw any hard and fast conclusions. “There’s still a lot of work to be done,” Dr. Kaminer says.

There’s also a major lack of standardization when it comes to how, exactly, exosomes are harvested and used in research and cosmetics, Dr. Garibyan says. For instance, in the lab, there’s no singular gold-standard way to isolate exosomes from other “debris” that cells can release, Dr. Wyles explains. This can make it difficult to differentiate between exosomes and other materials of a similar size such as viruses, Dr. Eber adds. It also makes it difficult to differentiate between exosomes containing helpful information and ones containing potentially harmful messages. “It’s really hard to filter out just the exosomes” that you want, Dr. Wyles says.

[relaxedmeatball]

As someone on the Editorial board of an EV journal, I highly advise against using any sort of “exosome” treatments on yourself. The cosmetic products do not have cGMP manufacture, they don’t have defined critical quality attributes. You simply don’t know the safety. For anything topical (serums to go on the skin) they likely don’t penetrate. If you disrupt the skin barrier (micro needling, or injection) there are plenty of case reports and news articles out there of things going horribly wrong with exosome treatments. I won’t dig up the pictures here, but there are people who ended up with permanent scarring, a few people who have died from sepsis etc. It’s not worth it.

[starspawn0]

Abstract of a paper from South Korea (not in a great journal, but might lead somewhere; and it’s probably not even that original as far as skin applications are concerned):

https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1944/14/19/5788

(Note that it’s a porcine model, not human-tested.)

This study aimed to prove that RFP [riboflavin phosphate] combined with blue light (BL) can increase collagen crosslinking density, improving its mechanical properties in skin tissue and enhancing skin elasticity. We confirmed the RFP-induced photo-crosslinking in pure collagen by studying changes in its dynamic modulus and matrix morphology using collagen hydrogels. We also measured the changes in the mechanical properties after applying photo-crosslinking on porcine skin. The Young’s modulus (1.07 ± 0.12 MPa) and tensile strength (11.04 ± 1.06 MPa) of the porcine skin after photo-crosslinking were 2.8 and 3.5 times better compared to those of normal porcine skin, respectively.

[Beth]

Just sharing:

FDA Warns of Serious Complications Associated With Radiofrequency...

[LukeMV]

I started seeing a nurse practitioner who gives patients exosomes for their skin. Obviously, she is biased so she thinks it’s great but I just sent her that to see what she thinks.

[RapAdmin]

Stimulation of Cytoglobin Expression and Improvement in ROS-Related Aging Markers in Skin Cells with Tropaeolum majus Extract

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) and mitochondrial dysfunction play a major role in skin aging. Due to Tropaeolum majus’ suggested protective actions against ROS, a link between T. majus extract and increased cytoglobin (CYGB) expression was evaluated for cultured skin cells. Human dermal fibroblasts and keratinocytes were treated with 0.5% v/v T. majus extract and the effect of this treatment on the expression of CYGB and on a range of cellular markers of aging were evaluated. In fibroblasts, the treatment with the extract was associated with an increase in CYGB levels. It also decreased ROS concentrations, improved the function of mitochondria, and stimulated the synthesis of collagen and elastin. Moreover, it downregulated a set of genes controlling the terminal differentiation of keratinocytes. T. majus extract activates oxygen transport within natural killer cells and thus enhances their activity, suggesting a potential senolytic effect. This extract seemed to exert a protective effect on various aging pathways such as ROS production, mitochondrial dysfunction, and collagen homeostasis, playing a promising role against skin aging.

Open access paper: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9284/12/5/230

Brief AI Summary:

Here’s a summary of the paper “Stimulation of Cytoglobin Expression and Improvement in ROS-Related Aging Markers in Skin Cells with Tropaeolum majus Extract” (Cosmetics 2025) and details on the dosing/frequency and effect sizes they observed.

Summary

The study investigates how an extract of Tropaeolum majus (nasturtium) enriched in arabinogalactans (prepared by the company SILAB) acts on skin-cells (human dermal fibroblasts and keratinocytes) in vitro with respect to aging-related pathways. MDPI

Key points:

• Aging of skin is associated with increased reactive oxygen species (ROS), mitochondrial dysfunction, and breakdown of extracellular matrix (ECM: collagen & elastin) in fibroblasts and keratinocytes. MDPI+2MDPI+2
• The protein cytoglobin (CYGB) is up-regulated by the extract, and CYGB is proposed to help reduce ROS, support oxygen delivery and protect mitochondria. MDPI
• The extract treatment reduced ROS levels (both cytosolic and mitochondrial), improved mitochondrial respiration and ATP production, increased cell proliferation, and significantly boosted collagen and elastin synthesis in fibroblasts. In keratinocytes, it also modulated gene expression—down-regulating genes involved in terminal differentiation/cornified envelope formation. MDPI
• They also evaluated immune cells (NK cells) under hypoxic conditions: the extract restored NK cell activity (which declines under hypoxia) by 84 %. MDPI
• The authors conclude that T. majus extract may help protect against skin aging by reducing ROS, improving mitochondrial function, boosting ECM synthesis and promoting more regenerative keratinocyte states. MDPI

---

Dosing/Frequency

Because this is an in vitro (cell culture) study, “dosing” refers to concentration in the culture medium; “frequency” is how often the treatment was applied. (No clinical human dosing was used.)

Source:

T. majus extract enriched in arabinogalactanes was prepared by Silab (Silab, Saint-Viance, France), as described in this patent (FR2965483).

Availability:

Tropaeolum majus Extract / Nasturtium Extract is widely available from resellers on the internet if people want to try this:

ChatGPT5 Prompt:

Please identify and list 20 good value, higher volume (2 ounces or more) Nasturtium Extract serums or tinctures, identifying the percent nasturtium extract of each product, and with a priority on the lowest cost per 100ML products

CGPT5 Response:

Here’s a curated list of 20 higher-volume (≥2 oz / ~60 ml) nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus) extract tinctures/serums, prioritized toward lowest cost per 100 ml. When makers specify strength, I list the declared extract ratio or percent; if they don’t disclose it, I note “not disclosed.” Prices and sizes are straight from the product pages.

Quick read: the absolute value standouts are Helios Holland 100 ml (€5.95) and Schrocky Mountain Farm 4.2 oz ($15.83 ≈ $12.8/100 ml). Several Czech brands (Topvet / Green Idea / Dr. Max) also run ~159–220 CZK per 100 ml (very good).

Full response:

ChatGPT - Nasturtium extract tinctures list

CGPT Prompt:

Please provide an analysis and summary of this patent from Silab: patent FR2965483

Response:

Here’s a crisp, practical read-out of FR2965483 (SILAB) — “Cosmetic use of a Tropaeolum majus (nasturtium) extract as an active for promoting oxygenation of skin tissue.”

What the patent claims (in plain English)

• Purpose / use-claim: Using a nasturtium extract as a cosmetic active to improve skin oxygenation. The mechanism emphasized is (a) restoring hypoxic stress response (via HIF-1α induction) and/or (b) facilitating intracellular oxygen diffusion (via upregulating cytoglobin). Google Patents
• Composition range: Topical compositions containing the active at 0.01–20 wt% of the finished product. Patent Images
• Nature of the active: An extract enriched in arabinogalactans (low DP 2–6), and depleted in polyphenols (< 0.2% of dry matter). The extract is preferably obtained by aqueous extraction of aerial parts. Typical analytics: dry matter 10–55 g/L; total sugars 2–16 g/L (≈14–46% of dry matter); uronic acids 3–5% of dry matter. Google Patents

How they make it (extraction outline)

• Process (example):
  1. Solubilize powder of aerial parts of T. majus in water (e.g., 100 g/kg);
  2. Separate soluble/insoluble phases;
  3. Remove polyphenols by adsorption to get < 0.2% polyphenols;
  4. Filter, optionally decolorize/deodorize, then sterile filtration. Google Patents+1

Evidence provided in the patent

• In vitro (aging fibroblasts): Fractions tested at 0.25% under hypoxia show induction of HIF-1α (restored hypoxic response) and support for cytoglobin synthesis (oxygen trafficking). The active fraction is the neutral carbohydrate (arabinogalactan-rich) fraction. Patent Images
• In vivo (cosmetic study): 28-day, twice-daily facial application of an emulsion with 3% nasturtium extract (vs placebo). The a* colorimetric parameter (redness/rosiness linked to oxygenation) increased by +9.5% versus placebo, interpreted as improved oxygenation/complexion radiance.

Practical formulation guidance inferred from the text

• Dosage in finished products: 0.01–20% (the human in-vivo example used 3% in an emulsion, bid x 28 days).

Sources

Short answer: I couldn’t find any commercially sold, consumer-facing products that publicly state their formula is an emulsion containing exactly 3% nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus) extract. Brands virtually never disclose the exact % of a single botanical—SILAB’s OXYGESKIN® has a recommended use level of 1–3% in finished formulas, but the specific % used by any brand is typically undisclosed. (SILAB)

That said, here are products that explicitly claim to use OXYGESKIN® / Tropaeolum majus Flower/Leaf/Stem Extract (so they’re plausible candidates to be in the 1–3% window), with current pricing and size. I’m flagging the concentration as “% not disclosed” because none of these pages publish an exact percentage:

Product	Format	Declared % of nasturtium/OXYGESKIN	Size	Price	Notes / Source
G.M. Collin Puractive+ Cream	Emulsion cream	Not disclosed	1.7 oz (50 ml)	$68	Product page lists Oxygeskin® (Tropaeolum Majus Flower/Leaf/Stem Extract) among key ingredients. ([G.M. COLLIN® Skincare
Beauty Pie Superdrops Brightening Niacinamide	Serum (not an emulsion)	Not disclosed	30 ml	£15 (member price)	Third-party review cites “10% niacinamide + Oxygeskin”; Beauty Pie doesn’t publish the % of Oxygeskin. (The Sun)
CARELIKA Blue Light Protection Spray (with OXYGESKIN®)	Mist/spray (not an emulsion)	Not disclosed	50 ml	Price varies by distributor	Several reseller pages say the spray “contains OXYGESKIN®”; no usage % is shown. (Carelika Professional Skin Care USA)
Institut’ DERMed Bio-Derm Oxygen (pro facial kit)	Pro treatment kit (contains multiple products)	Not disclosed	Kit (multiple items)	$99 (launch price)	Brand states this professional facial incorporates OXYGESKIN®; individual product % not given. (Institut Dermed)

Note: $9 serum with OXYGESKIN®:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/167609498580?chn=ps&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-117182-37290-0&mkcid=2&mkscid=101&itemid=167609498580&targetid=2435444093014&device=c&mktype=pla&googleloc=9031959&poi=&campaignid=22900655222&mkgroupid=184692222660&rlsatarget=pla-2435444093014&abcId=10415523&merchantid=6296724&gad_source=4&gad_campaignid=22900655222&gbraid=0AAAAAD_QDh9f2OfK8JJ6bnNpaxjQkdyyV&gclid=CjwKCAjwgeLHBhBuEiwAL5gNER0vvza51dVW-UJoj150aT5LM0SxRIWjEfzxnqtBN3z6nLoOSxPIQxoC0AwQAvD_BwE

ChatGPT - Skincare products with Oxygeskin

[RapAdmin]

he Best Skincare Products for Men

[RapAdmin]

Negative results on Collagen for skin:

Effects of Collagen Supplements on Skin Aging: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Results

A total of 23 RCTs with 1474 participants were analyzed. In a meta-analysis of all 23 RCTs, collagen supplements significantly improved skin hydration, elasticity, and wrinkles. However, in the subgroup meta-analysis by funding source, studies not receiving funding from pharmaceutical companies revealed no effect of collagen supplements for improving skin hydration, elasticity, and wrinkles, while those receiving funding from pharmaceutical companies did show significant effects. Similarly, high-quality studies revealed no significant effect in all categories, while low-quality studies revealed a significant improvement in elasticity.

Conclusions

There is currently no clinical evidence to support the use of collagen supplements to prevent or treat skin aging.

Paper (open access):

https://www.amjmed.com/article/S0002-9343(25)00283-9/fulltext

[LukeMV]

I think Brad Stanfield, Siim Land, and Physionic debunked this quite well. In fact, it only made collagen sound more compelling for skin.

[relaxedmeatball]

I am very sceptical. You can also tell things are a shitshow when there is absolutely no consensus in the study design or results. For example, looking at Table 1 of the paper, you have collagen doses ranging from 0.5g per day to 50g per day, (and both of those studies claim improvements). That’s a 100-fold dose range. We wouldn’t do that with any other intervention, would we? That’s a first warning sign that you’re in a “field” of research where people are just making things up.

And if we’re talking about oral supplementation, I find it a bit baffled how/why it could work. Collagen is a pretty damn big triple helix protein. How much going to get through your stomach acid, digestive enzymes, then be absorbed, travel around the blood stream, then integrate into your skin?

The theory is that we lose dermis collagen as we age, so replacing it will slow skin aging. Apparently, people lose collagen at around 1% per year. So if you think about it, is it really possible that supplementing for 8-12 weeks going to reverse that to a degree that can be measured? Even if you completely halted all age-related collagen degradation over 12 weeks, you’d have an eventual difference of 0.23% between the groups. To get anything bigger than that, you’d be actually building collagen back into your skin.

Lastly, consider that an 8oz steak contains ~3-5g of collagen. If you enjoy the tougher parts (brisket, shank, or the edge of your sirloins etc), you could have 6-10g in one serving. If you cook things like chicken soups, you release out gelatin, which is better absorbed. So basically, if you have a decent diet, you’re already getting collagen in the range of the doses used in those studies.

It’s theoretically possible that something else is going on, such as modulating enzymes which remodel the extracellular matrix. Or maybe affecting the fibroblasts in the skin. But none of that has been convincingly shown IMO.

[RapAdmin]

from a group called “LongevityDocs”

If you’re seeing more patients interested in “anti-aging skincare,” you’re not alone — but as Dr. Saranya Wyles, Mayo Clinic, reminded us at Peptide Mastermind in NYC, the real story starts inside the cell.

Skin is the first place longevity shows up — and its dysfunction can be a biomarker for what’s happening in the vascular, metabolic, and immune systems.

The problem?

Most doctors aren’t trained to read those skin signals or understand what to do about them. And patients get funneled into short-term aesthetic fixes instead of long-term protocols that actually protect healthspan.

4 Thoughts from Dr. Wyles

1. Senescent cell accumulation shows up visibly in skin as thinning, inflammation, and fragility — especially postmenopause.
2. mTOR inhibition (via topical or oral rapamycin) is one of the most promising areas for reducing these visible and internal signs of aging.
3. Skin is a “window into tissue regeneration” — and optimizing NAD+ levels can help restore repair cycles.
4. Barrier dysfunction and immune dysregulation go hand in hand — and skincare alone won’t fix it.

If you’re seeing these signs in your patients — you’re already treating longevity, whether you call it that or not.

Our role is to give you the clinical, operational, and peer-based structure to turn that intuition into confident practice.

Catch Dr. Wyles’ full talk — plus protocols from Dr. Yurth, Dr. Koniver, and more.

Mastermind - Peptides (Digital Replay)

[starspawn0]

Following having a PICC line removed from my arm about 2 days ago, the nurses put a band-aid over the little hole in my arm – only, it was no ordinary band-aid, and it gave me the idea for better delivery mechanisms for skin topicals. Basically, they used a Tegaderm dressing, which has a large, transparent, very sticky covering, and then a little square gauze in the middle. I had had those before when seeing a doctor years back, but never knew what they were called; this time, however, they wrote it down on the instructions for when to take it off (they said “24 hours”). I think this can be purchased over-the-counter. I could imagine putting some topicals on that gauze, and then sticking it to the skin. It would really hold in the water, far better than an occlusive. I bet it would make some topicals work 2x better. Many topicals have poor skin permeability; however, if you can keep them dry, long enough, they eventually do at least partially penetrate the skin. (Though, it’s really hard to get the Tegaderm band-aid off! – it’s almost like it’s super-glued onto your skin!)

Another use might be to tighten skin, by putting the sticky part (which you can cut off) on skin and then pulling it in some direction. I’d guess it would stay stuck on your skin for about a week or more before degrading; and it would be mostly transparent, with the only giveaway being the slight glossiness in just the right lighting.

[DeStrider]

Dr. Brad talks about his favourite skin aging devices at 13:30.

Dr. Brad Stanfield's Resources

He says the results from the Rapamycin trial are available and anyone who is at the conference could talk to him and he’d tell them the results. Not sure why he didn’t talk about it in the video. His top interventions: SGLT2IS Rapamycin GLP-1s PCSK9 drugs Then he goes into skin aging at 13:30. Also Matt Kaeberlein also probably knows the results. Can anyone reach out to either of these guys to get the results? @mkaeberlein care to share here or by DM? Dr. Brad’s state of the union address on longevity. The first part is about criticizing resveratrol, so just skip that. He also criticizes Fisetin. [ - YouTube]

[relaxedmeatball]

Isn’t Tegaderm usually a hydrocolloid/hydrogel, rather than dry gauze? Either way, it’s meant to keep a moist wound healing environment to prevent scarring. (People also use them after tattoos, for example). I’m not sure it would improve delivery of topicals.

[starspawn0]

They might have inserted the gauze. The glossy plastic-like part surrounding the gauze completely locked out any chance of fluid (blood) from escaping.

I was actually a little worried the glossy sticky part would suffocate my skin.

It took me like 5 to 10 minutes to remove it. I kept trying to put the boundary over a fingernail pull it up, but it was so stuck-on it was like they had applied superglue.

Addendum: In fact, it looked like this:

https://www.cvs.com/shop/nexcare-tegaderm-pad-sterile-adhesive-pads-prodid-338552

Except, in my case the pad was smaller and square-shaped, not a long rectangle.

…

As far as whether it would make topicals work better, occlusives at least are claimed to do this. As I said, I would guess this works better than that. Maybe 2x is a bit unrealistic, though.

[starspawn0]

Google search recommends not to use Tegaderm + pad for certain topicals like retinol. I fed in, “using tegaderm with pad to increase delivery of retinol” and it said:

Do not use an occlusive dressing like a Tegaderm with a pad to increase the delivery of retinol. Applying an occlusive layer over powerful active ingredients like retinol can significantly intensify their effects, which will almost certainly lead to severe skin irritation, redness, burning, peeling, or even blistering.

Occlusion therapy works by creating a barrier that dramatically increases the absorption of topical treatments, sometimes by as much as 10 times. While this method is used under strict medical supervision for certain conditions (like psoriasis with specific medications), it is not safe for use with potent, everyday skincare ingredients like retinol without professional guidance. The increased penetration can damage your skin barrier and cause a painful reaction called retinoid dermatitis.

Though, it’s sometimes hard to tell how seriously to take Google search’s responses like this, because typing in even the slightest deviation from approved medical advice generates responses like that. Google has it tuned to make it sound like you’re absolutely going to die of deviate even just an inch from approved medical advice – and “I’m going to call the police if you do use Tegaderm like that”.

[relaxedmeatball]

Sure, but I also don’t see much sense using occlusion therapy for something like retinoids. They already pass through the skin very well. You can get them in high strengths (0.1% tretinoin) which are super effective and lots of people already can’t tolerate them. And more is also not necessarily better. It’s quite right that daily 0.1% will cause irritation in a lot of people. If you actually 10x the dose, it’s not going to make you look younger!

[starspawn0]

I asked GPT-5-thinking to analyze:

ChatGPT - Analyze social media comment

The commenter’s core point—more isn’t better with retinoids, and occlusion usually backfires for facial use—is solid. The absolutism about dosing is the only real miss: benefits don’t go to zero with higher doses, but returns flatten while irritation climbs, so smarter strategy = lowest effective strength + consistent, non-irritating use.

Some of those require a prescription,like tretinoin I think. I know that adapalene you can get over-the-counter.