What is Cosmeceuticals?

This has been one of the most asked questions I have gotten when telling people that I use to work for a company that distributed cosmeceuticals here in the UK.

The word Cosmeceutical is made up of 2 words, cosmetic and Pharmaceutical.
To make this short, in general, cosmetics are the products we get on the high street and Pharmaceuticals is products you would need a prescription for and get at a pharmacy. Now today those lines are a bit blurred, as companies are bringing out more and more products that are high in active ingredients and are more easily available, but this is just as a general guideline to understanding what a cosmeceutical is.

Cosmetic, as a generalisation, works on the top layers of your skin as they often have none or very low percentage of active ingredients,  and pharmaceutical is a product that will target a skin problem head on and is quite high in active ingredients, therefore would need a prescription from your doctor or a dermatologist to buy.  

So just like its name, cosmecutical lie right in the middle of the two, it is high in active ingredients, but not so high that it would require a prescription, but would still need a bit of guidance before buying.
With a cosmeceutical you are more likely to see a big difference on your skin, because of the percentage of active ingredients and the way they are formulated, they will get deeper into your skin and target the area where you want it to make a difference. Now this obviously varies from product line to product line, but as a general again.

But because some cosmeceutical products are quite high in active ingredients, it is always still a good idea to have your skin looked at by a professional like a beauty therapist before buying. Especially in cases where the product encourages skin renewal or is exfoliating, because in these cases you would need the right skin protection to go with it.