Is Electricity the Key to Healthier, Younger-Looking Skin?

How One Company is Changing the Game in the World of Skincare

Trying to navigate the $134.8 billion global skincare industry is dizzying, to say the least.1 From sunscreens, lotions, masks, oils, and even snail slime, it can make you feel like you need a medical degree just to purchase a simple moisturizer. 

So it may not be surprising to see an increasing number of high-tech tools and gadgets entering the skincare market. After all, it’s not enough to employ ingredients in correct combinations — there has to be a way to ensure that the ingredients penetrate the skin and get to where they need to go. 

The FRANZ Premium Microcurrent Mask System is the world’s first at-home, microcurrent — yes, electricity — sheet mask system that delivers the benefits of vitamins and anti-aging ingredients to the innermost layers of your skin. Join us as we discuss why this unique system has been called a “game changer” in the skincare industry.

 

The Aging Skin

Let’s take a brief look at the aging skin. 

Your skin is composed of three layers — the epidermis, dermis, and the subcutaneous tissue. The epidermis, the outermost layer, protects the internal tissues against infectious agents, chemicals, allergens, stress, etc. This is the layer that is rich in keratin and is also where dead cells are shed. The second layer, the dermis, is composed of nerves, blood vessels, elastin, fats, and collagen fibers which provide elasticity. Finally, the subcutaneous tissue is the innermost layer of the skin that functions to keep the body temperature stable and hold our internal organs in place. 

A normal, healthy skin has an even tone and is unblemished. Components like collagen, elastin, glycosaminoglycans (GAGs), and others are abundant. 

So what causes the skin to become thin and wrinkled?

Skin aging occurs due to both intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Starting around age 20, the average person produces one percent less collagen in the dermis per year. Collagen provides skin firmness, and without it, the skin becomes thinner and more fragile. As we age further, the continuing degeneration of collagen, elastin, fibrillin, and other components of the skin lead to thin, easily bruised skin with decreased ability to retain water.2,3

Extrinsic aging occurs as a result of environmental factors, such as UV radiation exposure and pollution, for example. This type of aging can show up as:

• Thickening of the cornified layer (the outer layer of the epidermis)
• Precancerous changes (ex: lesions called actinic keratosis)
• Skin cancer 
• Formation of freckles and sun spots
• Significant losses of collagen, elastin, and GAGs

Whether alone or in combination, these factors result in uneven skin tone, brown patches, thin skin, and wrinkles.

Prevention is key when trying to minimize wrinkles. Sun protection is critical, and there are a myriad of anti-aging skin products to choose from, but ensuring that they are delivered where they are needed is not so easy. Your skin’s barrier functions, while beneficial, severely limit the types of drugs that can be delivered through topical or transdermal systems to those that are highly lipophilic (able to dissolve in fats, oils, and other lipids) and low in molecular weight (<500 Daltons).4 And perhaps unsurprisingly, the natural biomaterials lost as you age are typically much larger:

• Collagen – 300,000 Daltons
• Elastin – 70,000 Daltons
• Oligo hyaluronic acid  – 500 to 10,000 Daltons
• Ceramide NP – 500 Daltons

Naturally, it makes sense that if we could somehow replenish these biomaterials, we might be able to slow down the formation of wrinkles and other signs of aging skin. And some scientists believe that an iontophoresis-based method is the key.  

 

What is Iontophoresis?

We are all familiar with the principles of charge interaction, “like repels like” and “opposites attract.” These are the same basic principles behind iontophoresis. 

As its name suggests, iontophoresis combines the nature of ions — atoms or molecules with either a positive or negative charge — with low-level, continuous, electric current to drive them into the skin. Here’s the key to how this works: the ionic substance must have the same charge as the active or working electrode. In other words, positive ions will be repelled into the skin by a positively charged electrode, and negative ions will be similarly affected by a negatively charged electrode. 

As you can imagine, there are several limitations to the traditional iontophoresis-based transdermal delivery systems. For one, they require a circuit system with a power supply that’s generally expensive and non-portable. Iontophoresis can also induce adverse effects that are mostly uncomfortable but harmless, such as a sensation of tingling or itching, depending on the density of the electric current applied. Other concerns include material defects that can cause skin injuries and overdose of the delivered substance. 

To overcome these disadvantages, a team of researchers at the Seoul National University of South Korea developed a novel reverse electrodialysis (RED)-driven iontophoretic system called TISSUE X™.

 

FRANZ Jet Dual Mask System

The FRANZ Jet Dual Mask System uses RED, a method that generates salinity gradient energy by mixing solutions with different salinity. This energy is then converted directly into electrical energy.5 Using this physiologically acceptable current, TISSUE X™ drives many beneficial biomolecules into and across the skin, including:

• Hyaluronic acids
• Peptides
• Ceramide
• Collagen
• Vitamins

The result is clearer, smoother, younger-looking skin with visibly enhanced elasticity in just minutes, all done in the convenience of your own home.

In one clinical trial, all 20 patients tolerated the FRANZ Jet Dual Mask System well and reported significant decreases in the following after four weeks of using the product: 

• Blackheads
• Microcysts
• Papules
• Pustules

A second clinical trial with 25 patients showed that the FRANZ Jet Dual Mask System improved skin elasticity (average 11 percent) and firmness (average 16 percent), and reduced wrinkle length (average 14 percent) and depth (average 10 percent) in just eight weeks. For each trial, no one reported symptoms that could indicate intolerance to any component of the product, such as irritation, burning sensation, redness, or itching. The product also did not cause any skin dryness. 

The 3-step FRANZ Jet Dual Mask System guarantees that the nourishing and reparative powers of biomolecules like collagen reach the innermost layers of your skin. If you’re looking for a true game changer to your skincare routine, FRANZ Jet Dual Mask System is your solution.   Check out the video on How to Use Your new Dr. Franz skin care mask!

Now it’s time to hear from you. What does your skincare regimen include? Have you ever tried iontophoresis done by a professional? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!

 

References:

1. https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/skin-care-products-market
2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6047276/
3. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10989-019-09827-1
4. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10717544.2017.1367975
5. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10717544.2017.1282555