Beauty from within: What trends will inform the next wave of innovation?

During a recent webinar co-hosted by CosmeticsDesign-USA and NutraIngredients-USA, experts from the cosmeceutical space took a look at how far the beauty-from-within category has come and where it's headed.

Paula Simpson, innovation, product development and branding consultant at Nutribloom Consulting, noted that 20+ years ago, nutricosmetics were really focused on a one-tier approach, such as anti-aging or targeted skin health. She added that there was also a lack of clinical data to support nutraceutical supplementation for aesthetic appearance. 

"So with that, formulations tended to be a little bit of a ‘kitchen sink' or lacked the knowledge of how to formulate with synergistic ingredients and how they would work on our overall aesthetic appearance. So all this brought out really unrealistic and generalized claims [...]," she said.

"And then when we think of nutricosmetics there's obviously a shift from anti-aging and aesthetic focus to more lifestyle and longevity now [...], we've advanced a lot also in science now and research and different areas in the microbiome and whatnot. And looking at ingredients and how they work in the body, we have a fuller understanding on how to formulate more efficacious formulations today."

And the way the products are being marketed and sold is changing too.

Simpson said she is noticing supplements being incorporated into more things, such as booster ingredients to support skin health for those with active lifestyles prone to dehydration, for instance. 

She added that from a retail perspective, beauty supplements are also being marketed and positioned much differently today. 

"You're also seeing them more in treatment-oriented spaces, like medical aesthetic treatments, to support the healing of non-invasive medical aesthetic treatments or even invasive to some degree," she said. "So you're not seeing the beauty supplements in just the Sephoras or the Whole Foods anymore. They really are merging into different areas for more specific, targeted demographics and conditions."

Social media’s impact 

Sherry Frey, vice president of wellness at NielsenIQ, also highlighted the rising importance of social media platforms like TikTok, which are more common among younger generations who use the platforms for product discovery and to inform purchases. 

"We started to track TikTok in the fall of last year, and health and beauty is of course, one of the top categories where we are seeing sales on TikTok, and in particular, vitamins, minerals, supplements—those are some of the top categories that we're seeing there," she said. 

“We are noticing more and more, especially with the younger generations, that TikTok and social media is becoming more of a search tool. And so when we think about what this means for ingredients in the future as consumers learn about ingredients, the ability to purchase those, the reduced friction in terms of purchasing those on new channels, we think it will continue to escalate and elevate what we find in terms of growth of products with very specific ingredients that are meeting need states."

Trends to inform the next wave of innovation 

Cassandra Stern, editor at CosmeticsDesign-USA, said she’s really excited about the prospect of  oral photoprotectants. While she noted the idea is not necessarily brand new, she believes the concept is one that is easy for people to understand. 

"In the context of the shifting climate, suncare and promoting wellness of skin is something that is definitely a lot more on consumers’ radar," she said. "It's not enough to slap on sunscreen anymore—people want to do whatever it is they can to age well, and a big part of that is skincare. There are some really interesting companies that are putting out oral photoprotectants, which are botanical-based supplements designed to support the skin in combating UV damage. And so that is something that caught my eye and that I just find really interesting.”

Whether it's factors such as UV radiation, life stages or medications, consumers are connecting the dots and starting to implement a ‘whole health’ approach to how they feel and look.

"We're really watching these GLP-1 drugs—so Ozempic, Wegovey, Mounjaro, etc. and their impact," Frey said. "In terms of the percentage of people that are on them and what it's projected to look like, there's a big addressable market [...] and so I think that can indicate an area of opportunity. And at the same time, I think these GLP-1s have really addressed the bigger conversation around weight, weight management and obesity—and it's changed the conversation."

Indeed, it is an evolving conversation as consumers celebrate weight loss while acknowledging some unforeseen adverse reactions. Simpson pointed to a recent social media advertisement that referenced ‘Ozempic skin’​—a side effect of rapid weight loss that often results in loss of volume and skin sagging in the face.

"The skin becomes very frail after rapid weight loss, so that's definitely a gap in the area of nutricosmetics I could see,” she said. "From a nutritional standpoint, it is important to avoid potential nutrient imbalances/deficiencies key for skin tissue. Very low/low calorie diets should be complemented with supplementation. Beyond multivitamins, targeted macro and micronutrients for skin health could be warranted here to encourage healthy collagen production and barrier function."

Simpson said that she is enjoying the microbiome’s time in the spotlight, with the focus on utilizing pre, pro, post and symbiotic formulations to rebalance the body and its ecology. 

Stern added that she too, is keeping a close on the microbiome space. With the proliferation of nutrigenomics, she noted companies are able to link vitamin deficiencies with skin health, for example.

The panel agreed that microbiome health is a key area of innovation, with younger consumers interested in microbiome-friendly skincare and personalized supplements based on DNA analysis. 

Gut health ties into personalization, with consumers seeking tailored beauty solutions based on their individual needs, values and health goals, accelerated by the ‘Zoom effect,’ a trend stemming from the pandemic that continues to stick.