The Infini’tea (INCI: Camellia Sinensis leaf extract) biofunctional is a freshly extracted tea serum for balanced skin, inspired by neurocosmetics and yoga.
Ashland’s ingredient is a tea serum extracted from live Camellia Sinensis tea leaves using the company’s proprietary zeta fractioning technology. Inspired by neurocosmetics and the ceremonial ritual of tea, the ingredient aims to calm and soothe skin, providing formulators with a solution to restore the balance and homeostasis of young, fresh looking skin.
Additional benefits include limiting UV damage, reducing the appearance of redness and fine lines, and increase skin luminosity.
For soothing and calming benefits, the company explored two pathways affected by neurocosmetic science to test the calming and soothing properties of the ingredient. These included: the competition of theanine against the glutamate excitotoxin, and the skin expression of Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF).
In relation to theanine, the ingredient contains a unique composition with levels of L-theanine and antioxidants superior to that of green and black tea. The company found the ingredient to be ten times more concentrated in theanine than green or black tea. According to Ashland, this constituent is known to act as an antagonist to glutamate an excitotoxin found in industrial foods that has been held responsible of worsening skin problems such as eczema.
Regarding BDNF, this entity is known to decrease with different inflammatory conditions in the skin, such as atopic dermatitis and psoriasis. However, the company’s tea extract is said to help increase the expression and amount of this factor in the skin— an effect also reportedly observed in yoga practitioners.
For more information, see Ashland.
