The New Challenge of Green Cosmetics: Natural Food Ingredients for Cosmetic Formulations,

Author: Irene Dini and Sonia Laneri

green cosmetics, ecology and sustainability, environmentally friendly creams, makeup, and beauty products, hoping that they are not harmful to health and reduce pollution, body beauty is linked to well-being, both external and internal, skincare products, Nutricosmetics, combines the benefits derived from food supplementation with the advantages of cosmetic treatments to improve the beauty of our body, protect the skin from the aging action, improved skin quality (both aesthetic and histological), bioactive molecules used in nutricosmetic formulations, phytochemical analyses, natural/organic, ingredients derived from plants, green products, organic ingredients, National Organic Program (NOP), beauty supplements, botanical extracts improve personal care , plants as active ingredients in cosmeceuticals and nutricosmetics formulations, Plant cell culture consent to produce high-value ingredients (primary and secondary metabolites), Natural antiaging ingredients include barrier repair, moisturizing, anti-inflammatory, skin lightening, and sunblock agent, skin moisturizing agents can be emollients, occlusives, and humectants, Emollients cover the skin with a protective film to hydrate and soothe it, contribute to decreasing flaky skin and roughness, Barrier Repair Agents, skin barrier stops trans epidermal water loss and defends against pathogens , Barrier repair agents are the essential fatty acids, phenolic compounds, tocopherols, phospholipids, cholesterol, and ceramide, Skin Lightening Agents, Skin lightening agents decrease the concentration of melanin (skin’s pigment), skin tone is lighter when there is less melanin. Skin whitening agents act as inhibitors of the tyrosinase (a key enzyme in melanogenesis) and/or melanosome transfer (pigment granules in the melanocytes, contained in the basal layer of skin epidermis), Sunblock Ingredients UV radiation is divided into three main categories: UV-A (320–400 nm), UV-B (280–320 nm), and UV-C (100–280 nm), based on the wavelength. Elevated exposure to UV radiation can cause edema, erythema, hyperpigmentation, photoaging, immune suppression, and skin cancer based on the intensity and range of UV radiation, Skin Antioxidant Systems, Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are atoms or molecules whose last electronic layer contains unpaired electrons and molecules of excited oxygen, Molecular oxygen, hydrogen peroxide, and singlet oxygen are not free radicals but start oxidative reactions and make free radicals, aloe vera produces a skin-lightening effect, inhibits melanogenesis, and decreases tyrosinase and DOPA polymerase actions, Mucopolysaccharides and the amino acid profile of Aloe vera (e.g., arginine, histidine, threonine, glycine, serine, and alanine) improve water retention in the stratum corneum , Aloe gel has antioxidant properties. It enhances the metallothionein, superoxide dismutases, and glutathione peroxidase activities in skin-cells act. Aloe makes the skin elastic and reduces wrinkles, improving elastin and collagen production by fibroblasts, Aloe gel has wound-healing effects. It keeps the wound moist, reduces the inflammation process, and enhances the epithelial cell migration and rapid maturation of collagen, Aloe gel promotes hair growth through pilosebaceous