Research on Skin Care Linked with Emotions

Affective science

“Being in love makes you more beautiful” is a well-known phrase used throughout the world. The good effects of positive emotions, such as happiness and satisfaction, on skin condition is well understood, though scientific evidence is scarce. Based on a hypothesis that the “mind” and “skin condition” are linked, Kao conducted scientific research to investigate the skin effects of cosmetics mediated by the mind. The results have revealed that positive changes in the mind during skincare lead to improvements in skin condition.

Kao has focused on the pleasant touch aspects, such as hand pressing as a cosmetic action and the feel of skincare products, to assess their ability to heighten positive emotions. This evaluation was based on subjective surveys and measurements of cerebral blood flow (Figure 1).

This presents the evaluation results of "positive emotions" through brain blood flow measurements. When a hand press or a developed cream formulation is applied, an increase in blood flow change is easily observed in the prefrontal cortex, which is the brain region responsible for positive emotions and cognition.

Fig.1 Evaluation of “positive emotions” using cerebral blood flow measurement

Next, to investigate the impact of emotions on the skin, we conducted a 4-week continuous usage study using these products. The results revealed that the group experiencing high levels of positive emotions during the trial period showed an improvement in skin texture compared to the group with relatively lower levels (Figure 2).

This demonstrates the effect of positive emotions elicited by hand pressing on the skin. The skin texture was evaluated before and after four weeks of hand pressing during skincare. It was confirmed that the group that felt significantly higher positive emotions during the test period showed a significant improvement in skin texture compared to the group that did not feel as strongly.

Fig.2 Effects of positive emotions aroused by use of newly-developed cream on skin appearance

The study also revealed that when mind-mediated skin effects occur, gene expression within the skin changes. It also showed that the amount of oxytocin, also known as the happy hormone, increases in response to the level of positive emotional arousal, and that the amount of oxytocin is related to skin texture scores. This suggests that oxytocin may be involved in the mind-mediated skin effects of skincare.

Traditionally, skincare product development mainly focused on ingredients and technology targeting the skin directly. However, this research has shown the value of an emotion-focused approach (Figure 3).

It explains the route to achieve beautiful skin. Traditionally, the development of products that lead to beautiful skin has focused on direct approaches such as the formulation of ingredients that directly affect the skin. However, this research has newly demonstrated that an approach focusing on emotions and the mind can also be a useful means to achieve beautiful skin.

Fig.3 Approach leading to beautiful skin

Kao will continue to develop new products and approaches focusing on pleasurable skin care time as well as function.