WHEN the redoubtable and highly regarded Dr Marko Lens, the founder of Zelens skincare brand – and a consultant plastic and reconstructive surgeon, skin cancer expert and authority in ageing in his own right – launches a range, the beauty world sits up and, befittingly, pays close attention.
So Glass was rather excited about his latest collection – the Zelens Treatment Drops, comprised of three products – Power A, Power C and Power D. These high quality drops treat a different concern and are designed to be added to a moisturiser during the day or used nightly on cleansed dry skin as a complete treatment. And as Zelens Skincare products are all independently clinically tested to ensure their safety and efficacy – these results are also published and available for scrutiny – so one can be very confident of any claims they make.
Zelens Power A High Potency Treatment Drops (containing retinol)
Glass is sure its beauty-savvy readers are aware that retinoids (which are related to Vitamin A, hence the name of the Zelens drops) are one of the only chemicals clinically proven to effectively treat anti-ageing which they do by smoothing out fine lines, reducing pore size and fading dark spots (as well as treating acne and sorting out greasy skin). Many retinoids are only available on prescription from a dermatologist or GP (usually only prescribed to treat severe acne) and are very, very strong indeed and can cause extreme irritation of the skin as a side effect.
A few years ago, after I found out about retinoids and retinols (I truly thought I had discovered the anti-ageing Holy Grail, so happy was I), I procured some medical grade retinol (Retin-A) but it made my skin so irritated and scaley, I had to give up using it after a few weeks much to my disappointment.
Zelens Power A Treatment Drops
However many beauty companies, like Zelens, wanting to harness this potent ingredient, have created non-prescription products containing less intense concentrations of retinoids which are just as effective.
Power A (which contain vitamin A in retinoid form) is oil-free (although it feels very smooth when applying due to the esters the ingredients are suspended in) and contains medical grade retinals as well as encapsulated retinol which stimulates skin cell production and so improve tone and texture. Dr Lens has carefully created Power A to cause minimal or no irritation to the skin while being highly effective.
Since November I have been testing Power A drops nightly as an anti-ageing treatment – Dr Lens says they can be used before applying your moisturiser or serum – (and SPF – very important!) in the day – but I err on the side of caution regarding potential sun damage so don’t advise this, as retinoids can make the skin much more sensitive to UVA and B rays). I began using them twice a week, building up to three times (retinoids are very powerful, and it takes a while for most skin types to build up a tolerance). You really only need a small drop delivered from its glass pipette to cover the whole face. Any surplus I rub on the back of my hands.
For the first few weeks, I experienced some dry skin and flaking on my forehead and skin but was reassured that this indicated that the drops were working. These few dry flakes were easily removed by exfoliating as part of my hot cloth cleansing routine in the morning. After six weeks or so, the flaking stopped. The trick is to power through this (sorry poor pun!) and persevere.
Using retinoids is a long term commitment – just think how many years lines and skin damage took to develop – so it is unrealistic to expect instant overnight result from this – or any product. However a few months in, after consistent use of Power A, I see a vast improvement in my general skin tone and condition, pore size reduction. The crepiness on my cheeks, which was quite noticeable, has just all but disappeared and fine lines on my forehead and around my eye area are gradually fading, while the deeper lines are not noticeably increasing. More power to Dr Lens and his efficacious drops, says Glass.
by Caroline Simpson
The Power Treatment Drops are priced between £110.00 and £125.00 for 30ml from Zelens or SpaceNK