Studies of Eugene J. Van Scott M.D. and R. J. Yu Ph.D. opened the modern era of AHA applications. In 1976 they found that glycolic acid, in specially designed formulations, helped in the treating of a scaling skin illness (ichtyosis) and in 1988 they founded NeoStrata, a company where they continue to develop novel ways for the treatment of skin problems.

Further studies by these researchers indicated a use for alpha hydroxy acids in skin renewal - however, their finding was ignored by the skin care producers until the 1990s when alpha and beta hydroxy acids started to be included into skin care products (Van Scott and Yu 1989). Later, Stiller et al made large-scale, placebo-mediated studies with AHAs and found they helped skin healing and treated premature aging inflicted by sun exposure (Stiller et al 1996). Their use was later extended to chemical peels (Dial 1990).

Helps Skin Rejuvenation

Using Alpha hydroxy acids (AHA's) is one of the best methods of skin renewal. Their effectiveness depends on the type and concentration of the AHA, its pH (acidity), and other ingredients in the solution. AHAs become efficient at concentrations of about 7% to 8% with a pH of 3.5 to 4.0. Many AHA-containing cosmetic products influence skin renewal very little because the AHA concentrations are too low and the pH is too high. There is little evidence that proportions below 5% have positive actions on skin and more specifically on scars.

Skin improvements should be apparent after four weeks of AHA treatment, but AHA therapy also helps maintain a healthy skin and this state is usually continued indefinitely.

Natural Skin Care Opposed Chemical Treatments

Chemical peels with stronger AHA's (40-70%) accelerate the process, but the skin regenerating produced by a 70% AHA chemical peel, which is costly and can cause scarring, in 3 months can be doubled by a 7% AHA cream in 9 months.

Natural Skin Regeneration With Biological Ingredients

AHAs are marketed for a variety of purposes. They can be used to smooth fine lines and surface wrinkles, to improve skin texture and tone, oily skin or acne, or to unblock and cleanse pores. Basically, AHAs improve the skin condition in general. What they really do is increase the turnover of skin cells and help the rebuilding of collagen and elastin plus improve the internal moisture-holding properties of GAGs and proteoglycans. With long term use, AHAs fade fine to moderate wrinkles, and eliminate many skin lesions such as age spots, benign overgrowths of skin, freckling, weathered skin, sun damage, blotchy pigmentation, mild acne scars, and flat warts. They seem to work by increasing the skin peeling of the lesion plus an irritation around the injury. In time the lesion becomes smaller and is replaced by new healthy skin.

Alpha hydroxy acids are helpful in treating oily and acne-prone skin. People with these conditions usually see drastic results. Blackheads, white heads and acne breakouts appear when the hair follicles clog and trap sebum in the follicle. Removing the upper layer of skin improves natural sebum flow to the skin.