HOUSTON, Aug. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The SkinTRUST Society®, led by board-certified dermatologists, announced today the launch of its new global standard, empowering consumers to make medically sound decisions about cosmetics and everyday skin care products (www.skintrustsociety.org).
Surprisingly, consumer skin care products and cosmetics are not evaluated by regulatory or independent authorities, but are instead, self-approved by individual companies. Since there hasn't been an unbiased, harmonized standard, consumers have no way to verify claims or determine if companies thoroughly test their products. This state of affairs prompted the SkinTRUST Society® to develop a comprehensive standard that requires robust product studies to substantiate both safety and efficacy (http://skintrustsociety.org/the-skintrust-standardtm-2/).
"We encourage people worldwide to join our movement by asking store-bought brands to submit their products to the SkinTRUST Society® for certification," says Brundha Balaraman, M.D., founder of the Society. "It's time to take the guesswork out of product choices and take control of knowing if they've been adequately tested for safety and effectiveness" (http://skintrustsociety.org/for-consumers/).
In a pre-launch survey of 1,195 random adults in the U.S., 64% of respondents were unsatisfied by the fact that terms, such as "hypoallergenic," "natural," and other similar phrases mean whatever a particular company wants it to mean. Additionally, when choosing between products, 73% of consumers were likely or very likely to purchase those with the Society's distinctive Dermatologist Approved Seal, showing compliance with standard criteria.
Regulations for cosmetics and consumer skin care products vary by country, but most, including the U.S., do not require companies to submit safety and efficacy studies for approval. The SkinTRUST Society's® Certification Program allows consumers to identify products that comply with the Society's strict standard, and distinguish between those that are marketed similarly but have dissimilar quality standards. The Society is led by an independent multi-disciplinary physician board comprised of dermatologists, allergists, immunologists, pediatricians, and clinical researchers who have no stake in any skin care brand.
About the SkinTRUST Society®
The SkinTRUST Society® is the first dermatologist-founded society that empowers consumers to make informed decisions about cosmetics and everyday skin care products. Non-partisan and unaffiliated with any skin care product brand, the Society owns the standard that is used to verify consumer brands' product claims. For more information, visit www.skintrustsociety.org.
SOURCE SkinTRUST Society
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