I'm a PhD & RD: These Are My Top 3 Pet Peeves With Beauty Supplements

Not to fret: We chatted with mbg's director of scientific affairs and in-house nutritionist, Ashley Jordan Ferira, Ph.D., R.D., about some of the biggest red flags. A product developer herself and expert in the field, she has a few tips in mind when searching for beauty supplements. "Let's talk about a few of my pet peeves," she shares on this episode of the mindbodygreen podcast:

According to Ferira, "Lazy formulators create lazy excipients. These are things like artificial sweeteners, synthetic colors or dyes, soybean oil... There have been alternatives for these for a long time. When I turn over a product and see synthetic blue dye, red dye, titanium dioxide—that was money savings, and that's lazy. You can do that in a cleaner way."

Although, we should note that some of these formulators aren't necessarily lazy—they may genuinely be unaware. Take leucine, a wonderful amino acid featured in mbg's cellular beauty+, a vegan supplement: Leucine is often sourced from duck feathers or human hair—two things you don't necessarily want in your daily supplement. "We intentionally sourced a plant-based, fermented, natural source of leucine," notes Ferira. "Sometimes manufacturers just don't even know to dig that deep." 

That's why, says Ferira, it's important to familiarize yourself with the science and the supplement's ingredient list. For example, studies of astaxanthin tout 6 milligrams for the strongest skin care benefits (like hydration, elasticity, and wrinkle reduction)*, so you might want to look out for brands who market astaxanthin in their supplement with non-efficacious doses. 

This question makes Ferira's skin crawl: "Is your collagen vegan?" It's a common query, but let's bring everyone up to speed: There is no such thing as vegan collagen. Yes, there are vegan ingredients that support collagen health—like vitamins C and E for collagen synthesis or botanical antioxidants to protect the collagen you have from oxidative damage—but the actual collagen itself cannot be sourced from plants. 

That's not to say you can't source it in a responsible and high-quality way (we source ours from grass-fed, pasture-raised Brazilian cows), but, sorry to say, it's not vegan. "Let's go ahead and bust the mythical unicorn that is 'vegan collagen.' It doesn't exist," adds Ferira. 

When it comes to browsing for beauty supplements, these are Ferira's biggest red flags. With her pet peeves in mind, you can become a more critical shopper and select the most high-quality option possible.

Enjoy this episode! And don't forget to subscribe to our podcast on iTunes, Google Podcasts, or Spotify!