More than just skin deep
Nutricosmetics have altered the course of holistic beauty, blurring the lines between healthy food and natural skincare.
it’s 2022, and the world has shifted. Fluid, holistic and all-encompassing solutions have replaced rigid structure and formality, whilst our work-life spheres are more integrated than ever – and so too is our approach to everything else. The beauty industry has undergone one of the most substantial transformations, and it no longer fixates on cosmetics and appearance but instead incorporates physical health and mental wellness.
Terms such as clean beauty, skin food and beauty from the inside describe the current beauty zeitgeist. And as people continue to look to natural alternatives and embark on a path of self-love and acceptance, we’ve seen the rise of New Age beauty phenomena.
One such concept is nutricosmetics, using food and nutrition specifically for their beauty and skincare benefits. “Nutricosmetics complete the holistic circle of skincare and wellness,” says Devlin Perry, founder of sustainable beauty brand THE SKIN CO.. “We don’t have any reason not to use what the Earth has given us to its fullest. Nutricosmetics are powerful natural ingredients designed to work from the inside out, compared to topical skincare from the outside in.”
They have numerous benefits for your overall health and wellbeing, skin, hair, nails and illnesses. Also referred to as ingestible beauty, nutricosmetic supplements and functional foods have exploded onto the market, with products such as collagen, probiotics and hyaluronic acid becoming a staple component in our daily beauty and wellness routines.
Superfood supplements, including matcha, spirulina, moringa, and antioxidant-rich produce such as kale and blueberries, are having their moment – and form a sizeable constituent of the nutricosmetic revolution.
Yet, whilst nutricosmetics is a centuries-old adage, renewed interest has made way for unique,
never-before-seen innovations.
Seeing a gap in the market for a highly specialised, niche health food offering, Devlin founded ERTH as an extension of THE SKIN CO.. t’s the world’s first nutricosmetics and health food restaurant, its menu conceptualised with generous doses of nutricosmetic ingredients in mind. You can indulge in a salmon and black rice Phytocollagen poke bowl, charcoal skin detox shot, vegan black rice hyaluronic poke bowl, and super skin latte, to name a few.
“As a skincare brand first, we design our food to boost and regenerate the skin from within,” he says. “We use fresh, healthy ingredients to complement our clean, green skincare products. Some of the items on the menu are a play on our product offerings at THE SKIN CO.. We make our meals with similar ingredients to those on our list of skincare products.”
Then there’s the topic of cuttingedge ingredients. Nutricosmetics blur the lines between health food and natural skincare. This provides experts with an entirely new realm to dabble and explore modern beauty and wellness solutions. Substances such as carotenoids – the pigment found in fruits, vegetables and algae, Pycnogenol – the water extract of a French maritime pine bark known for its oxygenating and hydrating properties, and resveratrol – an antioxidant-rich substance found in red wine, berries, peanuts and grapes, are dominant players in the nutricosmetics domain. These scientifically- backed ingredients are increasingly finding their way into an array of supplements and topical skincare products.
Whilst nutricosmetic innovation dissects the anatomy of natural produce and vegetation, its application and ingestion may represent a greater purpose to the beauty and wellness community.
“Many people have realised how quickly their health can change and are now looking at numerous ways to give themselves an extra boost of health from within,” says Devlin. It also marks a collective lifestyle change – more intentional and pure – and a desire to get back to basics. Whilst topical skincare provides instantaneous benefits, nutricosmetics require consistent daily consumption over a period.
“The conscious movement is a necessary step toward giving back to our beautiful planet – and ourselves,” he adds. “By transitioning to a more conscious and natural way of life, we experience a feeling of wholeness and clarity that can only come from living closer to what’s authentic to us.”
“We don’t have any reason not to use what the earth has given us to its fullest”