What is idebenone? What is Prevage? And Coenzyme Q10?

By Hannah Sivak, PhD

Every year two or three new "magic pills" appear that promise to
rejuvenate your skin and erase wrinkles. From time to time, there is a
grain of truth to those marketing claims.

There are many theories of aging, and a few of them have some
scientific support. One of the asserts that mitochondria, the
powerhouse inside of our cells, ages earlier than the rest of our cells
and their failure to provide enough energy leads to cell aging. This
early aging of mitochondria would be caused by the own nature of the
work the mitochondria does: respiration, or the use of oxygen to break
down energy-rich molecules, converting that energy into ATP. Free
radicals are by-product of respiration, and even though we have lots of
antioxidant systems ready to protect our cells from catastrophic
damage, nothing is perfect. Mitochondria will be the first to feel the
effects of the accumulated damage brought about by antioxidants.

What is idebenone? It is a synthetic molecule that can fulfill the job that Coenzyme Q10
does in mitochondria. Placed in the mitochondrial membrane, CoQ10 is
essential to energy production. Applying idebenone to our skin, this
synthetic molecule will ultimately reach the mitochondrial membrane and
make up, in part, for the loss of efficiency of the energy producing
machine.

Skin Actives Scientific sells
both Coenzyme Q10 and idebenone, so it is up to you to choose the
natural or synthetic molecule to replenish your aging mitochondria.

What is Prevage? A cream
containing 0.5% (or 1% in the MD version) of idebenone. You can
make your own my mixing idebenpne and Canvas base cream, a non-acidic
cream full of other beneficial actives like jojoba oil anf hyaluronic
acid.

Don't expect miracles: there is a lot to mitochondria besides CoQ10.
But idebenone can help. If you are still looking for more help to your
skin, look at actives that will fulfill other needs: peptides to help
the skin reconstruct its dermis, retinyl acetate (to accelerate skin
renewal), rosehip oil (to provide essential fatty acids), etc.NOTE: There is a small percentage of users of idebenone (in any brand of cream or lotion) that will have a delayed reaction to the chemical, a rash that may be caused by an allergy that develops with use. Conversely, because Coenzyme Q10 is identical to the one we have in our body, no reactions can be expected (or have been reported to us).