All good things in life come with some sacrifice. Want to drink a bottle of champagne? Prepare for a monster headache. Can’t say no to five-inch stilettos? You’ll have to grimace and limp through that last hour. Want Botox? Hope you’re not scared of needles.
Some things are worth the downside, but if you could get smooth skin without the needles, wouldn’t you? That’s what SkinCeuticals’ latest serum, P-Tiox, promises: smooth skin without any syringes. And while neuromodulators like Botox, Dysport, and Xeomin are administered superficially with tiny little needles, there’s still a needle. If you’re afraid of the needle when you get your flu shot then you’ve probably avoided line-reducing beauty treatments altogether. If you have dabbled in injectables, you know they’re uncomfortable at best and can leave you inflamed, bruised, and/or swollen for a few hours at worst. So getting the results delivered via bottle dropper would be game-changing for all parties.
Like nonsurgical nose jobs and hair growth elixirs, Botox in a bottle sounds a little too good to be true. So we asked the experts if a peptide serum could be powerful enough to make us cancel our upcoming appointments.
Meet the experts:
What is SkinCeuticals P-Tiox Serum?
SkinCeuticals P-Tiox is a new, peptide-based serum that’s meant to reduce texture and the same pesky expression lines that Botox targets. SkinCeuticals calls it a “wrinkle-modulating” product, which is a nod to neuromodulators like Botox, but positions it as “complementary” to the injections—not a total replacement for those same results. (It can be used alone if Botox isn’t in the cards for you, but the results won’t be as dramatic). “That’s because topical skin-care ingredients will always be less effective, due to their penetration depth,” says board-certified dermatologist Rachel Westbay, MD. “Topical products primarily affect the outermost layers of the skin, whereas in-office treatments can target deeper layers more effectively.”
Regardless, the brand claims the serum can help to reduce the appearance of nine types of expression lines, including those on the forehead, glabellar (the elevens between the brows), crow’s-feet (at the corners of eyes), marionette lines (from the corners of your mouth to the chin, and lines on the cheeks. Some of those lines (specifically nasolabial folds or lines across the cheeks) are too risky to treat with neuromodulators and would be an off-label application, says Dr. Westbay, making this product a great option if those are trouble areas you’re looking to target.
Ingredients and Formulation
Instead of using an injectable toxin to relax the muscles that create lines, “the P-Tiox serum utilizes two key peptides that relax muscle contractions to help with the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles on the skin, as well as mild exfoliants to gently brighten the skin,” says board-certified dermatologist Omer Ibrahim, MD.
The first of the two peptides—dipeptide diaminobutyroyl—mimics the effects of Walgerin 1, the peptide responsible for viper venom’s toxicity (yikes!), says Dr. Ibrahim. In combination with peptide number two—acetyl hexapeptide-8—they work together to inhibit the neurotransmitters responsible for moving facial muscles. Again, not nearly as well as a straight-up toxin injection, Dr. Ibrahim adds, but still effective. “Nothing is a suitable alternative to Botox. However, for someone who wants to avoid injectables, this, along with a skin-care routine with retinol, antioxidants, and SPF can help [smooth fine lines].”
