Hyaluronic Acid Supplements

Can Hyaluronic Acid in Pill Form Hydrate Your Skin from Within?

An ABC News special titled "The Village of Long Life: Could Hyaluronic Acid be an Anti-Aging Remedy?" reported on the Japanese village of Yuzuri Hara, two hours outside of Tokyo, where people who follow the unique traditional diet routinely live active and healthy lives into their 90s and beyond.

Unlike other regions of Japan that grow rice, Yuzuri Hara's hilly terrain is better suited to growing starchy root vegetables similar to Western potatoes, both white and sweet.

Japanese researchers suggest that these starches help stimulate the body's natural creation of Hyaluronic Acid, which aging bodies typically lose.

One of Japan's leading pharmaceutical companies began researching and developing a pill supplement containing HA. The company tested the pills on 1,000 people. Approximately half of the subjects reported smoother skin, less fatigue and better eyesight.

Fifty percent self-reported improvement could largely be due to the placebo effect. It's an interesting theory but at this point that's all it is - a theory.

Dr. Ray Sanhelian, a physician widely recognized as a moderate voice in the evaluation of natural supplements, has this to say about HA supplementation, "Hyaluronic acid oral supplements are promoted for arthritis and many other conditions including skin health. I have not come across any human trials with an oral form of hyaluronic acid for joint or skin health." At this point, he is suspending judgment on whether HA supplements can keep your skin young and moist.

Interestingly HA contains Glucosamine.

A study done at California State University, Sacramento, by Dr. Mary McCarthy Hintz et al. showed that the HA derivative, Glucosamine, (not HA itself) promotes wound healing. The researchers concluded that, "the administration of adequate amounts of Glucosamine by mouth during the first few days after surgery or trauma can be expected to enhance hyaluronic acid production in the wound, promoting swifter healing and possibly diminishing complications related to scarring."

We already have good evidence that Glucosamine supplements promote joint health. Now it appears they also promote skin health.

My conclusion for now is that HA pills are not worth taking to keep your skin young and hydrated; but a component of HA, Glucosamine, may very well be.

More on AntiAging Vitamins & Supplements

Dietary Sources for Vitamins and Minerals
Why Take AntiOxidants
The Major AntiOxidants
Other Important AntiOxidants
Other Essential Vitamins & Minerals
Should Supplementation Be a Part of Your Beauty Routine

This article is for information only. It does not purport to offer medical advice.