It's incredibly exciting when we discover botanicals that have clinical research conducted around their anti-ageing abilities. One of these plants is Swertia Chirata (Swertia). Native to the Himalayas, the Swertia active ingredient we use in our skincare products has been derived from Indian gentian leaves. The leaves have traditionally been used in Ayurvedic medicine as a bitter tonic, digestive herb and liver tonic. Most recently the plant has been shown to be able to mimic the skin's wound healing process to stimulate the natural skin regeneration process and shade off and blur the appearance of wrinkles.

Why is Swertia so special?

Swertia has been clinically proven to:

• Blur vertical wrinkles
• Improve skin texture
• Decrease lip contour wrinkles
• Give younger looking skin and a more peaceful facial expression

And it has been shown to do this in as little as seven days!

Vertical wrinkles are the wrinkles that make our face look stern and sad. Most of us (sadly) have these! They include the lion's wrinkle located in between the eyebrows, the fold at the corner of the mouth starting at the side of the nostrils (nasogenian fold) along with the upper and lower wrinkles of the lip.

How does Swertia work?

Firstly, a bit of background on why fine lines and wrinkles occurs. Ageing is characterized by a loss of 10% of skin keratinocytes (skin cells) per decade. The loss of keratinocytes is driven by a loss of growth factors which are naturally being released to produce new keratinocytes which keep our epidermis (top layer of the skin) firm and elastic. This change leads to a thinner epidermis, which highly accelerates wrinkle formation as the natural skin renewal and repair process is reduced.

Swertia works by inducing a strong production of growth factors which are proven to promote the renewal of keratinocytes and reduce their destruction which results in a thicker epidermis which is less susceptible to wrinkles. By targeting the epidermis, Swertia improves the skin thickness and fills in wrinkles for a dramatic resurfacing effect.

Want to reap the benefits of Swertia?

Swertia is found in the Edible Beauty Bloom of Youth Infusion Mask. The extract has been included in the mask serum at the precise percentage required to provide the anti-ageing benefits derived in clinical studies. I recommend using the mask 3 times a week for fast results or 1 to 2 times a week for skin maintenance and rejuvenation. This is definitely a sheet mask which provides instant and visible results after just one application.