Hemp has become one of the hottest buzz words in today’s natural products industry, and the ingredient’s researched effects for skin health also make it a rising star in the cosmeceutical sector. Classified as a superfood, hemp is loaded with omega-3s, omega-6s and other important fatty acids that benefit the skin.

Because hemp molecules are extremely small, they penetrate and absorb into the skin better than almost any ingredient or beauty oil, according to Bruce Perlowin, CEO of Hemp Inc. The company’s line of hemp-based cosmeceuticals include products such as lip balms, moisturizers and body candles that melt into massaging oil. Though Hemp Inc.’s cosmeceutical line is new, Perlowin said the company wanted to tap into the market because he saw the popularity of hemp-based cosmeceuticals in health food stores. He’s observed that once consumers try the products, they’re hooked.

“We’ve noticed that with most people, they’ll try a product once and then keep ordering it over and over," Perlowin said. “It’s especially true with the candles that turn to massage oil. People go nuts over it."

While attending this year’s Hempcon in San Jose, California, Perlowin also observed a wide range of demographics trying the products and expressing interest. Women young and old are looking for quality natural products for skin health, and hemp can offer an ideal solution for consumers seeking top-of-the-line moisturizers and cosmetics. 

Hemp as a whole seems to be “sweeping the country," according to Chris Boucher, vice president of product development, CannaVest, a distributor of hemp- and cannabidiol (CBD)-based products. In INSIDER’s recent Hemp Report, Boucher said the use of hemp and hemp-based products goes back to rural America. The ingredient’s long established benefits stretch from relieving seizures to reducing inflammation. In the cosmeceutical realm, it’s the inflammatory properties that make hemp ideal for skin health.

Some of the most recent research published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation shows CBD, a phytocannabinoid of Cannabis saliva, has the potential to provide therapeutic treatment for acne due to its lipostatic, anti-proliferative and anti-inflammatory properties. In a 2014 study, researchers used a cellular system (human immortalized SZ95 sebocytes) and a full-thickness human skin organ culture (hSOC) to fully assess the biological effects of CBD on human sebaceous glands. The data collected indicates CBD can be used as a potent “universal anti-acne agent" with its unique triple anti-acne profile.

In another study, researchers found that dry skin is no match the powerful effects of hemp. The research, published in The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) Journal, shows cannabinoids produce lipids that can regulate skin conditions such as acne vulgaris, seborrhea and dry skin. Researchers used the human SZ95 sebocytes cell culture model to explore how endocannabinoid system-acting agents can be exploited to manage common skin disorders. They also suggested further exploration of cannabinoids as “novel therapeutic tools" to treat dry skin.