Q. Is it true that snail slime is found in many facial creams? If so what are the benefits of snail slime?
A. We are constantly amazed at the ingenuity of skin care manufacturers. Snail slime does indeed appear to be the latest exotic ingredient promoted for its healing and anti-aging properties.
Creams and lotions containing mucus derived from snails are said to be popular in Africa, Korea and South America. Such skin-care products are crawling into the American marketplace.
We could find no well-controlled studies supporting the benefits of snail slime for human skin, though of course it is essential for snails. The secretions contain hyaluronic acid and proteoglycans, popular ingredients you might find even in products that don’t derive their allure from Helix aspersa, the common garden snail.
Cosmetic manufacturers have long specialized in selling “hope in a bottle,” and exotic ingredients are one path to distinguishing a product that is otherwise similar to other moisturizers. Readers used to tell us that the live yeast cell derivative and shark liver oil once found in Preparation H made a great wrinkle-reducing treatment. Since Preparation H no longer contains live yeast cell derivative, people have had to look elsewhere for inexpensive facial treatments. Most of the new snail slime creams are not cheap.
