Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/674539
ByKelliKennedy TheAssociatedPress MIAMI The makeup in- dustry is trying to con- vince women that looking good on the outside starts from within — but it's un- clear whether the products they're trying to hawk are safe and effective. Big-name beauty compa- nies and retailers including Sephora and Urban Outfit- ters are rolling out pills and drinkable liquids loaded with exotic herbs, vitamins, seeds,berriesandsubstances such as collagen. The prod- ucts promise to do things such as firm up skin and im- prove its natural glow. The trend is picking up steam. Although a small portion of the $16 bil- lion beauty products mar- ket, sales of beauty supple- ments targeting the face have grown from less than $1 million in 2013 to over $4 million in 2015, accord- ing to market research firm the NPD Group. But unlike the instant glam provided by a swipe of blush or lipstick, pills and other so-called "nutraceu- ticals" add a layer of ques- tions about safety and effec- tiveness as some consumers may see ingesting some- thing in the name of look- ing lovely a lot differently than simply rubbing some- thing into the skin. And similar efforts have tanked in the past: Industry titans such as Oil of Olay peddled vitamins promising glowing skin and hair more than a decade ago to no avail. Today, companies are being buoyed by celebri- ties who swear by these in- gestible beauty products. In January, actress Gwyn- eth Paltrow shared the rec- ipe of a daily shake on her online magazine's website goop — an almond milk- based concoction that in- cludes a product from Moon Juice's line, with ingredi- ents that are said to create a glowing complexion and healthy hair. Actress Jen- nifer Aniston also has said she puts collagen peptides in her morning shake. And there's a movement by everyday people to in- corporate natural prod- ucts into their lives for ev- erything from the foods they eat to dish soap and mascara they use. An en- tire generation of consum- ers has evolved from merely reading food labels to scru- tinizing chemicals in every- thing. "Thethemeacrossallcon- sumercategoriesismorenat- ural ingredients for all the products they're purchas- ing," said Sarah Jindal, a se- nior beauty analyst for Min- tel. "That's going to continue to become more and more important to the consumer." Aretheysafe? The larger question for some consumers is whether the products work. So- called ingestibles have been popular in Asia where col- lagen yogurts and marsh- mallows are common, but they're relatively new in the U.S. Here, these products largely fall under the mas- sive $30 billion to $40 bil- lion dietary supplement in- dustry regulated by the Food and Drug Administra- tion. The agency also over- sees supplements sold in grocery stores and pharma- cies. But many don't come to their attention as the agency's team of less than two dozen people is charged with overseeing roughly 85,000 products. The FDA's power only kicks in after the products are on the market, meaning the manufacturer does not have to demonstrate safety or effectiveness beforehand. The Federal Trade Commis- sion, which regulates mar- keting claims, is not al- lowed to discuss ongoing investigations but officials said they weren't aware of any sanctions against these types of products. "Manyconsumersassume theproductsaresafeandare not harmful because they can be purchased at repu- table retailers or they think the fact that is available for sale means that FDA said it was OK. Unfortunately, this is not always the case," said FDA spokeswoman Lyndsay Meyer. The law might actually make it easier for market- ers to peddle these prod- ucts to consumers because dietary supplements by law can make some beauty promises that makeups and creams cannot. For exam- ple, a dietary supplement can legally claim its prod- uct can grow longer hair or improve production of col- lagen, which is said to im- prove skin's elasticity. It also means the burden is on companies to tell the truth about efficacy claims and the quality of the in- gredients. "The fact is that what a company claims is in its products and what is ac- tually in them is not always the same," FDA's Meyer said. "And often we're not aware of these discrepancies until we're able to inspect a com- pany to make sure." Do they work? Proponents say many of the products are safer than skin creams and makeups full of harmful sulfates and parabens. But are they ef- fective? "I think there's a percep- tion of safer options, but I think it's exactly that. I think it's the peace of mind, too," said Dan Fabricant, CEO of the Natural Prod- ucts Association. "It's 'Hey, these are things that I'm used to in my diet. I'm go- ing to prefer to do that than put on something that's from a chemical factory.'" Doctors say the skin is a detox organ and every- thing from poor diets to medical ailments can man- ifest there. "If we are healthy in- side, will our skin look better? Yes," said Dr. Mat- thew Avram, who special- izes in cosmetic dermatol- ogy at Massachusetts Gen- eral Hospital. But he counters that "it doesn't necessarily mean that because you take a cer- tain supplement of one kind or another that your skin is necessarily going to look better." While it's reasonable to think that taking probi- otics to improve gut func- tion or eating more colla- gen would improve the skin, he said there haven't been enough large scale studies to prove it: "That doesn't mean it doesn't work, but it means that scientifically, it hasn't been shown to work." Drawing interest Despite questionable sci- ence, beauty companies are rolling out their versions of ingestibles. Urban Outfitters started selling several beauty pow- ders from the Moon Juice line, which includes popu- lar products such as Beauty Dust, a $65 powder that in- cludes goji and pearl and is said to create a glowing complexion and healthy hair. HEALTH AND BEAUTY Ar e yo u re ad y to r ep la ce y ou r mo is tu r iz er w it h a pi ll ? By Alejandra Cancino The Associated Press COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. On a recent Thursday, the staff at Sunny Vista Living Center in Colorado Springs bustled in the kitchen. The phone rang with a last min- ute order as Chris Willard tended to a large pot of Thai-style soup with fresh ginger, vegetables and thin- sliced beef. It was a special meal for a woman of Asian descent who didn't like any of the dozen choices on the menu. "You have to be creative," said Willard, a chef with an easy smile and a long mus- tache, who is the nursing home's food service direc- tor. Earlier that day, he had received a thumbs-up for his gluten-free pancakes. Sunny Vista is part of a slow but growing trend among the nation's 15,600 nursing homes to abandon rigid menus and strict meal times in favor of a more in- dividualized approach to- ward food. Advocates pushing for the change say it has taken more than three decades to get to this point. Now, the federal govern- ment is proposing regula- tions that would require facilities to create menus that reflect religious, cul- tural and ethnic needs and preferences, as well. Fur- ther, the proposed rules would empower nursing home residents with the "right to make personal di- etary choices." Thegovernmentacknowl- edges that the nation's 1.4 million nursing home res- idents are diverse and that "it may be challenging" to meet every preference. But it wants facilities to offer res- idents "meaningful choices in diets that are nutrition- ally adequate and satisfying to the individual." Regulations aside, Donna Manring, owner of Innova- tive Dinning Solutions, a consulting firm, said that aging Baby Boomers will put pressure on nursing homes to adapt by offering such menu items as organic vegetables, locally-sourced meat and gluten-free or veg- etarian options. "Put your seatbelts on because expectations are going to grow greatly," Manring said. While Sunny Vista is ahead of the proposed changes, advocates for se- niors say many nursing homes are still stuck in time, operating like hospi- tals and offering a limited number of unsavory meals. The ability to choose what to eat and when to do so is hugely important for seniors' quality of life, said Amity Overall-Laib, direc- tor of the National Long- Term Care Ombudsman Re- source Center. Issues with the quantity, quality and variation of meals rank among the top 10 complaints of nursing home residents and their relatives or friends. Shannon Gimbel, the lead ombudsman for the Denver region, said the complaints go beyond the chicken being too dry or too tough. She's stepped in to advocate for seniors who weren't getting enough food or whose requests for fresh vegetables were ignored for far too long. "There are more options than there have ever been," Gimbel said. "Do I think it stills needs to be better? Yes, I do." Under current regula- tions, food is supposed to be palatable. But Penny Shaw, a nursing home resident in the Boston area and an ad- vocate for nursing home re- form, said she's been served overcooked vegetables and watery mashed potatoes. "Who would want to eat that?" asked Shaw, 72. Shaw said her nursing home offers menu choices, but they are limited. She'd love to order a soup cooked from scratch, kiwis instead of melon and have an avo- cado once in a while. But the soups are pre-made, and kiwis and avocados are not offered, she said. "Person-centered implies individualized and I don't think that'll ever happen," Shaw said. Part of the problem is cost. In fiscal 2014, nursing homes spent a daily average of $20.07 per person on di- etary costs, which includes the cost for raw food and kitchen staff, according to the American Health Care Association, which repre- sents nursing homes. But those costs vary widely across the country. In Texas, the average is $14.54; while New York is $23.97. Janet Burns, chief execu- tive at Sunny Vista, said the cost of fresh food is lower than prepackaged meals, but labor costs are higher. Her dietary costs were $1.08 higher than the nation's av- erage in 2014. However, she said, higher costs are offset by things like preventing weight loss, a problem ex- perienced by many nursing home residents. NURSING HOMES Mo re i nd iv id ua li ze d me nu s be in g off er ed ASSOCIATEDPRESSPHOTOS Nursing home food service director Chef Christopher Willard prepares meals for residents at Sunny Vista Living Center, in Colorado Springs, Colo. A p rep ar ed m ea l s its r ea dy f or d el iv e ry t o a r es id en t a t Su nn y V is ta L ivi ng C en te r, a n ur si ng h om e i n C ol or ad o Sp ri n gs , Co lo . T here 's a g ro wi ng t rend a mo ng U .S. n ur si ng ho me s t o a ba nd on r ig id m en us an d s tr ic t m ea l t im es i n fa vo r o f a m or e i nd ivi du al ize d a ppr oa ch t o f oo d. AS SO CI AT ED PR ES S P HO TO Ke rr il yn n P am er , le , a nd Ci nd y D iP ri ma Mo ri ss e, ow ner s o f C AP B ea ut y, a we ll ne ss s to re w it h a n a ll - thi ng s- na tu ra l a ppr oa ch , sh ow p ro du cts s old a t t he ir st or e i n N ew Yo rk . 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