Tier 2 — strong

Oral hyaluronan relieves wrinkles: a double-blinded, placebo-controlled study over a 12-week period

Mariko Oe, Seigo Sakai, Hideto Yoshida, Nao Okado, Haruna Kaneda, Yasunobu Masuda, Osamu Urushibata
Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology 2017 10:267-273

Bibliography

PubMed
PMID 28761365
PubMed Central
PMC5522662
DOI
10.2147/CCID.S141845
Competing interests
Six authors were affiliated with Kewpie Corporation R&D; the paper discloses company employment among study authors.

Study snapshot

DesignRandomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial
ModelJapanese adults aged 22–59 with crow's-feet wrinkles
Samplen=60 randomized
Intervention120 mg/day HA at 2 kDa or 300 kDa versus placebo
Duration12 weeks
EndpointsWrinkle area ratio; Wrinkle volume ratio; Whole sulcus volume ratio; Subjective skin luster; Skin suppleness

What the study showed, in plain terms

This 12-week trial compared two molecular weights of oral hyaluronan—2 kDa and 300 kDa—at the same 120 mg/day dose against placebo.

Both HA groups showed favorable wrinkle measures during follow-up, while the 300 kDa group had significantly diminished wrinkles versus placebo after eight weeks.

The study is particularly useful for molecular-weight questions, but most authors were affiliated with Kewpie Corporation.

Key findings

  • Both 2 kDa and 300 kDa HA were tested at 120 mg/day.
  • The 300 kDa group had significantly diminished wrinkles compared with placebo after eight weeks.
  • The trial does not support a simple claim that lower molecular weight is necessarily superior for skin outcomes.

What this study can and cannot tell us

  • Small single-country trial.
  • Strong manufacturer affiliation among the authors.
  • Several subjective skin ratings improved in all groups, including placebo, limiting interpretation of those endpoints.

Citation network

Articles citing this research paper

9 articles

Biohack Blueprint analyses that reference this study in their evidence base.

Editorial review

Reviewed by the Biohack Blueprint research team

Last verified

Dr. Khaled Mahmoud, MBBChCritical Care Medicine, Longevity Science & Editorial Direction Dr. Amr Yasser, PhDCardiometabolic, Musculoskeletal, Gut & Bioavailability Dr. Abdulla Mostafa, PhDCellular Senescence, Neurological, Mitochondrial & Brain-Ageing Biology