Feb 4, 2009 12:01 am US/Eastern
Beauty In A Pill? Swallow Your Way To Better Skin
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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Skin cream may want to take a back seat to beauty pills said to improve hair, skin, and nails. (File)
CBS
The quest to be beautiful leads some of us to creams, lotions, lasers and injectibles. But what if the solution you've been seeking is found in a pill? It's a popular trend – supplements for hair, skin, and nails – all claiming it's possible to achieve beauty from the inside out.
Dawn Haygood wanted to grow her hair long. A year ago, it was chin length. Then she started taking a new vitamin supplement.
"I always kind of knew that vitamins helped with your skin and your hair and your nails," she tells CBS 2.
They are called "nutri-cosmetics" – vitamins and supplements that claim to improve the appearance of your hair, skin, and nails.
"I started to notice after a month that my hair was starting to get longer," says Haygood. "It wasn't til my hair got past my chin that I started to say, 'OK, this stuff is working, it's really good!'"
She also noticed subtle changes in her nails.
There are a variety of formulas, and almost all of them contain some amount of biotin, a B-vitamin as well as vitamins A and D. Minerals and other antioxidants are also common ingredients.
The all-in-one pills claim to make your hair stronger, your nails longer and your skin more lustrous. Various formulas have been available for years.
"Most of the people will go to the biotin because that has been talked about for decades. At one time it was called 'vitamin H,' for 'vitamin hair,' because it's known for helping people with their hair issues stronger hair, thicker hair," says Roy Alexander of The Vitamin Shoppe.
Says skin care specialist Caitlin Conn: "It's something we have always known in the spa industry to be beneficial, that nutrition really affects the skin. It is definitely a growing category."
Some newly available products say they have even more nutritional supplements and antioxidants than traditional vitamin formulas.
"People I recommend it to, when they come back that's when it makes me know this is a very beneficial product," says Conn.
Any beauty regimen should also include a healthy diet and plenty of water. Prices for most of these supplements can range from $10 to $40, and some over $100. Speak to your doctor before you start any new vitamin or supplement program.
For more information:
Click here for more information from The Vitamin Shoppe.
Click here for more information from Exhale Spa.
Click here for more information from GliSODin Skin.
Click here for more information from SpaLook.com.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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