Soak in your salts: Delving into the biological role of Dead Sea water in skin health

20 Jan 2023 --- Nourishing water sourced from the Dead Sea – renowned for its wealth of skin health-promoting variables – is further being investigated for its unique properties. Scientists are suggesting new applications for the mineral-rich substance, such as its use in sunscreen and skin microbiome products. Meanwhile, potential concerns are raised about its interactions with other active ingredients in beauty formulations.

Beyond detailing the mechanisms behind how the substance helps fortify the skin, researchers are flagging critical issues to look out for when exploiting Israel’s natural water resource – which, as of late, has revealed sinkholes due to receding water levels – and the need for better quality control.

They also shed light on potential “antagonistic effects” Dead Sea water might have when used in a formula containing other active ingredients.

“We hope that this review will help to improve the understanding of Dead Sea water and its related complex, and further contribute to product development in the skincare industry,” highlight the study authors, writing in the journal MDPI. 

Dead Sea water is world-renowned for its skin benefits, although its exploitation has lead to the emergence of sinkholes.Dead salts for living skin
Due to special environmental conditions at its source in Israel, Dead Sea water is renowned for its unique ion composition and concentrations, which bring comprehensive positive effects on skin health.

The mineral-rich water is often touted for its skin moisturization, anti-inflammation, skin barrier repair and anti-pollution properties. The current study delves into the specifics of these biological functions.

“Compared to other natural waters, such as ordinary seawater and hot springs, Dead Sea water has a very high ratio of divalent to monovalent cation concentrations,” affirm the researchers. “The main divalent cations are magnesium, calcium and strontium and the main monovalent cations are sodium and potassium.”

“Additionally, the highest concentration of anions is not chloride ion, but bromine ion, and Dead Sea water also contains some trace metal elements, such as zinc and manganese.”

In previous research, using hairless mice as experimental subjects, scientists found that applying magnesium chloride solution alone can accelerate skin barrier restoration. 

“It can be assumed that the abundance of magnesium ion, calcium, chloride and potassium in Dead Sea water can prominently improve the barrier function of the skin,” state the researchers of the current paper.

“Due to the high concentration of magnesium ions in Dead Sea water, we can conclude that Dead Sea water has good anti-inflammatory potential.”

Striking a balance in exploitation and protection
Though Dead Sea water shows a unique biological role in maintaining skin health, there are still “tremendous issues” to be addressed, the researchers warn.

The core problem is how to strike the balance between Dead Sea resources exploitation and eco-protection. “Environmental factors, such as climate alteration, ongoing sinkholes and geochemistry variation, could lead to the scarcity of water resources,” they flag. 

“In addition to the natural influences, human intervention also threatens the preservation of Dead Sea resources. Water pollution, exhaustive exploitation and changes in biodiversity could all aggravate the exhaustion of Dead Sea resources. As reported, the Dead Sea’s sea level has dropped at a speed of 1 m per year in the last five decades, bringing the challenge of sustainable supply of Dead Sea water.”

The exterior variation of the Dead Sea also contributes to another issue: quality control. “Apart from seasonal and locational differentiation, the ion concentration, the ratio between different minerals and the metabolites from microbes could be affected by environmental changes, which might eventually lead to unpredictable biological effects,” inform the researchers.

In contrast to the extensive exploration of Dead Sea water, the researchers note that studies involving in the skincare effect of Dead Sea mud are rare.Overpowering active ingredients
The authors flag that using Dead Sea water in cosmetic products evokes “great challenges,” not only because a higher concentration of the substance in products might cause potential skin irritation and discomfort, but also due to its relatively high ion strength. 

“This would hamper the stability of the cosmetic formula by sabotaging emulsion thermo-dynamic homogeneity and altering the rheological properties of the whole system,” they note.

“Additionally, Dead Sea water might also impose an antagonistic effect with other actives in formula, resulting in unwanted precipitation or efficacy invalidation. However, [we have identified] a cosmetic brand that has produced a series of related products with broad effects and diverse forms, like hydrating sprays, lotions and creams.”

In this context, Dead Sea water functions more actively than the main ingredient, the researchers underscore.

“Considering this, many efforts have been made to improve their utilization in formulations. For example, scientists dispersed the nanosized Dead Sea mineral in mixed oil (branded Crystal Osmoter) and achieved six times higher concentrations Dead Sea water on skin, for which the clinical tests showed a better performance on wrinkle reduction, firming and radiance than normal Dead Sea water with no irritation.”

“At the same time, new delivery systems were also developed, like liposomes (commercially branded as LipOsmoter) or strontium hexaferrite nanomagnets, which enhance the safety of Dead Sea water and provide a longer-term skincare benefit.”

Thermal springs of youth
Introducing natural minerals to skincare rituals is a popular trend and personal care products based on thermal spring water have been in vogue for some time. For instance, Avène Thermal Spring Water – which is low in minerals but rich in bicarbonate and silicates – was found to serve as a regulator for cell membrane fluidity, antioxidants and an anti-inflammatory agent.

Meanwhile, the mineral-rich Vichy Thermal Spring Water – used in French skincare – from Vichy Laboratoires exhibited more diverse skincare effects, including raising stratum corneum peroxidase activity and the promotion of skin homeostasis-related gene expression. Another of the company’s products, Vichy Volcanic Water, a product containing 15 minerals, was previously found to build a stronger skin moisture barrier and protects against exposome aggressors.

Considering the benefits uncovered in other spring waters, the authors of the current paper affirm the unique ionic composition and ratio in Dead Sea water “may also confer powerful potential for skincare applications.”

Atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, vitiligo, ichthyosis and granuloma annulare, are typical chronic skin diseases with a high rate of relapse. The treatment of these diseases often involves the topical use of drugs, such as corticosteroids, antihistamines, immunomodulators and antibacterial agents, which can lead to great side effects and drug dependence.

“Dead Sea climatotherapy, as an effective, cost-effective and safer method, has been consolidated in many studies for its therapeutic efficacy,” argue the researchers.

Dead Sea water was also found to have a positive impact on the skin microbiome, a growing field of interest in the beauty sector.Future formulas
The researchers see potential in expanding Dead Sea water’s scope of applicability in skincare. The extremely salt-tolerant Bacillus strain isolated from the Dead Sea was found to have significant antibacterial and fungal activity in its aqueous extract.

“One of them can even resist all the tested bacteria strains,” they highlight. “Haloarcula vallismortis is a kind of halophilic archaeon with reddish colonies. Its extract has a significant anti-inflammatory activity that can resist the DNA damage induced by UV exposure, which suggests its potential for use as a biological or natural sunscreen.”

“Although some Dead Sea source strains have been isolated and purified, studies for their bioactive product utilization are still scarce and need to be further investigated experimentally.”

Dead Sea water was also found to have a positive impact on the skin microbiome, a growing field of interest in the beauty sector. The researchers cite a previous study which found that the skin microbiome remained “almost constant” following Dead Sea water application, while fungal diversity was significantly lower than before.

“It’s known that the abnormal abundance of Malassezia [a fungus mitigated by Dead Sea water] can lead to free radicals release and inflammatory skin issues,” they note. 

The variation pattern of atopic dermatitis patients has also been explored after using Dead Sea water. “The results show that the unbalance of skin microbial ecology, which occurs at both lesion and non-lesion sites, was significantly attenuated after Dead Sea water application,” note the researchers.

“The most significant changes were seen in severe atopic dermatitis, mainly reflected in the relative abundance of Staphylococcus epidermidis, Streptococcus mitis and Micrococcus luteus.”

Meanwhile, in contrast to the extensive exploration of Dead Sea water, the researchers note that studies involving in the skincare effect of Dead Sea mud are rare. However, previous experimental results have proven that both short-term and long-term application of Dead Sea-derived mud has a high safety profile.

“It causes no damage to skin barrier integrity but has a firming effect instead,” state the study authors. “Furthermore, Dead Sea black mud-derived masks have been shown to accelerate the wound healing process in mice skin by promoting granulation, angiogenesis and collagen deposition.”

The mud is also found to inactivate common microorganisms and produce an obvious growth inhibition area, suggesting its significant antibacterial effect. “As the seed of Dead Sea minerals, the studies of Dead Sea mud should not be limited to the basic skincare functions, but also more to its applications in cosmetics,” conclude the researchers.

By Benjamin Ferrer