ENZYME IN EXFOLIATORS MAY CAUSE ALLERGIC REACTION

摘要

The cosmetic industry commonly uses the enzyme papain in exfoliating products that remove dead surface skin, such as Ole Henriksen Blue Black Berry Enzyme Mask and Elemis Papaya Enzyme Peel. The papaya-derived enzyme degrades proteins and is used extensively in the food and cosmetics industries. Scientists at the University of Vienna Medical School and the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna (Stremnitzer et al., 2015) have published a study in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology showing that humans and animals can have strong allergic skin reactions when they come in contact with the enzyme. This reaction may occur as a result of the degredation of tight junction proteins (which join human skin cell layers together) by the enzyme; the skin becomes more permeable, barrier function of the skin is lost, and bacteria and inflammatory cells infiltrate the skin, causing an allergic reaction and the release of antibodies to papain.