What Makes Us So Skinimitable?
There are many things that make VMV HYPOALLERGENICS® such a one-of-a-kind find. But if we had to whittle it down to what really differentiates us from everybody else, these are the six core characteristics that make VMV so unique.
1) Proven Hypoallergenic
VMV HYPOALLERGENICS® is the only brand to validate and rate its hypoallergenicity.
VMV's proprietary VH-Rating System was created by our founding dermatologist-dermatopathologist. It's the only system used to regulate a product’s claim of hypoallergenicity.
It is based on objective + independent references for allergens: the list of the most common allergens regularly published by the North American Contact Dermatitis Group (NACDG) and European Surveillance System on Contact Allergies (ESSCA).
2) Published Studies
Our products are proven to do what they say they do.
Our claims are backed by randomized, double-blind, evidence-based clinical studies (both in vitro + in vivo).
Such is the clinical validity of our research that many of our studies have passed rigorous screening for medical acuity and relevance by esteemed physicians. They've been presented (some have won awards, too) at international dermatology symposia and published in peer-reviewed medical journals.
3) Created + formulated by a world-renowned dermatologist
This gives us a strong cellular understanding of the skin, its behavior, and its various conditions.
A dermatologist makes a diagnosis primarily based on an ocular inspection (by looking at your skin). Dermatopathologists are specialists trained to make a more accurate diagnosis by looking at skin cells under a microscope.
A physician trained as both a dermatologist and dermatopathologist can provide surface care and aesthetic enhancement, as well as a more fundamental, microscopic assessment of your skin.
This unique background helps us understand not just the skin’s surface appearance, but also its structure and how it behaves underneath at a microscopic level.
This is why our products are designed to work towards cell-to-surface healthy, microscopically sound skin.
Another important note: Our founding physician actually creates all VMV formulations herself with our own team of pharmacologists and chemists - she doesn’t put her name on products made by external laboratories.
She also conducts all the studies for VMV HYPOALLERGENICS® products. She is a respected researcher who performs clinical trials on cosmetic ingredients, laser and advanced therapies, and pharmaceuticals through her own research protocols - multiple clinical trials annually - for VMV HYPOALLERGENICS® as well as for some of the leading pharmaceutical, cosmetic and laser companies.
At VMV HYPOALLERGENICS®, you’re not getting a doctor’s name stamped on a product; you’re getting a dermatologist-dermatopathologist’s original formulations and clinical research, plus case studies from many (often hundreds) of her patients.
4) Each product tested to within an inch of its life
We don’t just focus on final formulations. At VMV HYPOALLERGENICS®, each individual raw material, ingredient, puff, sponge, brush - every little thing that goes into or around a product - is patch tested for skin safety.
And that’s just the beginning! What follows is a dizzying barrage of clinical tests - both in laboratories (in vitro) and on human volunteers (in vivo) with relevant skin conditions - including tests for stability, microbiological safety (for all production batches, from when it's first produced and repetitively throughout the life span of the product), comedogenicity, real-life usage, and efficacy.
And it’s still not over: even after we launch a product, we maintain case studies for years - for the product’s entire lifetime - to make sure it performs as well as it did when it was first formulated.
5) Regularly Updated Formulations
Each new allergen list sends us scrambling to the lab.
The North American Contact Dermatitis Group (NACDG) is an elite cadre of doctors in the American Contact Dermatitis Society who specialize in contact reactions. The European Surveillance System on Contact Allergies (ESSCA) is their counterpart in the European Contact Dermatitis Society. Independently and objectively, they conduct patch tests on large populations (in the tens of thousands, across multiple countries) and collate the ingredients that cause the most skin problems.
Whenever they publish an updated list of allergens, we review our formulations to see if any ingredients have become common allergens. If even just one ingredient becomes an allergen, we reformulate.
As you can imagine, reformulating - especially with our tests and to our standards - is no walk in the park. It’s not something that many brands want to do at all, much less on a regular basis. But at VMV HYPOALLERGENICS, we’re committed to abiding by what the experts decide is safe and effective. The experts say, “Jump!” and we say, “How high?” If that means “back to the drawing board” every few years, so be it.
6) Head-to-Toe Care from Diapers to Dermabrasion
No hypoallergenic, cosmeceutical doctor brand has as many products as we do. That’s because for us, skin safety isn’t a nice perk - at VMV, hypoallergenicity is a lifestyle.
For many of our customers with the most allergic skin or stubborn acne or difficult skin conditions, the pickings are slim.
Even if a customer with melasma finds a lightening treatment she can use, she may struggle to find other creams, toners, or makeup that contain no photo-allergens (which cause darkening).
If she manages to do that, she may not be able to find a shampoo to prevent acne on her pre-teen’s face and back, or an antiperspirant that won’t make her husband itch, or infant products that won’t irritate her baby’s inherited allergic skin.
This is why from the very beginning, we made the commitment to fulfill the needs of our customers...
- ... of both genders,
- ...of all ages,
- ...from head to toe,
- ...preventive and basic daily care, beauty, and advanced protective and therapeutic care.
- And it’s also why so many of our customers stay with us from diapers to dermabrasion.