JOANA MARTO¹, ÂNGELA NEVES¹, LÍDIA MARIA GONÇALVES¹, PEDRO PINTO^1,2, CRISTINA ALMEIDA¹, SANDRA SIMÕES¹*
*Corresponding author
1. Research Institute for Medicines (iMed.ULisboa), Faculty of Pharmacy, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
2. PhD Trials, Lisboa, Portugal

Abstract

Rice water has been used is skin care products due to cosmetic benefits. However, lack of scientific evidence supports their benefits for skin and hair. We developed a topical gel containing rice water in order to evaluate the anti-aging and anti-oxidant properties of the formulation. The topical gel containing rice water was tested in terms of pH, viscosity, biological and sensory effects. Human Repeat Insult Patch test was used to confirm the in vivo safety of the formulation. Rice water presented in vitro biological antioxidant activity and elastase inhibitory effect and the developed rice water-containing gel presented suitable cosmetic properties and was biocompatible with the human skin.

INTRODUCTION
In the last years there is an increasing search for new bioactive compounds to prevent skin aging, in parallel with the increasing concern regarding products from natural origin. A recent trend in cosmetics is converting ancient beauty tips in do-it-yourself natural beauty products using daily food ingredients. This concept is being easily spread through the internet and gaining each time more followers manufacturing at home their own skin care products.

Rice water is a natural, easy to prepare ingredient. In contrast with other rice-derived products there is a lack of information of its main characteristics and scientific evidence on skin care benefits. For example, rice (Oryza sativa) bran oil is well-known for its contents of anti-oxidant rich components such as ferrulic acid, gamma-oryzanol and phytic acid and has been used in cosmetic industry (1) and also in the management of skin diseases (2). Rice brain oil and rice bran extracts has been used in the free form and nanoencapsulated for protection against UVB-radiation injuries (3,4), for skin diseases treatment (5,6).

Additionally, rice bran bioactive com ...