Our ingredients: About our antioxidant system

Pomessence is a line of three skincare products: a cleanser, an exfoliant and a moisturizer.

What makes Pomessence unique is the combination of two powerful antioxidants -- pomegranate and pycnogenol -- that work together synergistically to be more effective than either is alone.

Pomegranate
While pomegranate has been receiving a ton of great press recently, it is by no means new.

It originated from Persia and has been cultivated throughout the Mediterranean for several millennia. The ancient city of Grenada in Spain was renamed after the fruit during the Moorish period and Spanish settlers brought it to the New World when they came to California in 1768.

It is now classified as an exotic plant source called "superfruits," recognizing its amazing concentration of antioxidant properties.

Pomegranate is rich in polyphenols and has been used for centuries in ancient cultures for medicinal purposes including anti-cancer, antiviral and antibacterial properties.

Pycnogenol
Less well known in the popular press, but no less powerful, Pycnogenol (pronounced: pick-nah-geh-nol) is an extraction from the bark of the European coastal pine tree. It is a potent free radical scavenger that has been shown to be twenty times more potent than vitamin C.

What are free radicals anyway? Put simply, they are atoms with an odd number of electrons in the outer ring, making the atom highly unstable with a natural tendency to find another electron. When it pulls the charge away from another cell, it causes irreparable damage, causing the aging process to speed up and the cell to die. Known as the Free Radical Aging Theory, accumulated free radicals are thought to be a major cause of aging, causing tissue damage and breakdown at the cellular level.

Free radical scavengers, like those found in pycnogenol, expedite cellular turnover in order to stimulate collagen renewal and reveal fresher, younger looking skin.