



Ceradan® Advanced combines ceramide-dominant emollients with a novel, patented skin pH buffering formulation to give rapid relief in eczema-prone skin.
It offers an exciting new approach that benefits eczema-prone skin conditions in two ways:R1
- Sustainably lowers skin pH
- Replenishing the ceramide deficiency that occurs in eczema-prone skin
Working together, the formulation in Ceradan® Advanced targets the two main issues in this condition which are an increased skin pH that leads to ceramide depletion and compromised skin barrier.
The natural, healthy skin pH is between 4-6. When the skin is unable to maintain its acidity due to overexposure to various factors (e.g. use of harsh soaps for a long duration or due to increasing age), the pH starts to increase, and the acid mantle progressively weakens.
There is mounting evidence that application of acidic emollients on eczema-prone skin helps the condition.R2 Lactobionic acid (LBA) is a safe and known alternative to older generation alpha hydroxy acids that shows lower irritation potential, strong antioxidant properties and skin mositurising activity.
As it is acidic in nature, LBA is also able to reduce the skin’s pH as shown in the Figure below.R2

Figure 1: The graph shows the amount of pH change experienced in the skin of healthy volunteers when LBA (L) or a placebo (P) was applied. LBA significantly reduced the pH (* p < 0.05) while the placebo raised the pH slightly. Adapted from Tasic-Kostov Met al 2019
In a study on rats induced with eczema-like condition used vinegar and hydrogen chloride (acids) showed the rats that were treated with them had improvement in eczema-like symptoms compared to those who were not. These improvements included:R3
- Reduction of total epidermal water loss
- Increase in skin hydration

Figure 2: Acids like vinegar (Vin) and hydrogen chloride (HCl) showed reduction in total epidermal water loss (TEWL) indicating improvement in skin barrier function and improved stratum corneum (SC) hydration. Adapted from Lee 2016
In a separate study, eczema-like conditions were induced in a group of rats. These rats were then grouped into those that were treated with neutralised LBA (nLBA), ethanol and water (vehicle) or LBA. Rats treated with LBA showed significant improvements in:R4
- Barrier function
- Skin pH
- Surface hydration

Figure 3: Improvement of skin barrier function indicated by significant reduction of total epidermal water loss (TWEL), reduction in surface pH and increase in surface hydration with LBA compared to vehicle (ethanol + water) and nuetralised LBA. Adapted from Hatano Y et al 2009
Emollients are recommended in supporting the improvement of eczema-prone conditions.R5 The recent advancement of including ceramide-dominant lipid-based formulations into emollients helps address the issue of ceramide deficiency in this condition. The basic mechanism of these formulations essentially involves penetration into the stratum corneum, inclusion of ceramides in the lamellar bodies within the keratinocytes which then secretes the ceramides back into the stratum corneum. The overall effect is the replenishment of ceramides into the skin, reduction of inflammation and restoration of the skin’s barrier function.R3, R6
Most emollients in the market today are formulated with ingredients to reach an acceptable acidic pH. However, the production process needs to balance the formulation with product safety concerns and shelf-life. Therefore, buffering agents are included, which then to increase the end pH of these products. This usually means the acidification on the skin becomes insignificant.R7
All of Ceradan® range of products contain a unique combination of ceramides:cholesterol:fatty acid ratio of 3:1:1, the ceramide concentration three times more than the other two lipids responsible in skin barrier integrity. This mimics that of the physiological lipids in the skin,R8-R10 and effectively addresses the lack of ceramides in eczema-prone skin to support accelerated optimal skin barrier repair.R11-R13

Figure 4: Effect of Ceradan® unique 3:1:1 ratio that helps in the accelerated repair of the skin barrier
Ceradan® Advanced dual-action formulation combines the unique 3:1:1 ratio and a novel patent-pending sustainable skin pH lowering technology.
Its formulation contains zinc LBA that is low in pH, to encourage acidification of the skin and has been developed to:R1
- Be stable at low pH
- Impart a sustained reduction in skin pH
- Reduce pH deep within the stratum corneum
- Be mild
- Inhibit protease activity
- Have cosmetic acceptability

Figure 5: Ceradan® Advanced novel patent pending technology uses zinc LBA with an enhanced delivery system to not only maintain the low pH of the formulation but also impart a sustrained reduction in skin pH. Data on file.
This technology’s unique buffering system is able to lower the skin pH to 4-6, sustainably for up to 12 hours. It does this through a unique emulsifier system for a stable environment so that the formulation maintains a slightly acidic pH level.R1

Figure 6: When Ceradan® Advanced (pink line) was tested against other emollients, it showed a sustained lowering of skin pH over 12 hours compared to the rest. Data on file.
Due to its sustained lowering of skin pH, Ceradan® Advanced is able to protect the pH of eczema-prone skin when exposed to alkalinising soap and water, maintaining the skin pH to its normal 4-6 range.R1

Figure 7: The skin pH on the palm (pink bars) and back of hand (blue bars) were tested prior to washing with soap, after washing with soap, application of Ceradan® Advanced and finally after washing with soap post-application of Ceradan® Advanced. The skin’s pH after application of the product was maintained at an acceptable, normal range of < 6 compared to washing without its application. Data on file