Barrie Finning, a professor at Monash University's College of Pharmacy…

Barrie Finning, a professor at Monash University's College of Pharmacy in Melbourne, and PhD student Anita Schneider, recently tested a new wrinkle cure. Twice daily, 20 male and female volunteers applied a liquid containing Myoxinol, a 1 2 of okra (Hibiscus esculentus) seed, to one side of their faces. On the other side, they applied a similar liquid without Myoxinol. Every week for a month, their wrinkles were tested by self-assessment, photography, and the size of depressions made in silicon moulds. The results were impressive. After a month, the 3 4 number of wrinkles on the Myoxinol-treated side were reduced by approximately 27 per cent. But Finnin's research, commissioned by a cosmetics company, is unlikely to be published in a scientific 5. It's hard to even find studies that show the active ingredients in cosmetics penetrate the skin, let alone more comprehensive research on their effects. Even when 6 studies are commissioned, companies usually control whether the work is published in the traditional scientific literature.