This last year, our industry divided like never before between the natural, organic movement  and science-driven technologies with buzz words like, mitochondria, telomeres and stem cells.  As 2009 comes to an end, we bring you the top 10 hottest ingredients or trends of 2009.

10. Zemea® (Propanediol) made headlines from cosmetic industry magazines to beauty magazines this year as a corn-derived alternative to Propylene Glycol. Then it went on to receive the much coveted ECOCERT seal.

9. Resveratrol has been around for years as a potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory, but in 2009 got new buzz as an activator of sirtuins, increasing cell life.

8. Japanese Honeysuckle as a broad spectrum preservative. C’mon, how many preservatives sound this pretty?

7. With HQ’s future still hanging in the balance, Nonapeptide-1 came on the scene as the first peptide that lightens skin and prevents further hyperpigmentation. We welcome all brigheners!

6. Superfruits. Why do we have to pick one? They have been around for a few years now but are not losing steam. Acai and blueberry and cranberry, Oh my! Camu camu and goji and mangosteen, Galore!

5. Perflurocarbons found their way into mainstream skin care from their medical beginnings as liquid blood (yes, that’s right, liquid blood) to combat wrinkles and offer an alternative to Botox.

4. With the 2009 Nobel Prize of Physiology being awarded for telomere research, Renovage™ (Teprenone) has to make the list for stabilizing telomere shortening and increasing cell life by 1/3.

3. Eyelash Lengthening became one of the hottest topics after the prescription Latisse® hit the market.  Myristoyl Pentapeptide-17 was developed as a non-prescription alternative, promising 25% increase in lash length and volume within two weeks.

2. Organic. This was the year that launched 1000 organic brands! We have yet to get a clear and legal definition what that means…….

1.  Apple Stem Cells, by far, made the most headlines in 2009, and we understand why! Cutting edge technology isolated and cultured a rare apple’s stem cells that stimulate our own skin’s stem cells combating aging and wrinkles. Very, very futuristic.