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Barrie Finnin, 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 patented extract 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 depth and 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 journal . 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 rigorous studies are commissioned, companies usually control whether the work is published in the traditional scientific literature.