Medical-grade skincare versus standard products, what differs?

A shopper in St. Johns, Florida may wonder what a medical-grade label really changes. The answer starts with what the label promises and what regulators let it claim.

The positioning behind the label

Yahoo News reports that medical-grade skin care, sometimes called "professional-grade" or "clinical" on labels, is touted to be better formulated than over-the-counter products, with higher quality and more effective ingredients that can reach deeper into the skin.

That is the promise. It describes how a product is positioned, and it does not describe a measured difference.

Where the promise meets the rules

The smallest early sign of a gap is the category the product sits in. A source quoted by Yahoo News says these products "still fall into the 'cosmetics' category in terms of FDA regulation, and therefore cannot technically claim to do more than drugstore products."

So the wording on the jar and the claims the product may make are two separate things. Check the claims first and the name second.

What to do with that

Compare what a product says it does against what any shelf product in its category could say. If the two match, the label is carrying the extra weight.

Routine advice that does not depend on a label is easy to find. Cleveland Clinic shares dermatologist-approved tips for healthier skin, and the AAD publishes skin care secrets. Houston Methodist lays out a skin care routine for your 30s, 40s, 50s and beyond.

When a promise outgrows its claim

Watch for the moment a promise grows larger than the claim behind it. A product described as stronger but sorted into the same FDA category as drugstore products deserves a second question before it earns a second purchase.