I am a lawyer before I am a founder. For years I have read contracts, labels, and regulations with the same question: what exactly is being promised, and who is responsible for it? When I created Ellevera, I asked myself the same question about our own product.
What the law says
In the European Union, what a food or a supplement can say about your health is regulated by Regulation (EC) 1924/2006. The rule is simple to state: only the claims listed in an authorized list can be used, and only in the terms in which they are drafted.
To get on that list, an ingredient undergoes evaluation by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). It is studied to see if there is a sufficiently demonstrated cause-and-effect relationship between the ingredient and the effect that is intended to be advertised.
Where hyaluronic acid stands
Hyaluronic acid does not have any authorized claim. Neither about the skin nor about any other function.
There are clinical studies on oral hyaluronic acid, and we have read them. But a study is not an authorization. Using its results to sell a specific product turns scientific data into a commercial promise that the regulation does not allow to be made.
What we do say
Eterhydra contains 80 mg of acerola vitamin C per sachet, 100% of the nutrient reference value. And vitamin C does have an authorized claim: it contributes to the normal formation of collagen for the normal functioning of the skin.
It is the only phrase about effects that you will find on our website, in our emails, and on our packaging.
What we do instead
If we cannot promise you a result, we can give you verifiable information. That is why we declare:
- The exact dose: 200 mg of sodium hyaluronate per sachet.
- The name of the ingredient and its manufacturer: Bloomage UltraHA®, from Bloomage Biotechnology.
- The origin: bacterial fermentation, without animal ingredients.
- The rest of the formula, ingredient by ingredient, with their warnings.
With that you can compare, ask questions, and decide. Choosing with complete information is a form of sovereignty, and it is the only relationship I want to have with those who trust Ellevera.
If you want to apply this same criterion to any other product, here are six things to look for on a label.
Andrea Giraldo, founder of Ellevera
Beauty that starts within.