1387 A combination of honey to repair Asian hair from UV-A and environmental pollution-induced damage

Medicine with natural bee-derived products is getting more and more attention. Bee-derived products have their activities on skin proved by numerous studies and have been used in medical treatment but also for skin care as cosmetic ingredients. Each bee-derived product possesses specific components which determine their activities. Honey contains more than 180 ingredients making each honey singular with unique properties. Like skin, hair is exposed to UV and pollution causing damage which leads to porous, dull and brittle hair. To investigate honey care activities on hair integrity, porosity and surface roughness, we studied the repair properties of a combination of 4 honeys from Ouessant, Corsica, Aland and Ikaria islands (all with biological activities previously demonstrated) versus a stress generated by UV-A exposure plus urban pollution (particulate matter-10 like). Asian hair shafts were stressed before application of an aqueous solution of our honey combination and then washed and dried. For assessing porosity and integrity, hair shafts were dipped in a fluorescein solution, washed, cryo-preserved, snap-frozen and cross-sectioned for epi-fluorescent microscope study and image analysis. For surface roughness evaluation, hair shafts were labelled with fluorescein (XFluo 3D, Kamax) and imaging by confocal microscopy was performed. Tomograms were acquired as multiple stacks and computed together to generate a 3D image. Based on the obtained 3D views, the visual appearances were assessed and the surface roughness was measured. Our honey association allowed to repair by 54% (p<0.001) the integrity and the porosity of hair shafts and to repair by 61% (p<0.01) the hair shaft surface from the aggression leading to strengthened, soft and shiny hair. With these original assays, we have demonstrated the repair activities for hair of a honey combination, making this association a promising candidate for hair care.