Ferulic Acid , as the chemical name of ferulic acid,  is 4-hydroxy-3-methoxycinnamic acid, which is one of the derivatives of cinnamic acid (also known as cinnamic acid, 3-phenyl 2 acrylic acid, molecular structure). Ferulic acid can scavenge free radicals, promote the production of free radical scavenging enzymes, increase the activity of glutathione S-transferase and purine reductase, and inhibit tyrosinase activity to regulate human physiology.

Ferulic Acid is high-contained in Chinese herbal medicines such as Awei, Angelica, Chuanxiong, Cimicifuga, and Suanzaoren. It is one of the active ingredients of these traditional Chinese medicines and has been used as one of the quality indicators of proprietary Chinese medicines. Among the food ingredients, the content of ferulic acid in coffee, chaff, vanilla bean, wheat bran and rice bran is also high. In recent years, studies on pharmacological effects have found that many ferulic acids and derivatives have pharmacological effects and biological activities, and their toxicity is low, so they have a wide range of uses in medicine, health care products, cosmetic raw materials and food additives.

 

Ferulic acid is a powerful antioxidant, says Debra Jaliman, M.D., assistant professor of dermatology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. It’s naturally found in fruit seeds like oranges and apples, and in vegetables and nuts. Like other antioxidants, ferulic acid fights back against (and can reverse) free radical damage in your body.

 

FERULIC ACID SOURCES

Ferulic Acid, extracted from Rice Bran Oil, is one of the most powerful natural anti-oxidants.  from rice bran oil,  Many plants contain Ferulic acid, which plays a key role in the plants self preservation mechanism, re-enforcing it’s cellular wall strength and protecting it from microbial damage as well as sun damage, . In vivo testing has shown Ferulic Acid to be highly effective as a topical anti-oxidant. Comparable to Super Oxide Dismutase (SOD) Ferulic Acid may help to prevent the propagation of the free radical chain.

Ferulic Acid has been demonstrated to be an anti-oxidant extender, for many of the other antioxidants. In particular the combination of Vitamins C, and E, were shown to double their photo protective capacity on the skin.  It is well known that Vitamin C is very problematic in skin care due to it’s highly oxidative state.  There are several factors that must be controlled for topical Vitamin C to be effective.  One of those factors is stabilization once it’s exposed to air, or moisture, where Vitamin C quickly oxidizes.  Ferulic Acid has been shown to do just that.  Ferulic Acid, combined at 0.8%, with Vitamin C works to stabilize the Vitamin C, preventing the oxidation, which resulted in the creation of the first C+E Ferulic Serum.

The combination of Vitamins C, and Vitamin E, along with Ferulic Acid was made very popular by Skin Ceuticals, C+E Ferulic Serums, which was used for the studies, and is a patented process.  The combination, in their C+E Ferulic Serums, was 15% Ascorbic Acid, 1% Vitamin E, and 0.8% Ferulic Acid.  This is one of the most duplicated serums in the DIY cosmetics arena.  However, when Ferulic Acid serums first hit the market it was only available in a form requiring the use of alcohol, and solvents, to utilize it in topical application.

 

Specification of Ferulic Acid

Benefits & Applicaiton of Ferulic Acid

Ferulic acid is found in the cell walls of plants such as wheat, rice, peanuts, oranges and apples. It seems to be particularly abundant in coffee and amaranth (the name comes from the Greek for “the one that does not wither,” presumably as a result of all the ferulic acid). It is an antioxidant that can seek and destroy several different types of free radical – ‘superoxide’, ‘hydroxyl radical’, and ‘nitric oxide’; according to a 2002 Japanese study.

A 2004 Italian study concluded that ferulic acid is a more powerful antioxidant than alpha-tocopherol (vitamin E), beta-carotene, and ascorbic acid (Vitamic C). Meanwhile, Duke University researchers blended it with vitamin C and E and proclaimed it a “potent ubiquitous plant anti-oxidant”. In fact, it was discovered to act synergistically with other antioxidants and, in this case, rendered the vitamins C and E more powerful. The Duke Study found it particularly good for preventing sun damage, and studies elsewhere have demonstrated that exposure to ultraviolet light actually increases the antioxidant power of ferulic acid.

Naturally, this super antioxidant does more than prevent wrinkles. It fights cancer, is helpful for diabetics and even reduces hot flashes.

1. Improve Brain Heart Blood Health

Ferulic acid is a kind of aromatic acid commonly found in the plant world. It is a component of cork. It is rarely present in free form in plants, and is mainly combined with oligosaccharides, polyamines, lipids and polysaccharides. It has many health functions, such as scavenging free radicals, anti-thrombosis, anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory, inhibiting tumors, preventing and treating high blood pressure, heart disease, and enhancing sperm motility. Ferulic acid has low toxicity and is easy to be metabolized by the human body. It can be used as a food preservative and has a wide range of uses in food and medicine.

 

Ferulic acid has the effects of inhibiting platelet aggregation, sputum, and inhibition of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Clinically, ferulic acid is mainly used for adjuvant treatment of vascular diseases such as arteriosclerosis, coronary heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, glomerular disease, pulmonary hypertension, diabetic angiopathy, vasculitis, and leukopenia and thrombocytopenia. It can be used for the treatment of migraine and vascular headache. As a leukocyte drug, the drug also has the effect of enhancing hematopoietic function. Therefore, ferulic acid can also be used for the treatment of white blood cells and thrombocytopenia.

 

 

2.Hypolipidemic

 

Ferulic acid can competitively inhibit the activity of mevalonate-5-pyrophosphate dehydrogenase in the liver and inhibit the synthesis of cholesterol in the liver, thereby achieving the purpose of lowering blood fat.

 

3. Antibacterial Effect

The inhibitory effect of ferulic acid on bacteria is more broadly distributed. It has been found that ferulic acid can inhibit Shigella, Klebsiella, Enterobacter, Escherichia coli, Citrobacter, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, etc. The growth of pathogenic bacteria and 11 microorganisms cause food spoilage.

 

4. Food Additives

Japan has been approved for use as a food antioxidant. In the United States and some European countries, some herbs, coffee, and vanilla beans containing higher amounts of ferulic acid are allowed to be used as antioxidants. Ferulic acid is mainly used in the food industry for the preparation of natural vanillin, antioxidants, preservatives, crosslinkers and functional enhancers.

 

5. Skincare

Ferulic Acid serums have many benefits for the skin. For starters, it not only protects the skin from the sun’s harmful rays, but it actually helps reverse some of the damage your skin has already suffered due to the sun.

• This protection increases when ferulic acid serums are combined with vitamins E and C. Ferulic acid are also considered to be a super anti-oxidant which means that it can protect your skin from free radicals which is a major cause of aging.
• It also promotes collagen production which is vital to your skin looking more youthful and retaining its elasticity.
• In addition, after using a good Ferulic acid serum for a period of time, users find that their skin is smoother and softer as well as younger-looking.
• It also helps to stabilize vitamins C and E in the same serum, significantly increasing the anti-aging properties of all three ingredients.

• Sum Benefits: Anti-Ageing, Sun Protection, Skin Whitening & Brightening, Preserves Vitamins.