The Hydra Medic acne facial - and its home care products - are based on a new approach in acne treatment.

  The main factors that lead to acne are Sebum, Bacteria, and Enclosure. And when you encounter these factors together, there is full-blown acne, as well as the inflammation, that must be dealt with. To create an acne-free environment, you have to attack all of these factors - and that's exactly what Hydra Medic does.

PORPRHYRIDIUM/ZINC COMPLEX

Repechage has a legacy of finding active ingredients for skin care from the sea, and the signature ingredient of Hydra Medic is our unique Porprhydridium/Zinc complex.

Porprhydridium is a red, unicellular microalga that's high in essential fatty acids as well as vitamins B and C. These single-cell organisms provide a lot of moisture to the skin, and this is crucial. All skin needs moisture, including acne skin. Many people make the mistake of thinking that because Acne skin is oily, it has moisture, but moisture and oil are two difference things. And many acne treatments dry the skin, which can just lead to more problems.

In addition to providing moisture, Porprhyridium also serves as a "reservoir" for ions, and we use this property to deliver another key ingredient - Zinc.

The best nutritional sources for Zinc are oysters, red meat, nuts and seafood. Zinc aids in healing the skin, and it's an anti-inflammatory. Used toppically, it's also an anti-bacterial agent, and it's sebo-regulating.

For our Porprhyridium/Zinc complex, the micro-alga is cultured in the presence of Zinc and then gently extracted. The result is a protective compound that fights bacteria, adds moisture, and helps the skin regulate sebum levels.

SALICYLIC ACID

Salicylic Acid is found naturally in many plants, including willow and birch trees.

It's a natural kertolytic agent, which means it's able to dissolve kertin, the uppermost dead part of epidermis. Keratin is the cork in the bottle, so to speak, making up the plug that clogs sebaceous glands. Salicylic Acid is able to dissolve this plug, as well as any possible thickening of the sebaceous gland wall that's taken place.

Best of all, Salicylic Acid is a beta hydroxy acid, so it's very effective at low levels. A lot of products on the market today use alpha hydroxy acids, but these need to be used in high concentrations and can really sting the clients skin and leave it sensitive.

Also, alpha hydroxy acids are water-soluble. Salicylic Acid is more soluble in oil than water. Once the water from the product you're applying evaporates, Salicylic Acid will seek out oil, in this case, sebum, and actually enters the pore where it can provide its benefits.

ICHTHAMMOL

Ichthammol is a minerally derived mixture of theophen with free sulfur. It's mined from the Tyrolean Alps in Central Europe. Like Zinc, Ichthammol has anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties, but Ichthammol is also an anti-mycotic.

Ichthammol is part of our sea mud mask, where it works in combination with mineral-rich sea much and clay to help cleanse the skin of bacteria and absorb any sebum after the extraction process.

SYNERGISTIC TEA BLEND

Our Synergistic Tea blend is a patented combination of white, yellow, green and red teas, providing powerful antioxidants as well as anti-inflammatory benefits.

The Synergistic Tea blend is a key ingredient in our 3-Step Calming Mask, which is applied a little after the extraction process. The different teas work together to calm and soothe the skin, reducing dryness and scaliness, as well as any redness that might be present.

FREEZE-DRIED SPIRULINA

As we all know, diet is an important component of skincare and wellness, and acne treatment is no exception. Our Freeze-Dried Spirulina is formulated as a nutritional supplement, which clients then take as part of their at-home care routine.

Spirulina is a fresh water micro-alga that contains all of the essential amino acids and is an excellent free-radical scavenger containing Beta-Carotene. It's an important supplement to any diet, and in the case of acne treatment, Spirulina is key because it's high in Vitamin A, B12, Zinc, and essential fatty acids, including Gamma Linoleic Acid.

These fatty acids are absolutely critical, because they help the skin maintain a functioning barrier. Maintaining and supporting the barrier is especially important when there is an overabundance of sebum.

Nutritionists often recommend fish oil for these acids, but even fish get their essential fatty acids from algae like Spirulina.