This Blog attempts to dispel many of the common myths or untruths that have developed or been spread about dermarollers over the years. Wherever possible we have included a reference so readers can check the information for themselves.
Dermaroller Untruth 1
Home use 0.2 and 0.3mm dermarollers induct collagen. 0.2 and 0.3mm dermarollers needles not long enough to induct collagen. This has been demonstrated in a variety of papers including an interesting one called ‘The Dermaroller Series’ by Konstantinos Anastassakis in 2005. Needles this long do not penetrate the epidermis through to the dermis the deeper layers of the skin where collagen induction can take place. Many of the antiaging effects of the derma roller are attributable to their ability to induce collagen and scientific trials have demonstrated this will not happen with a roller shorter than 0.5mm and this is the usually the best needle size to be used on the face. They are often long enough to increase transdermal absorption. Unfortunately it is not always clear on some websites that these size dermarollers do not induct collagen and it is always worth checking.
Dermaroller Untruth 2
You need a 1.5mm dermaroller to induct collagen on the face. A lot of the early research that showed how effective dermarollers were at inducing collagen a key anti aging effect was done on 0.5mm dermarollers. It is only a recent change that some companies are saying it only works with 1.5mm dermarollers. The 0.5mm is usually the best dermaroller for the face as it will induce collagen while causing the minimum possible damage. Particularly for people using the rollers at home it is not a good idea to use the 1.5mm dermaroller on the face for anti aging at home as it usually results in bleeding and this is not very hygienic for home use. Again we always say use the minimum technique to achieve the results you want. If there is no need to risk unnecessary trauma to achieve the results you want why do it?
Dermaroller Untruth 3
Bleeding is good needling. Many people always believe more is better. Causing excessive bleeding does not increase the collagen induction results it simply increases your recovery times. Again always do the least you can to achieve the results you want.
Dermaroller Untruth 4
Dermarolling has to be painful. We are constantly disproving this myth at our courses training practitioners to use the dermarollers without pain. There is no evidence that causing pain through skin needling increases results. There is scientific evidence to show that skin needling can be painless including an interesting study by Kaushik et al in 1992 which demonstrated quite clearly that skin needling can be painless. The full reference is available on our Dermaroller research page. The trick is in applying good technique and this is what we spend our time teaching during our courses.
Dermaroller Untruth 5
Increasing Transdermal Absorption is always a good thing. Increased absorption of products through the skin is seen as one of the reasons for the dermarollers success. Studies suggest that skin needling can increase the absorption of some products by up to 10,000 times in a single treatment. It is time many groups started realising this has the potential to be a double edged sword. This means that good quality natural products can be absorbed and used to increase results. It also means that any products with a history of toxicity should not be used at a similar time to the dermaroller as their absorption through the skin will also be increased. This includes many cosmetic products such as shampoos and cleansers which can contain sodium laurel sulphate, parabens and other chemicals that are slowly being phased out across the world due to their high toxicity. We are also concerned about the on-going use of vitamin A with the dermarollers. There are now several studies demonstrating toxicity with the use of topical vitamin A. Any existing toxicity is likely to be dramatically increased when the absorption rate of the product is increased due to use of the dermaroller. We only recommend using the dermarollers with products which are safe for oral consumption and preferably have been used safely for hundreds if not thousands of years. All White Lotus serums and sprays meet this criteria. White Lotus has been a sole voice calling for more investigation on this issue for some time and we will continue to suggest that this issue need further investigation.
Dermaroller Untruth 6
All dermarollers sold are well manufactured There is no proof of this at all. Cheap rollers sold on auction sites provide no evidence that they have been machine assembled before sale. . Please seek some form of assurance of the quality of the rollers. Please read the sections below for guidelines on how to do this.
Dermaroller Untruth 7
FDA approved or registered dermarollers have been approved by the FDA. This is definitely not true. There is not currently a single dermaroller in the world that has gained FDA approval for sale. Companies are simply self-regulating their rollers as a class 1 medical device. This means they go to the FDA website and pay a small fee and self-declare themselves a medical device. We have listed the section of the FDA directive on our website under Dermaroller Facts which displays the FDA directive involved and that this does not mean the products have actually gained any form of approval. Therefore you currently have no further level of proof of the quality or sterility for a dermaroller carrying the FDA symbol than an unregistered dermaroller.
Dermaroller Untruth 8
There is no way then of judging the quality and sterility of dermarollers.For more information on any issues raised on this page please feel free to contact us or view more information on our website