ChiaDerm+ Products

ChiaDerm+ bills itself as “a superfood for your skin.” Their products contain Chia seeds and not much else. No parabens, filler, or chemicals; vegan, gluten-free, non-GMO – all in all, it sounds like it is good eat, but what does it do for your skin?

The Test Divas got a chance to test out two ChiaDerm+ products, the ChiaDerm+ Serum and ChiaDerm+ Balm. Here’s what we thought:

ChiaDerm+ Serum by Hermione Wilson, Staff Writer

I chose to test the Serum because I was fascinated by the claim it made to improve acne. I’ve been struggling with acne since I got my first breakout at age 13. I thought once I hit the big 2-0 it would go away. No such luck. I’m nearing the end of my 20’s now and I think I’ve tried every acne product line on the market. Some have made it worse; at best they make no difference at all. I especially have to be careful when I choose a facial moisturizer. I have very dry skin so I have to balance the need for a formula that is heavy enough to provide the moisture I need, but light enough that it doesn’t clog up my pores and cause breakouts.

Adding a few drops of the Serum to my moisturizer – once in the morning and again before bed -felt great. The moisturizer I’m using at the moment is pretty thin, as it is oil-free, but sometimes, especially as the weather gets colder, it doesn’t seem to be enough. With the addition of the Serum, though, my moisturizer went on smoother and my skin felt soft without feeling oily.

After about a week of using the Serum, I noticed some new breakouts on my face and panicked. Granted, a week probably isn’t long enough to see any kind of improvement and my breakout could have another cause, but next time I would test the product out on other parts of my body first (I’m still a Test Diva in training, so bear with me!). Still, I like how the product feels, so I think I’ll try it on my neck and chest next. I’ve even put a few drops in my hand cream and it’s really soothing to my skin after it’s taken the daily abuse of multiple hand washes and the dry winter air.

I like that this product doesn’t have a bunch of ingredients I can’t pronounce. It’s simple and organic and it has a nice mild nutty smell to it. I can’t speak to the ChiaDerm+ Serum’s acne-fighting properties as yet, but as a moisturizer, it’s very effective.

ChiaDerm+ Balm by Emma Corso, Co-op Student

One of my friends is currently on a health kick. And so, for the past three weeks, I’ve spent the bus ride to co-op listening to her rant about whatever new food, supplement, or vitamin she’s taking, and one of the things that seemed to pop up quite often were Chia seeds. She has them every day (puts them in her lemonade, of all things), so when I was given the opportunity to test the ChiaDerm+ Balm, I decided I’d go to her for answers before I started using the product.

It turns out that Chia seeds are one of the healthiest things out there – when it comes to food. They’re packed with tons of nutrients, fibers, proteins, and antioxidants, so they’re not only good for your body and brain, but they can also help reduce the risk of heart disease, among other things. Now, in applying all this stuff to the balm I was going to start using, I got pretty excited. This product is completely organic, and Chia seed extract is the main ingredient. Immediately upon opening it I already knew I liked the way it smelled, but only time would tell how it worked, and after the week I spent using it, I’ve decided that I really like this product.

I used it primarily on my lips (they tend to get extremely chapped in the winter, so I always carry one or two balms and some Polysporin® in my bag), but the instructions said it also worked well to reduce redness and scarring, so I put it on areas where I experienced both of those things (primarily due to dryness), and really began to notice a difference nearing the end of the week. I only used it twice a day, before I went to bed and once I got up in the morning, so it might have worked better if I’d used it more frequently, but I did start to notice a change in my skin by about the 6-day mark. It also helped reduce my dark circles. The one thing I’d like to comment on is the Balm’s “anti-aging” ability. Being sixteen (soon-to-be seventeen), I’m not in dire need of anti-aging products just yet, but as soon as I told my mom about it, she wanted it. She already knew about the health benefits of Chia seeds, so the “anti-aging” thing was an added bonus. I had to keep it in my room to stop her from using it all before the week was over, seriously.

I’m not too experienced with beauty/skincare, but everyone’s got a few favourite products that they consistently use because they just seem to work. I haven’t been using the Chia Derm+ Balm for very long yet, so I’m definitely going to continue using it for at least a few more weeks, and I’ll hopefully get even better results.

I don’t think I’m ready to go back to my old products just yet.