22 July 2026
Global beauty brandOriflame has published a new white paper examining how longevity science is moving beauty beyond visible correction and towards supporting skin function throughout life
‘Beyond Anti-Ageing: How Longevity Science Is Changing Beauty’, launching this month, considers how longer lifespans and changing attitudes towards wellbeing are influencing skincare innovation. It also outlines the commercial case for preventative care as consumers seek evidence-based products and greater transparency around claims
This is the first report published as part of a three-part series, with future editions scheduled for September and January 2027
The paper cites United Nations projections estimating that the number of people aged 80 and over will triple by 2050, with Oriflame arguing that longer lives are shifting attention from ‘lifespan’ towards ‘healthspan’, meaning supporting people to live well, feel well and maintain vitality for longer.
Speaking exclusively to the TheIndustry.beauty, Lene Visdal-Johnsen, Director of Scientific Research, Claims & Innovation at Oriflame, said the longevity movement has been building momentum over the last few years.
“But longevity is so much more than just a passing trend – longer lives have completely changed how we think about health, wellbeing and ageing in particular
“That is what we wanted to explore through this white paper series; the wider cultural shift around ageing, the biological hallmarks that shape how we age and how emerging research may influence the future of beauty and skincare.”
The white paper draws on the hallmarks of ageing, which describe the common biological patterns that develop in response to a lifetime of stress – essentially all the processes that underpin ageing in every cell, tissue and organ in the body.
By distilling vast amounts of complex information into a coherent framework, the hallmarks offer a clearer picture of how ageing unfolds, the white paper outlines.
Applied to skincare, the approach shifts product development away from treating fine lines or loss of firmness as isolated concerns. Instead, it focuses on the biological mechanisms affecting how skin repairs damage, renews itself and responds to environmental pressures
The report identifies internal influences such as genetics, hormones, metabolism and time, alongside external factors including UV exposure, pollution, sleep, nutrition and emotional stress as key factors influencing skin ageing. This supports a broader positioning of beauty in which topical products sit alongside lifestyle and wellbeing
“I think the most important thing to recognise is that longevity within beauty and skincare is here to stay. This is not simply a new way of describing anti-ageing, it represents something much bigger, from correcting visible signs to supporting the biological processes that influence how skin functions, repairs itself and responds to stress over time.” Visdal-Johnsen said
Oriflame has almost 60 years of beauty experience and says it has spent more than 15 years studying multi-pathway skin biology
The company presents its patented Oripeptide-3 technology as one example of how longevity research could translate into product development
According to Oriflame’s proprietary research, the peptide technology affects several hallmarks associated with ageing, including cellular senescence, genomic instability and mitochondrial dysfunction
These processes concern how cells age, repair damage, manage proteins, remove waste and produce energy
The findings are company-led and position Oriflame within a growing group of beauty businesses connecting skincare with life sciences
For brands, Visdal-Johnsen said the opportunity lies in developing system-wide, science-led solutions while communicating complex research in language consumers can understand
For consumers, she said that the opportunity was about finding a more positive and empowering approach to ageing
“Longevity thinking repositions beauty as a result of maintaining resilience, vitality and healthy function rather than trying to resist ageing or erase its signs,” she said
This also makes longevity-led skincare more appealing to younger consumers, who want to support skin quality before visible changes develop. It also encourages people to consider how other factors such as sleep, nutrition, stress, lifestyle and the environment can affect the skin
Brands that maintain credibility in the category, Visdal-Johnsen added, will need to treat longevity as a long-term scientific commitment rather than a temporary marketing label
“That means offering consumers practical, evidence-based ways to support the health and beauty of their skin throughout every stage of life.”
