Introstem is one of the most expensive cosmetic brands in the U.S., with some of their most popular products costing around half of the price of gold per ounce. The brand advertises that there are “grape stem cells in every drop” of their products.

But do grape stem cells actually improve skin quality? Do Introstem products have other research-backed ingredients for anti-aging? Does Introstem use any unhealthy ingredients? And is Introstem better or worse than other luxury skincare brands like DRMTLGY?

In this article we’ll answer all of these questions and more, as we review research studies to give our take on whether or not topical stem cells can actually improve skin.

We’ll also analyze the ingredients in two of the most popular Introstem products (Aqualift and Eye Cream) to give our take on whether or not they're effectively formulated, feature a video showing how to apply Introstem, and compare the brand to other popular luxury skincare brands to pick our winners (and losers).

Key takeaways:

• Costs nearly the price of gold
• Both products analyzed contain ingredients we consider unhealthy
• We do not currently recommend Introstem

Do Stem Cells Improve Skin?

Stem cells are cells in humans and plants that have the ability to repair and regenerate other cells.

Introstem advertises that they use grape stem cells in their products. The brand does not appear to cite any clinical studies suggesting that grape stem cells, when applied topically to human skin, improve skin quality.

We cannot locate any research studies suggesting that grape stem cells (or any other type of stem cells) improve skin or have an anti-aging effect when applied topically.

Thus, we consider the core of Introstem’s product differentiation to be a marketing claim that has questionable scientific backing.

AquaLift Ingredient Analysis

The ingredients in Introstem AquaLift Anti-Aging Essence Solution are shown below: 

This product costs $1,300 and is only 0.53 ounces.

This is a price-per-ounce of $2,453, which is around half of the price of gold at the time of updating this article (source).

There are several research-backed, anti-aging ingredients in this formulation.

Acetyl-hexapeptide 8 was shown to be effective for reducing the appearance of wrinkles in a 2020 clinical trial, as well as for treating a variety of other skin conditions.

Sodium hyaluronate is the sodium salt of hyaluronic acid, which has been shown in clinical studies to have “remarkable anti-wrinkle” effects.

Retinyl palmitate is a form of vitamin A that was found in a clinical trial published in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology to reduce the effects of aging on skin.

Cucumber fruit extract is clinically shown to have a hydrating effect on skin, as we documented in our review of another cosmetic brand called Plexaderm.

There is a preservative combination in this formulation that we recommend avoiding.

Phenoxyethanol is a synthetic preservative found to be toxic to human cells in a 2020 clinical trial.

Ethylhexylglycerin is another preservative that enhances the toxic effect of phenoxyethanol according to a 2016 clinical trial.

Overall, we consider Introstem AquaLift Anti-Aging Essence Solution likely to have an anti-aging effect, but we don't currently recommend this product due to the preservatives highlighted above.

How to Use Introstem

A video on the official Introstem YouTube page includes live product demos and explains how the products are meant to be used in the context of a daily skincare routine.

This may be useful to consumers considering purchasing Introstem products:

Eye Cream Ingredient Analysis

The ingredients in Introstem Stem Cell Rejuvenating Eye Cream are shown below:

Caffeine is an effective anti-aging ingredient, because research shows that topical application of caffeine can reduce skin damage from UV rays.

Hydrogenated polyisobutene was shown in a medical review published in the Journal of Cosmetic Science to be an effective skin moisturizer.

Retinyl palmitate is an effective anti-aging ingredient, as we documented in the previous ingredient analysis section.

Unfortunately, this cream contains three total preservatives, one more than the previous formulation.

Benzyl alcohol is the preservative that’s unique to Introstem Eye Cream.

Phenoxyethanol is a suboptimal choice for an eye cream, because as we documented in our review of Disco Eye Stick, this preservative has been shown in clinical research to be irritating to the eyes.

Ethylhexylglycerin is included, and we explained in the previous Ingredient Analysis section why we recommend avoiding this ingredient in a formulation that also includes phenoxyethanol.

Overall, we consider Introstem Rejuvenating Stem Cell Eye Cream likely to improve skin quality, but we do not currently recommend this product due to the preservatives highlighted above.

Introstem vs. Luxury Skincare

Here's how Introstem compares to other popular luxury skincare brands in terms of formulation quality, in our opinion:

DRMTLGY

This brand uses the same preservative combination as in Introstem that we consider unhealthy, but their sunscreen also contains an endocrine-disrupting compound which is clinically shown to be harmful to human health.

Introstem is the winner from a health perspective.

Winner: Introstem

Sulwhasoo

This luxury K-beauty brand uses fragrance ingredients that we consider unhealthy, as we documented in our Sulwhasoo reviews article.

While Introstem contains some inactive ingredients we consider unhealthy, it's a healthier option than the Sulwhasoo formulations we analyzed.

Winner: Introstem

LifeCell

Like Introstem, this brand uses a preservative combination we consider unhealthy, and also utilizes many research-backed active ingredients in their formulations.

Winner: Tie

Our Clean Skincare Pick

MindBodyGreen Best Skin+ is our top anti-aging skin supplement.

It contains orange extract which is clinically shown to increase skin moisturization, skin elasticity and skin radiance.

This supplement also contains astaxanthin which is clinically shown to cause "wrinkle formation reduction."

This supplement is free of ingredients that we consider to be unhealthy.

Introstem Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Effective ingredients
• Likely to have an anti-aging effect
• Likely to moisturize skin
• Healthier than some competitors
• Neither of the products we reviewed contained fragrance

Cons:

• Incredibly expensive
• Contains synthetic preservatives
• Doesn't appear to be clinically tested
• We can't find evidence that topical application of stem cells improves skin

Conclusion

Unsurprisingly, given the incredibly high price, both Introstem products we reviewed contained research-backed anti-aging ingredients. 

We don’t recommend either Introstem AquaLift or Instrostem Eye Cream due to the inclusion of synthetic preservatives, but we consider AquaLift to be the better formulation of the two from a potential efficacy perspective.

Introstem is the most expensive cosmetic brand we've reviewed to date on Illuminate Health, with one of their products costing more than the price of gold per-ounce.

We consider Introstem to be a healthier option than luxury skincare brands DRMTLGY and Sulwhasoo, and to be equivalently formulated to LifeCell.