Salons offer banned skin treatments that use human cells

Banned biological products harvested from human cells are being used in UK beauty clinics, according to experts, who warn that the luxury treatments could carry serious health risks.

- Hannah Devlin

Exosomes have been touted as the latest "miracle" skincare treatment, with celebrities such as Kim Kardashian seeking their rejuvenating effects and cosmetic clinics offering exosome facials and micro-needling for hundreds of pounds a session.

Exosomes are tiny packages containing proteins, lipids and DNA fragments that are released by cells. Many clinics use formulations derived from plant or salmon testicle cells, but some appear to rely on exosomes derived from human umbilical cord blood or other human cells, which would be a breach of UK and EU regulations.

"I'm really appalled and shocked. You shouldn't be having human cell-derived products and [using them] on other humans," said Dr James Edgar, a cell biologist at Cambridge University, who is seeking tighter regulation of the products. "These are human biologics and there's a risk for disease transmission. It's not in the public's interest of safety to have this stuff washing around."