Oil of Olay brand was created in South Africa by a chemist Graham Wulff (1916–2008), who used lanolin as the main ingredient.
Today, the brand is owned by Procter & Gamble, an American company, and it's one of its many multibillion-dollar brands. They also dropped the word “oil” from its name and promote it under the name “Olay”. In 2009, Olay brought estimated $2.8 billion of P&G's $79 billion in revenue.
Olay is a medium-priced skin-care line. In the USA, you can find it in every CVS store. Olay is also heavily promoted in all women’s magazines. Below is the example of one of its promotions for Olay Regenerist Night Resurfacing Elixir.
Ingredients of Olay Regenerist night resurfacing elixir
Our scale from 1-10.
- S 1-3: safe
- M 4-6: moderate
- T 7-10: toxic
- L: limited data
Water, Glycerin, Glycolic Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Butylene Glycol, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Propylene Glycol, Panthenol (Pro-Vitamin B5), Palmitoyl Pentapeptide-4 (Amino-Peptide), Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract (Green Tea), Vitis Vinifera Seed Extract (Grape), Allantoin, PEG 100 Stearate, Cellulose, Xanthan Gum, Cellulose Gum, Benzyl Alcohol, Titanium Dioxide, Mica, Iron Oxides.
Result: Safe
Overall, Olay Regenerist night resurfacing elixir seems to be a safe product. It contains two moderately toxic ingredients: Glycolic Acid and Benzyl Alcohol. Although we listed Pro-Vitamin B5 as safe, it is most surely a synthetic form, not a natural vitamin.
