One substance that is making a big buzz in the supplement and skin care product market place is astaxanthin and it for these reasons that more and more consumers of these products want to know more about it. Astaxanthin is a naturally occurring substance that is found in organisms in nature. It is grouped in a classification of phytochemicals that are referred to as terpenes and it is also classified as a carotanoid.

However; astaxanthin is different from other carotanoids in that it is ten times as powerful and effective. Another feature of astaxanthin that differentiates it from other carotanoids is that astaxanthin does not convert or metabolize to vitamin A once it is ingested into the body in the same way as other carotanoids will tend to do. While vitamin A is required by the body for proper function it is readily available in many common foods and supplements, so people are rarely found to be deficient in it.

In fact, an excess of vitamin A in the system can and will lead to it having negative or toxic effects. Astaxanthin is reddish-pink in color and it is for this reason that many of the naturally occurring organisms in nature that contain astaxanthin in high concentrations will tend to be red or pink in color.

It is red algae that is the prime commercial source for this substance and as demand for it increases due to its being recognized as an effective skin care and nutritional supplement ingredient, so to has commercial production of red algae. There are up to 6000 species of red algae that thrive in virtually every ocean on the planet and they range in size from large leafy varieties to microscopic one celled varieties.

One company that has been quick to recognize and act on the market potential for astaxanthin in skin care products and nutritional supplements is a company called OceanGrown International. OceanGrown International has found itself on the cusp of of the majority of the leading research into the effectiveness and versatility of astaxanthin and is currently heading up plans to increase the overall net global production of commercially produced red algae to answer the demand for skin care products and supplements that contain astaxanthin.

OceanGrowns most recent line of skin care and nutritional supplement products to be introduced to the market place is their OAVE line. With their OAVE line of products OceanGrown has taken what they call the ?inside/outside? approach to fitness and healthy beautiful skin by developing and producing astaxanthin containing products and supplements available for both internal use and topical application.

For years medical researchers have known that groups of people such as native indigenous peoples of Alaska who consumed astaxanthin rich seafoods such as salmon, shrimp and lobster as a large part of their regular diet consistently showed a lower rate of many of the health maladies that afflicted other groups of people who's regular diets didn't include these items.

It was only through more specific and focused scientific research that it was discovered that it was actually specific substances, astaxanthin being one of them that were responsible for the positive health benefits of the seafood that they were consuming. While these foods are an excellent source of astaxanthin the only way that astaxanthin can be taken in concentrated form is in a supplement form.

Also, in that astaxanthin has been found in clinical tests to be highly effective as an ingredient in topically applied skin treatments, to be used as such it must be procured in that form. When applied in topical form the astaxanthin has been shown to have the ability to penetrate the skins outer surface to the skins lower substrate where it subsequently is able to function effectively on a cellular level.