Medik8 Liquid Peptides Advanced MP Serum Review: Does it live up to the hype?

When a wrinkle treatment promises visible results within 10 minutes, we skincare enthusiasts take notice!

And that is indeed the promise of Medik8’s new Advanced MP peptides serum.

The MP stands for mini proteins which means they’ve found a way to engineer the proteins to make them small enough to penetrate deeper into the skin where they can prompt cells to start doing things we want them to do.

How does it work?

Medik8 say the formula is designed to activate the transforming growth factors (TGF) receptors naturally found in your skin and which play a big role in triggering collagen, elastin and hyaluronic acid production.

The MiniProtein is now a patented formula, unique to Medik8 with their clinical study showed a visible reduction in deep-set wrinkles after 8 weeks of daily use by 34 participants.

I did ask for a copy of the clinical study paper and have, to date, not received it. It also doesn’t seem to be readily available online so we don’t know the exact methods used to measure results, only that ‘wrinkle volume, area and depth were measured using instrumental and expert grading scales’.

On more solid ground though, the formula also contains a 30% multi-peptide complex which includes some known smart operators, including the Matrixyl 3000 formula which has some reasonable evidence behind it. You’ll find it in The Ordinary’s Multi Peptide Formula, No7’s Protect and Perfect Serum, along with Geek & Gorgeous Power Peptides products shown below, to name a few options.

They’ve also included copper peptides, which have been shown in studies to promote wound healing and collagen production.

Botox in a bottle?

The ingredient that’s likely playing a big role in the promise of more instant wrinkle smoothing results is argireline – listed as Acetyl Hexapeptide-8.

Again widely and cheaply available, it’s thought to reduce muscle movement by inhibiting the release of certain neurotransmitters.

It’s also water binding, so that in itself can help with lines by attracting moisture to the surface of your skin.

There have been studies suggesting when topically applied, Argireline helps keep our skin hydrated and has some wrinkle reducing benefits.

It also means the thinner your skin, the higher the chance Argireline could work better for you, though expect only subtle results. It’s not botox in a bottle.

What happened when I used it?

I’ve been trying out the serum every day at home for a couple of months and I’m going to start by saying that as with any Medik8 product that I’ve tried this serum has a sophisticated feel.

What I mean by that is they formulate their products to glide over the skin like silk and they can usually be relied upon not to irritate. This formula is fragrance free and easily tolerated.

I didn’t really notice an instant skin smoothing effect with the serum, other than what I would usually expect to see when applying a well-formulated serum to naked skin – there is always a bit of a smoothing effect from the added hydration.

That said, argireline is loved by many for its instant (subtly) smoothing effect so I have no doubt this will be the case for some but I can’t say I noticed a visible effect after 10 minutes.

I’m also a peptides enthusiast and make sure to use an evidenced formula in my skincare routine. At £79 or $92 for 30ml it is yet another very pricey serum.

Without seeing more on the small clinical study it’s hard to know how genuinely evidenced this formula is – how did they measure the results, has skin penetration been measured and how?

Have I noticed big changes in my own skin? No, but I’m a regular user of peptides. So my overall take on this is that it’s a very nicely formulated product which cleverly contains some of the most effective peptides around plus their new patented formula.

That means it’s definitely worth a try for skincare enthusiasts who don’t mind splashing out. You’re covering a lot of bases with this formula.