 | |
| Product type | Lip Balm |
|---|---|
| Produced by | Carma Laboratories, Inc. |
| Country | United States |
| Introduced | 1937 |
| Markets | Australasia, Europe, North America, Scandinavia, Africa, Asia |
| Tagline | "Let's Take Care of That" "It soothes. It heals. It protects." |
| Website | www |
Carmex is a brand of lip balm produced by Carma Laboratories, Inc. [1] It is sold in jars, sticks, and squeezable containers.
Carma Laboratories, Inc. began in Wisconsin in the early 1930s, when Alfred Woelbing began experimenting with creating his own line of lip balm and other cosmetic products. After experimenting with his products, Woelbing created Carmex on his family's stove top. He began by selling the product from the trunk of his car. Popularity increased through word-of-mouth. During this time Woelbing and his wife poured their lip balm into the now well-known yellow-capped jars. Then in 1957, the family business moved out of the kitchen and into a rented facility in the Milwaukee suburb of Wauwatosa. [2]
After doing business like this, Woelbing discontinued making sales calls in 1972, which had mostly been in Wisconsin, Illinois and parts of Indiana. Woelbing's son Don joined the business in 1973, and introduced assembly lines to Carma Labs. In 1975, [3] due to the product's success, a new production facility was built in the southwest suburb of Franklin; production at the same facility continues to the present day. [3] [4] The company employs about 100 people. It remains under the ownership of the founding family. [5] [6]
Carma Labs began producing the product in squeezable tubes in 1988. In 1989, it began producing it in stick form which had been the longtime form factor for ChapStick and Blistex, Carma's major competitors in the lip balm market. After these expansions within the company's production, in 1993, it was estimated that 9% of the lip balm market was held by Carma Labs. Alfred Woelbing continued to drive to the offices every day until 1997, when he suffered a stroke. [6] He continued to come into the office at least once a week after this, [6] until he died in 2001 at age 100. [7]
The company continued further expansion under the management of Alfred's son Don and grandsons Paul and Eric. [7] In 2002, mint-flavored Carmex lip balm (SPF 30) joined original Carmex lip balm in the product line, and Carmex lip balm became available throughout North America, Australia, Europe, Asia and Africa. During 2006, Carma introduced the DailyCare Carmex with SPF 15, and Internet voters chose strawberry and cherry as the newest Carmex lip balm sticks. [8]
In the United States, the active ingredients of Carmex lip balm are benzocaine, camphor (1.7%), menthol (0.7%), phenol (0.4%), and salicylic acid. [9] The inactive ingredients, in order of greatest used to least used in the product, lanolin, cetyl esters, paraffin wax, cocoa butter, beeswax, and flavor. [10] However, this formula varies slightly around the world. The use of phenol in cosmetics is prohibited in the European Union.
Salicylic acid is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) almost identical to aspirin. In fact, aspirin's mechanism of action as an NSAID results from it being metabolized into salicylic acid. [11] It is often incorrectly thought to be a drying agent; however, this is not true. Salicylic acid works as a keratolytic, comedolytic, and bacteriostatic agent, causing the cells of the epidermis to shed more readily, opening clogged pores and neutralizing bacteria within, preventing pores from clogging up again by constricting pore diameter, and allowing room for new cell growth. [12] [13]
Aspirin, also known as acetylsalicylic acid (ASA), is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) used to reduce pain, fever, and/or inflammation, and as an antithrombotic. Specific inflammatory conditions which aspirin is used to treat include Kawasaki disease, pericarditis, and rheumatic fever.
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID) are members of a therapeutic drug class which reduces pain, decreases inflammation, decreases fever, and prevents blood clots. Side effects depend on the specific drug, its dose and duration of use, but largely include an increased risk of gastrointestinal ulcers and bleeds, heart attack, and kidney disease.
Phenol is an aromatic organic compound with the molecular formula C6H5OH. It is a white crystalline solid that is volatile. The molecule consists of a phenyl group bonded to a hydroxy group. Mildly acidic, it requires careful handling because it can cause chemical burns.
Salicylic acid is an organic compound with the formula HOC6H4COOH. A colorless (or, white), bitter-tasting solid, it is a precursor to and a metabolite of aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid). It is a plant hormone, and has been listed by the EPA Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Chemical Substance Inventory as an experimental teratogen. The name is from Latin salix for willow tree, from which it was initially identified and derived. It is an ingredient in some anti-acne products. Salts and esters of salicylic acid are known as salicylates.
Cosmetics are composed of mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either natural sources or synthetically created ones. Cosmetics have various purposes. Those designed for personal care and skin care can be used to cleanse or protect the body or skin. Cosmetics designed to enhance or alter one's appearance (makeup) can be used to conceal blemishes, enhance one's natural features, add color to a person's face, or change the appearance of the face entirely to resemble a different person, creature or object. Cosmetics can also be designed to add fragrance to the body.
Felix Hoffmann was a German chemist notable for re-synthesising diamorphine, which was popularized under the Bayer trade name of "heroin". He is also credited with synthesizing aspirin, though whether he did this under his own initiative or under the instruction of Arthur Eichengrün is contested.
Methyl salicylate (oil of wintergreen or wintergreen oil) is an organic compound with the formula C8H8O3. It is the methyl ester of salicylic acid. It is a colorless, viscous liquid with a sweet, fruity odor reminiscent of root beer (in which it is used as a flavoring), but often associatively called "minty", as it is an ingredient in mint candies. It is produced by many species of plants, particularly wintergreens. It is also produced synthetically, used as a fragrance and as a flavoring agent.
Lip balm or lip salve is a wax-like substance applied typically to the lips to moisturize and relieve chapped or dry lips, angular cheilitis, stomatitis, or cold sores. Lip balm often contains beeswax or carnauba wax, camphor, cetyl alcohol, lanolin, paraffin, and petrolatum, among other ingredients. Some varieties contain dyes, flavor, fragrance, phenol, salicylic acid, and sunscreen.
ChapStick is a brand name of lip balm manufactured by Suave Brands Company and used in many countries worldwide. It is intended to help treat and prevent chapped lips, hence the name. Many varieties also include sunscreen in order to prevent sunburn.
Aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease (AERD), also called NSAID-exacerbated respiratory disease (N-ERD) or historically aspirin-induced asthma and Samter's Triad, is a long-term disease defined by three simultaneous symptoms: asthma, chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps, and intolerance of aspirin and other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Compared to aspirin tolerant patients, AERD patients' asthma and nasal polyps are generally more severe. Reduction or loss of the ability to smell is extremely common, occurring in more than 90% of people with the disease. AERD most commonly begins in early- to mid-adulthood and has no known cure. While NSAID intolerance is a defining feature of AERD, avoidance of NSAIDs does not affect the onset, development or perennial nature of the disease.
Ketorolac, sold under the brand name Toradol among others, is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) used to treat pain. Specifically it is recommended for moderate to severe pain. Recommended duration of treatment is less than six days, and in Switzerland not more than two days. It is used by mouth, by nose, by injection into a vein or muscle, and as eye drops. Effects begin within an hour and last for up to eight hours.
Clindamycin/benzoyl peroxide is a topical gel used for the treatment of acne. It is a fixed-dose combination of clindamycin, as the phosphate, an antibiotic, and benzoyl peroxide, an antiseptic.
Salicylate sensitivity is any adverse effect that occurs when a usual amount of salicylate is ingested. People with salicylate intolerance are unable to consume a normal amount of salicylate without adverse effects.
Gentisic acid is a dihydroxybenzoic acid. It is a derivative of benzoic acid and a minor (1%) product of the metabolic break down of aspirin, excreted by the kidneys.
Salsalate is a medication that belongs to the salicylate and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) classes.
Kathryn Uhrich is Dean of the College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences, at The University of California, Riverside, and founder of Polymerix Corporation. She has received many awards for her research and work including the ACS Buck-Whitney Award and the Sioux Award. She was a fellow at both the National Academy of Inventors and the American Chemical Society in 2014.
Aspirin is a novel organic compound that does not occur in nature, and was first successfully synthesised in 1899. In 1897, scientists at the drug and dye firm Bayer began investigating acetylated organic compounds as possible new medicines, following the success of acetanilide ten years earlier. By 1899, Bayer created acetylsalicylic acid and named the drug 'Aspirin', going on to sell it around the world. The word Aspirin was Bayer's brand name, rather than the generic name of the drug; however, Bayer's rights to the trademark were lost or sold in many countries. Aspirin's popularity grew over the first half of the twentieth century, leading to fierce competition with the proliferation of aspirin brands and products.
Acne mechanica is an acneiform eruption that has been observed after repetitive physical trauma to the skin such as rubbing, occurring from clothing or sports equipment. In addition to those mechanisms, the skin not getting enough exposure to air also contributes to the formation of acne mechanica. It is often mistaken as a rash that forms on sweaty skin that is constantly being rubbed, but in reality, it is a breakout of acne mechanica. The term "acne" itself describes the occurrence in which hair follicles in the skin get clogged by oil, dead skin cells, dirt and bacteria, or cosmetic products and create a pimple. Pimples can vary in type, size, and shape, but the sole basis of them occurring is the same - the oil gland in the pore becomes clogged and sometimes infected, which creates pus in order to fight the infection and subsequently causes the development of swollen, red lesions on the skin.
Aquaphor is a brand of over-the-counter (OTC) skin care ointments manufactured by Beiersdorf Inc., an affiliate of Beiersdorf AG. Aquaphor is offered in four product ranges: There are two skin protectant ointments. Aquaphor Original Ointment, used as a compounding agent and Aquaphor Advanced Therapy Healing Ointment, sold in mass retail outlets. The other product ranges include: Aquaphor Lip Repair and Lip Repair + Protect SPF 30, and Aquaphor Baby.
Salicylic acid is used as a medicine to help remove the outer layer of the skin. As such it is used to treat warts, skin tags, calluses, psoriasis, dandruff, acne, ringworm, and ichthyosis. For conditions other than warts, it is often used together with other medications. It is applied to the area affected.