German skincare scientist Dr. Barbara Sturm is taking the world by storm with her Dusseldorf clinic and line of molecular cosmetic skin care
Spend enough time looking at fashion and beauty Instagram accounts and you will undoubtedly come across Dr. Barbara Sturm. A trusted name among Hollywood celebrities including Kim Kardashian, the German skincare scientist began her career in sports medicine (she was part of a medical discovery that famously treated Kobe Bryant) and is now taking the world by storm with her Dusseldorf clinic and line of molecular cosmetic skin care.
We chatted with Dr. Barbara Sturm about her product line, vampire facials and the most visible signs of ageing:
How did the Dr. Barbara Sturm skincare line come to be?
After finishing my studies in Sports Medicine, I began my medical practice in orthopaedics with a focus on cutting-edge anti-inflammatory approaches. During that time, I helped pioneer a treatment against joint inflammation that is now known as the ‘Kobe procedure’, after it was used to successfully treat Kobe Bryant. The treatment deployed healing factor proteins generated from each patient’s own blood.
At the same time, I was unable to find an existing, effective skin care regime for myself and my patients that was free of mineral oils, fragrances or aggressive ingredients that would irritate the skin. Since cartilage and skin cells are of the same tissue family, and after seeing the effects the body’s own healing factors had on cartilage tissue of my patients, I had the idea of mixing the proteins into a cream and testing it first on myself, then on a clinical study group.
The outcome was so great that I started offering it to my patients. My line of “molecular cosmetics” refers to the products working on the cellular level, and my approach is three-pronged: anti-inflammation, nutrition/hydration, and telomerase activation to keep the cells alive.